Maybe; on the other hand we have two large Swedish hardware websites painting a very different picture: (Can't post a google translate link to the first website, because translate looks like an adblocker to the site... )It has been $499 since day 1 and hasn't changed at any point, it didn't become $100 more expensive.
https://www.nordichardware.se/nyhet...r-inga-fler-rx-vega-64-kort-6-000-kronor.html
Google Translate excerpts, because I'm too lazy to do it myself - be aware of possible lingual weirdness:
It quickly turned out that the prices really sounded a little too good to be true and with only 27 dealers worldwide, it was awarded AMD's reference card. In the north, Komplett.se was the only retailer to receive pricing and allocation of cards prior to launch. The company sold a handful of different reference models for SEK 590, but the cards ran out of 9 hours (!). It now confirms the employees at Komplett that the editorial staff had been in touch with during the week.
The same source also confirms that no more RX Vega 64 graphics cards will be sold for this price tag in the near future. SEK 5 090 was an introductory offer and the new price tag is SEK 6 090, but perhaps even higher for other Swedish stores. Other retailers have listed Radeon RX Vega for 6,200 - 6,400 SEK without any accompanying games, which further puzzles the media and consumers.
AMD refuses to comment
AMD has, despite great pressures from, among other things, NordicHardware and our colleagues in the Nordic region, not delivered any statement about the misleading pricing at launch. Accordingly, NordicHardware decided, shortly after the publication of our test article (36 hours later), to change both the heading and the end result, to reflect the price data available in Swedish stores.
Google translate link:
https://translate.google.se/transla...ingen-av-radeon-rx-vega-64&edit-text=&act=url
Important excerpts: (my emphasis.)
Nevertheless, it was a welcome launch, as it meant that AMD returned to the performance segment and at a competitive price - at least initially. Behind the scenes there was an uneasiness in the editorial board about Swedish prices, which made it impossible to judge the duo fairly.
Now, however, more and more points out that the first prices were no more than a way to get attention and good reviews in tests. The AMD Radeon RX Vega 64 actually costs a thousand kronor more and this seems to have been the plan from the start.
The recommended price of SEK 5 090 was still too low to sue, and AMD's representative double-checked therefore with his sales representative for the Nordic region, to announce later that he confirmed the price picture. When signed was still skeptical and said it had to be a limited campaign, the answer came: "You're seeing something that's not there" .
The fact that we initially were skeptical can be attributed to three years of direct incorrect AMD prices, which means that we always need to confirm the prices of third parties. That is, dealers. Prior to each launch in the last three years, the company has published a recommended price to the media, which can therefore be used for assessment, but later proved to be a purchase price that naturally amounts to several hundred kronor below the retail price.
What is worth mentioning is that AMD is the only operator to communicate prices in this way, as others usually manage to deliver Swedish prices that are correct when the product is found in the store on the launch day. Whatever the manufacturer, SweClockers has the practice of double checking that prices are correct.
When AMD is placed against the wall about this we get no wise answers, but they fall back on an inconsistent response that it is the dealers who put the prices.
So forgive me for being sceptical if AMD puts blame on retailers for raised prices, as this would seem to be a pattern of behavior of theirs, due to their underreporting of their own retailer prices (presenting supplier cost as retail price.)
Neither website has posted any retractions or further comments from AMD in the days since posting these articles, so as far as I am concerned these facts still stand.