Nvidia may have RTX 5000 Super GPUs ready, but costly 3GB GDDR7 is holding them back

[midian182]

Rumor mill: The RTX 5000 series is real – according to reports, an Nvidia board partner already has one of the cards in its possession. However, a familiar problem is preventing them from being released, one that will come as no surprise to anyone.

The latest RTX 5000 Super story, which comes from VideoCardz, claims that Nvidia has told the board partner holding onto the card that it can't be released yet because of the price of 3GB GDDR7 memory components.

The publication's sources say that a 3GB GDDR7 chip currently costs between $60 and $70, while a standard 2GB GDDR7 chip is just $20. Paying over three times more for a 50% memory boost is going to skyrocket the cards' BOM cost.

At a time when components already cost a fortune as AI hyperscalers snap up all the DRAM and NAND manufacturing capacity, releasing RTX 5000 Super cards with comically high price tags isn't going to prove popular.

Another issue is that since 2025, Nvidia has left it to board partners to source their own memory chips. If these companies are told by Nvidia that they have to sell the Super series at or close to MSRP, they're likely not to make any cards at all, rather than take a huge loss on each one sold.

Using 3GB GDDR7 memory chips allows Nvidia to push up the cards' memory capacity without changing the number of memory modules or altering the memory bus. But their high price is proving to be an issue.

Three RTX 5000 Super models are reportedly in the works: the GeForce RTX 5080 Super, RTX 5070 Ti Super and RTX 5070 Super. This aligns with previous rumors, which included some of those cards' alleged specs.

	RTX 5080	RTX 5080 Super	RTX 5070 Ti	RTX 5070 Ti Super	RTX 5070	RTX 5070 Super
GPU Die	GB203				GB205
CUDA Cores	10,752		8,960		6,144	6,400
Memory Capacity	16 GB	24 GB	16 GB	24 GB	12 GB	18 GB
Memory Speed	30 Gbps	32 Gbps	28 Gbps
Bus Type	256-bit				192-bit
Total Board Power	360W	415W	300W	350W	250W	275W

Nvidia is also said to have an RTX 5050 9GB ready that uses the 3GB GDDR7 models. Like the Super series, its release date still hasn't been decided because of the chips' prohibitive price.

If Nvidia really is waiting for memory prices to drop before releasing the cards, it could be a while before we see them. SK Hynix predicts that 2027 will be the worst year ever for the industry from a supply perspective, and that demand will continue to outpace supply even beyond 2030.

This is the latest piece of RTX 5000 Super news we've heard recently. The RTX 5080 Super just appeared in Seasonic's PSU calculator, joining the RTX 5070 Super and RTX 5070 Ti Super, which were added in September.

Renowned leaker MEGAsizeGPU, who has a good track record when it comes to Nvidia rumors, said last month that the RTX 5000 Super series could be released this year, but that's looking increasingly less likely.

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Nvidia may have RTX 5000 Super GPUs ready, but costly 3GB GDDR7 is holding them back

 

[TechSavy101]

$5080 for 5080 super.
$5070 for 5070 super.
Just watch they will come up with something similar to this.

 

[Vixiy]

Why is 3GB GDDR7 costly, Nvidia?
WHY IS IT COSTLY MOTHER****ER!?

 

[ScottSoapbox]

LOL. 3GB chips must have been cheaper when the Supers were restarted. Now they’re DOA.

 

[yRaz]

Why is 3GB GDDR7 costly, Nvidia?
WHY IS IT COSTLY MOTHER****ER!?

It's not costly to consumers, they pass all their costs into consumers. They know that the costs are so high that people probably won't buy them in large numbers.

 

[opckieran]

I don't see why nVidia would even bother with a Super refresh with record profits in AI/DC. It would eat into their pro profits if they had to allocate VRAM towards the gaming sector.

 

[Kirby1]

No one cares about the super refresh at this point.

 

[Theinsanegamer]

I don't see why nVidia would even bother with a Super refresh with record profits in AI/DC. It would eat into their pro profits if they had to allocate VRAM towards the gaming sector.

Frankly, nVidia shouldnt even bother with super cards. Gamers are gonna whine and crap their pants no matter what they do, so they shouldnt release anything over the 5060ti ever again, and just full port into AI cards for a few more years.

 

[poshflamingos]

Making Super versions of the 5080 and 5070 Ti is such a waste. Those cards are already fine with their 16 GB, making 24 GB versions will help games little and just make them even more attractive to AI users instead.

The card that needs those 3 GB chips the most is the 5060, which is the one that is crippled by its measly 8 GB of VRAM. A 12 GB version of it would be a huge improvement for gaming but little improvement for AI usage. The 5070 would also benefit from it, to a lower extent. Anything beyond that is a mistake.

 

[yRaz]

Making Super versions of the 5080 and 5070 Ti is such a waste. Those cards are already fine with their 16 GB, making 24 GB versions will help games little and just make them even more attractive to AI users instead.

The card that needs those 3 GB chips the most is the 5060, which is the one that is crippled by its measly 8 GB of VRAM. A 12 GB version of it would be a huge improvement for gaming but little improvement for AI usage. The 5070 would also benefit from it, to a lower extent. Anything beyond that is a mistake.

Under different circumstances, I would disagree with you about the memory on the high-end cards. I think we are about to see major stagnation in gaming because people just can't afford better hardware right now. It's a mix of the affordability crisis and that hardware has gotten so expensive that most people can't justify the cost. Developers are going to have to adapt to that or their games just won't sell. So I have a feeling that we will see a focus on optimization rather than just pumping as many unreal features into a game as possible and calling it a day. Then, as far as gameplay is concerned, it feels like many modern games are more tech demo than video game.

