Whistleblower Edward Snowden calls Nvidia's RTX 5000 series a crime against consumers, blasts paltry VRAM

[midian182]

What just happened? It really says something about how disappointing Nvidia's RTX 5000 series is proving to be when Edward Snowden publicly criticizes it. The infamous whistleblower has slammed the cards' poor value and low amounts of VRAM, calling Blackwell a "monopolistic crime against the consumer."

Snowden, the former NSA contractor who leaked classified documents in 2013 revealing the agency's global surveillance programs, isn't a fan of the RTX 5000 series.

In a post to his official X account, Snowden blamed endless next-quarter thinking for reducing Nvidia's brand to "F-tier value for S-tier prices."

Snowden went on to blast the other element of Blackwell consumer graphics cards that has upset gamers: the disappointing amount of VRAM found in the products. He writes that the RTX 5070 should have a minimum of 16GB instead of the 12GB of GDDR7 it offers.

Endless next-quarter thinking has reduced the Nvidia brand to "F-tier value for S-tier prices". 5070 should have had 16GB VRAM minimum, 5080 w 24/32 SKUs, 5090 32/48/+. Releasing a $1,000+ GPU in 2025 with a crippling 16GB is a monopolistic crime against the consumer.

– Edward Snowden (@Snowden) January 31, 2025

Snowden adds that the RTX 5080, which, like the RTX 5070 Ti, has just 16GB of VRAM, should be available in two SKUs offering 24GB and 32GB of memory. He also believes that the 32GB RTX 5090 should also have alternative versions with 48GB and more VRAM.

We have to agree with Snowden on this one. Our review of the RTX 5080 highlighted the poor generational improvements of the $1,000 card, which has a cost-per-frame that is around 10% (at best) better than the RTX 4080 Super. We gave the card a score of 70.

Also see: Nvidia's RTX 5080 is Actually an RTX 5070

While we acknowledged that the RTX 5090 is now at the top of the stack when it comes to raw gaming performance, the 30% uptick for what will be at least a 25% price increase certainly isn't great.

As for the VRAM, Nvidia no doubt limited the amount in the 5080 in the hopes of pushing people onto the $2,000 RTX 5090. The ungenerous amount of memory also leaves the door open for Nvidia to release RTX 5000 Super-series cards in the future with more VRAM and higher price tags.

Despite the mostly negative press and consumer reaction, gamers (and scalpers) were camping out at stores for days ahead of the RTX 5090 and 5080 launch last week. There were also chaotic scenes in Japan as people queued to win a chance to buy one of the cards.

The severe stock shortages of the Blackwell cards have led many people to label this a paper launch. Numerous Micro Center outlets were allocated only handfuls of GPUs, especially RTX 5090s. In some cases, just four or five of the flagships were available to purchase.

Permalink to story:

Whistleblower Edward Snowden calls Nvidia's RTX 5000 series a crime against consumers, blasts paltry VRAM

 

[The Talking Tech]

Nvidia's poor value and high prices are a crime to consumers, but the main issue here are the consumers themselves with their compulsion in buying them.

 

[yRaz]

Yeah, the 50 series is awful, even if they cut the prices, they're still awful. There is nothing there. Part of me wishes I bought a 4090 because the 5090 adds nothing to it. Considering the price to performance of the 5090, 4090 owners are going to get another few great years out of their card.

 

[Axeia]

With behavior like people actually camping outside to get one it doesn't matter. Then a share of those people that camped out and got one go on to resell it for even more.

If I was Nvidia or a major shareholder I wouldn't feel pressured to sell for less. If anything I see an opportunity to charge even more. Apparently bad press doesn't matter one bit as long as production is limited the demand is more than high enough. This being apparently enormously successful they'll do it again next time.
No need to dial the greed back until it stops working.

For the actual gamers among us, go buy Intel and AMD. If they don't get a decent market share things will get worse, not better.

 

[Loadedaxe]

For the actual gamers among us, go buy Intel and AMD. If they don't get a decent market share things will get worse, not better.

The real challenge is getting consumers to buy.

Nvidia has built a powerhouse brand. There are plenty of reasons for their success, but let’s be honest, people aren’t ditching them for Intel or AMD. Gamers talk a big game about switching, but when it comes down to it, they rarely do, and probably never will.

The machine keeps being fed, and its appetite grows stronger every year.

