We measure system-wide power draw from the wall while the card is sat idling at the Windows 10 desktop for 30 minutes. A reading under load comes from running the 3DMark Fire Strike Ultra stress test 20 times.
Power draw is significantly improved, however, and is one of the most impressive features of the new RDNA architecture. Our testing shows power draw of the 5700 XT is basically on par with the 2070 S – 2W more, but that is frankly negligible. The fact that RX 590 draws 20W more than 5700 XT, despite coming nowhere near the overall performance levels of this card, shows you how AMD has improved.