 

[opckieran]

Frankly, nVidia shouldnt even bother with super cards. Gamers are gonna whine and crap their pants no matter what they do, so they shouldnt release anything over the 5060ti ever again, and just full port into AI cards for a few more years.

One of the worst things that ever happened was consumer cards going over 8GB VRAM. It's not like games look significantly better today than they did a decade ago, yet for some reason 16GB is mandatory? It's ridiculous. Staying at 8GB might have forced the devs to actually optimize their games!

 

[yRaz]

One of the worst things that ever happened was consumer cards going over 8GB VRAM. It's not like games look significantly better today than they did a decade ago, yet for some reason 16GB is mandatory? It's ridiculous. Staying at 8GB might have forced the devs to actually optimize their games!

Well, UE5 bloat and and RT ate it all up. We needed more VRAM for 4k, but RT made true 4k cards are so expensive that no one really bother upgrading to 4k and devs looked at VRAM as an expendable resource.

 

[Gars]

It just going super and super

 

[Theinsanegamer]

One of the worst things that ever happened was consumer cards going over 8GB VRAM. It's not like games look significantly better today than they did a decade ago, yet for some reason 16GB is mandatory? It's ridiculous. Staying at 8GB might have forced the devs to actually optimize their games!

One of the worst things that ever happened was consumer cards going over 2GB VRAM. It's not like games look significantly better today than they did a decade ago, yet for some reason 4GB is mandatory? It's ridiculous. Staying at 2GB might have forced the devs to actually optimize their games!

Funny how history repeats itself......something something 640k is enough for anyone.

 

[toooooot]

So what, release them at the "modern" prices. If the performance buff is reasonable, there will still be people willing to buy. We are probably looking at 1k 5060s, 1500k 5070s. And a lot more expensive 5080 and 5090s.

 

[godrilla]

Cheapest available 5070ti is $899 to
$919.96

 

[yRaz]

Cheapest available 5080 selling 10 % within msrp dor reference. View attachment 90920

That's a 5070tj

 

[opckieran]

One of the worst things that ever happened was consumer cards going over 2GB VRAM. It's not like games look significantly better today than they did a decade ago, yet for some reason 4GB is mandatory? It's ridiculous. Staying at 2GB might have forced the devs to actually optimize their games!

Funny how history repeats itself......something something 640k is enough for anyone.

The point is, we've clearly hit a plateau in terms of image quality or even the interest in it... Look at the most popular games played today, the average age of those titles is close to a decade. 8GB of VRAM (which we hit about 10 years ago in the mainstream coincidentally) was about the time when we arrived at aforementioned plateau...

 

[godrilla]

That's a 5070tj

my bad correction 118% msrp. ty

 

[yRaz]

my bad correction 118% msrp. tyView attachment 90921

5070ti's are decent cards, I still think the 5080 is unreasonable. I'm gonna have to build a new PC here soon and nVidia Linux drivers have been getting better over the last year. I just don't see any modern games worth spending this kind of money on. I wouldn't mind owning a 5090 or something, but these prices are getting kind of silly. I have kind of accepted that I'm gonna have to spend a silly amount of money when it comes time to upgrade and that time.is.coming soon. 5800x3d and a 6700xt. It's really starting to show it's age.

 

[Axiarus]

5070ti's are decent cards, I still think the 5080 is unreasonable. I'm gonna have to build a new PC here soon and nVidia Linux drivers have been getting better over the last year. I just don't see any modern games worth spending this kind of money on. I wouldn't mind owning a 5090 or something, but these prices are getting kind of silly. I have kind of accepted that I'm gonna have to spend a silly amount of money when it comes time to upgrade and that time.is.coming soon. 5800x3d and a 6700xt. It's really starting to show it's age.

Loving my 9800X3D/9070XT right now on CachyOS.

 

[yRaz]

Loving my 9800X3D/9070XT right now on CachyOS.

9800x3d is over kill, I will probably go with a 7800x3d. 7800x3d and a 9070xt seem like a good combo

 

[Axiarus]

9800x3d is over kill, I will probably go with a 7800x3d. 7800x3d and a 9070xt seem like a good combo

I was upgrading from an i5-10600k and the 9800X3D had just dropped. Couldn't help myself lol

 

[yRaz]

I was upgrading from an i5-10600k and the 9800X3D had just dropped. Couldn't help myself lol

Ahh, well I've had a couple "money is no object builds" over the years but I I doubt I'll do that again,. especially at these prices. my last one was a 4770k and a GTX 590. I think a 78x3d and 9070xt will be more than enough for me. Honestly, I just want a new rig to play TES6 on. I wanted to wait until close to release but my rig is just getting old

 

[Axiarus]

Ahh, well I've had a couple "money is no object builds" over the years but I I doubt I'll do that again,. especially at these prices. my last one was a 4770k and a GTX 590. I think a 78x3d and 9070xt will be more than enough for me. Honestly, I just want a new rig to play TES6 on. I wanted to wait until close to release but my rig is just getting old

Yeah, my first choice was a 7800X3D, but I was waiting on some money that was coming to me. Right as I got it the 9800X3D dropped and the rest is history lol. Im glad I built my rig when I did, prices are stupid now. My 64gb of RAM was like $200 when I bought it. Its now $1000.