 

[Str8Shot]

Recently bought the awesome XFX 7800 XT with the Magnetic air fans, gimmick I know, but a cool feature on a $500 card, in Snow White oh, and it’s 16GB.

 

[bviktor]

It's not about gamers. It's companies and developes using CUDA.

 

[NumberNine]

What is this, People Magazine for nerds?
Quick, somebody find out what Joe Exotic thinks about Intel's current situation.

 

[Subset6]

It’s just sad folks are buying into this, most of the 4x gen sku’s were also terrible value at launch and still are. Gamers need to turn off money flow to ngreedia. We made nvidia ffs.

 

[trparky]

If the results of TechSpot's poll in this very article indicates that RTX 5000 series is a major letdown, why the actual f**k are people buying these stupid things?!?!

 

[JuanDegr]

Nvidia, even with it's stock value today, is a joke as a functional corporation. It's like a shithole country that came to wealth unexpectedly because somebody invented cars. Why do I say that? VRAM is everything in AI. Being a devoted AI corporation while on the same time cutting down on VRAM should be a paradoxon in most multiverse realities. Not in ours

Locking out millions of consumers to use local AI is a subpar move for short term data center revenue. They ignore public AI progress and open source (Nvidia hates open source and perceives it as a threat like Adobe. They demonstrated this repeatedly over the last decade), while promoting cloud services and data center customers. Short term cash flow. Which is ok, one could argue. But even Nvidia's own ACE product or ChatRTX can't be a success, because Nvidia themselves are in the way and stupidly hindering their own visions for a wider and faster AI progress. So those projects stay tiny and have tiny impact.

This is short term thinking. Leather jacket management. They are not loved as a company, not loved by their B2B clients as they pay huge sums. Watch how Broadcom, even being in a leading position with USP products, looses customer retention over time as huge clients slowly react to an overblown pricing strategy. And their B2C clients (mostly gamers) feel betrayed for years now with all the scandals, VRAM being just a detail on the list of disappointments.

They are needed for their products but they are not loved. Which is ok for a while. Maybe even more than a while. Good products and the USP will help to masquerade any strategic flaws. But the second somebody comes up with faster compute, better and open libraries or simply a cheaper AI solution they will instantly turn to dust (look what DeepSeek did to Nvidia in a day to understand how vulnerable their position is). This is all due to bad management and bad decisions. Nvidia needs a new management with a better future vision for AI and for the company, imho.

 

[trparky]

but let’s be honest, people aren’t ditching them for Intel or AMD. Gamers talk a big game about switching, but when it comes down to it, they rarely do, and probably never will.

I did. I will not give one more damn dollar to nGreedia.

I have an all-AMD build here and I'm pretty damn proud of the system and its performance.

 

[unoficialoficial]

If someone has a car worth around $10,000 and receives two offers to sell it - one for $30,000 and the other for $8,000 - I don’t know anyone who would not sell it to the person offering $30,000. It’s not about greed; the “problem” is that Nvidia makes such good products that there is a lot of demand, making them expensive. It’s not like Apple, which is expensive by default; Nvidia is expensive because their products are good and in high demand.
Given that Nvidia doesn’t have its own fabs, if we have to choose where the money will go - whether to the company that brings innovation or to some random people who try to resell at higher prices - I think it is better to fund the innovation.

 

[yRaz]

If someone has a car worth around $10,000 and receives two offers to sell it - one for $30,000 and the other for $8,000 - I don’t know anyone who would not sell it to the person offering $30,000. It’s not about greed; the “problem” is that Nvidia makes such good products that there is a lot of demand, making them expensive. It’s not like Apple, which is expensive by default; Nvidia is expensive because their products are good and in high demand.
Given that Nvidia doesn’t have its own fabs, if we have to choose where the money will go - whether to the company that brings innovation or to some random people who try to resell at higher prices - I think it is better to fund the innovation.

Noone received any products to sell, the shortage is fake. It has nothing to do with them having such good products. The probably released so few products because they knew they wouldn't sell all of them and wanted to avoid another situation of everything but the 4090 sitting in shelves for months at a time or "unlaunching" a card because of how bad it was.

 

[OortCloud]

The “problem” is that Nvidia makes such good products that there is a lot of demand

They used to make good products and now (very like Intel with later generations of Core2) just rehash with very poor uplift and high prices.
There also isn't that high demand for the 50 series, but because they only produced 12 cards it appears to have 'sold out'.

