There’s a perfect storm coming to rain on Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 50 Series parade. It appears that RTX 5090 and 5080 graphics cards are in short supply right before launch and will remain so for a while longer, possibly months. With so few units to go around amidst what will inevitably be high levels of demand, you might want to prepare yourself for disappointment or to pay a kingly sum should you want one for yourself.
These reports are emerging from outlets and retailers alike but Benchlife provides some possible context for the shortage. It claims that “communication issues between Nvidia and AIC partners” are to blame. Chinese New Year is also a contributing factor, taking place the day before the January 30 launch of GeForce RTX 50 Series.
While Benchlife seems confident that supply constraints will ease in February, others are less hopeful. According to Dan Nystedt, translating and citing a UDN article, these problems may not resolve until Q2 (April-June) of this year at least. Worse still, pricing for GeForce RTX 5090 and 5080 has already doubled in some regions making already-expensive graphics cards all the more so.
Tempting as it is easy to allow FOMO to guide your purchasing decisions, I’d sooner steer you to exercising patience. There are few if any justifiable reasons to purchase GeForce RTX 50 Series at prices well-north of MSRP, especially when this shortage though inconvenient will eventually pass. Waiting a while longer will also give you a better lay of the land, as GeForce RTX 5070 and Radeon RX 9000 Series will be with us before long.
Should you need a replacement graphics card more immediately, just be aware that this shortage will likely place pressure on GeForce RTX 40 Series pricing too. Nvidia reportedly ended production of its prior generation months ago, making it difficult to find high-end models at all, let alone at MSRP. Make sure to pay extra scrutiny to prices, used and new, to ensure you’re not getting a poor deal. Alternatively, stock of Radeon RX 7000 Series remains relatively healthy save for RX 7900 GRE and offers plenty of solid alternatives.
If you’re set on grabbing Nvidia’s new flagship come launch, check out our GeForce RTX 5090 Founders Edition unboxing to whet your appetite further. You can expect the official Club386 verdict of the card soon, so make sure you’re following the site on Google News and wherever else you get your thoughts on tech.
