More power, at what cost?
Nvidia is expected to finally announce its next-generation PC desktop graphics cards at its Monday night CES 2025 keynote. The much-rumored RTX 5000 series will no doubt pack cutting-edge gaming horsepower and AI-powered features. However, PC gamers will also be bracing for potential price increases and even higher power requirements.
Let’s discuss what to expect from tonight’s event, where Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang will outline the company’s vision for gaming graphics.
Nvidia is your chance at the Mandalay Bay Sports Arena. Those not in Las Vegas can watch the live stream on YouTube or Nvidia’s website. The keynote begins at 9:30 p. m. Eastern/6:30 p. m. PT.
The company will most likely announce the first generation of RTX 5000 graphics cards, the successor to the 2022 RTX 4000 lineup. Gamers will pay close attention to the product’s buildup in GPU cores and video memory, which are imperative for processing. High-resolution textures for today’s PC games.
For now, leaks show that the company is preparing a flagship GPU in the RTX 5090, which is expected to include 32 GB of GDDR7 memory, a huge amount over the 24 GB of GDDR6X of the old RTX 4090. But in a bad way. News: The RTX 5080 may only come with 16GB of video memory, which does not replace the RTX 4080 and 4080 Great.
Rumors also recommend that Nvidia will release a new generation of DLSS, the company’s AI-powered feature that boosts frame rates while sacrificing graphics quality.
It’s no secret that Nvidia GPUs have become more expensive over the years. So don’t be surprised if the RTX 5000 series lands with some eye-popping costs. A leak from one Chinese vendor suggests the RTX 5090 will be priced at $2,600 and the RTX 5080 at $1,350. Others say the RTX 5090 will arrive closer to $1,899 and $1,999; 2022’s RTX 4090 launched for $1,599.
Another potential challenge is that the RTX 5000 series will likely require higher strength requirements. If true, this could also force PC developers to purchase higher-capacity materials to upgrade to GPUs, which would increase costs.
In the past, Nvidia has launched its latest PC graphics cards in the fall. But for the RTX 5000 series, the company decided to push things back to an apparent January event. As a result, expect Nvidia’s event for this year’s CES to be longer than usual. In a tweet, Nvidia says the presentation will also talk about AI, virtual worlds, and autonomous vehicles, three areas that have become major business markets for the GPU vendor.
The latest rumors say Nvidia’s RTX 5080 will go on sale Tuesday, Jan. 21, while the RTX 5090 and 5070 Ti will arrive later. If you decide to buy, expect the graphics cards to sell out fast. Hardcore fans and scalpers often scramble to buy up all the supplies on launch day, with the sales usually starting at around 9 a.m. ET/6 a.m. PT at online retailers.
I have worked as a journalist for more than 15 years. As a school and city reporter in Kansas City, I joined PCMag in 2017.
I have worked as a journalist for more than 15 years. As a schools and cities reporter in Kansas City, I joined PCMag in 2017.
I’ve been following SpaceX’s Starlink network for several years, writing more than 500 articles about feature availability and launches, but also about regulatory battles over expanding satellite constellations, battles between competing providers, and efforts to expand into mobile satellite service. . . I also cover emerging online cyber threats, the rise of generative AI, the ever-changing current social media landscape, and the PC graphics card market (which led me to camp out at Best Buy to get an RTX 3000). I’d love to hear more, so feel free to share your feedback and send me tips.