 

[PaladinNH]

The real challenge is getting consumers to buy.

Nvidia has built a powerhouse brand. There are plenty of reasons for their success, but let’s be honest, people aren’t ditching them for Intel or AMD. Gamers talk a big game about switching, but when it comes down to it, they rarely do, and probably never will.

The machine keeps being fed, and its appetite grows stronger every year.

WHY? I've been a PC gamer for almost 40 years. I've owned AMD and Nvidia and have never had a problem with either. I've had 3 AMD cards and 6 Nvidia cards (back to the Riva 128). Currently a 6800 XT, because it's been the best in class value for the last 4 years. Before that, the GTX 970 and 1070 for the same reason. What am I missing? Everything I hear says ray-tracing still performs poorly everywhere, even if Nvidia is better here. DLSS > FSR? I don't know, AFMF2 was a wonderful gift to existing AMD owners and made Cyberpunk 2077 an amazing experience for me at 4K/120Hz.

Now, from what I can see, the 5080 (and 5070 Ti) appears to swing the best value towards Nvidia again in the ultra-high class, but they're not even available. For now, the 7900 XTX holds its own <$900 though, and comes with 24GB. And the 7900 XT is still easily the best high end value option at $650. If they don't f**k up the 9070 launch they're set to dominate anything <$650 (the new mid-range sadly).

4x MFG is way overhyped and only useful to people >120Hz. What am I missing?

 

[axiomatic13]

I concur 100%. I own a 4090, and I see nothing in the 5000 series worth upgrading at this point. Big disappointment.

 

[hover389]

First off who cares what Edward Snowden has to say. Secondly, yes the rtx 5000 series are not a great deal. Guess what...dont buy the dam things. No one is making you buy bad products

 

[Nobina]

Many people are buying these products regardless of value or price, and these are not rich people. I know a guy who spends his last money on tech gizmos and then complains about not having money until the next month's pay. They need to be studied, something in their brains has gone awry due to absorbing too many ads.

 

[Impudicus]

The real challenge is getting consumers to buy.

Nvidia has built a powerhouse brand. There are plenty of reasons for their success, but let’s be honest, people aren’t ditching them for Intel or AMD. Gamers talk a big game about switching, but when it comes down to it, they rarely do, and probably never will.

The machine keeps being fed, and its appetite grows stronger every year.

This release might be the one to get more to switch, but it also depends on AMDs performance, it's an opportunity for AMD, can they step up and take advantage?

 

[hover389]

Many people are buying these products regardless of value or price, and these are not rich people. I know a guy who spends his last money on tech gizmos and then complains about not having money until the next month's pay. They need to be studied, something in their brains has gone awry due to absorbing too many ads.

Yup they spend what little money they have on these products and then complain that Nvidia is cheating consumers and basically stealing from them. Total disregard for personal responsibility

 

[airbornex]

When Snowden starts talking GPUs, you know something's seriously wrong. The guy who exposed global surveillance is now calling out Nvidia for its memory crimes...

Meanwhile, actual gamers are out here refreshing Newegg like it’s a Call of Duty loot crate.

 

[poohbear]

I agree. But also your last 2 paragraphs acknowledged that they are completely sold out. So, why on earth would they drop prices if consumers are MORE than willing to pay them? In any other sector we'd concede that, but in this sector we keep calling them "greedy" instead of blaming the consumers.

I concur 100%. I own a 4090, and I see nothing in the 5000 series worth upgrading at this point. Big disappointment.

The next gen cards aren't for owners of the current generation (I.e. 4000 series). The 5000 series are for 3000 series owners and before. It's been like this since forever with GPUs and even CPUs, and even CPUs are now upgraded every 4-5 generations for most people.

 

[poohbear]

They used to make good products and now (very like Intel with later generations of Core2) just rehash with very poor uplift and high prices.
There also isn't that high demand for the 50 series, but because they only produced 12 cards it appears to have 'sold out'.

Agreed, I wa surprised by how lack lustre this launch was...but we have yet to see how games will hanld DLSS 4 and the value they're pushing it to be.

But you're forgetting a very important part to the Intel narrative: AMD. If it wasn't for competition from AMD, we'd still be stuck with quad core intel CPUs.

There is no such competition with Nvidia.

 

[toooooot]

If you take every first letter of every word in his message, it reads "I am a prisoner here, help me"