As Nvidia's RTX 5090 seemingly disappears, I'm worried about GeForce GPUs

It's been a theory for quite some time now that Nvidia is — what's the polite way to put this?

<![CDATA[ <article> <p>It's been a <a href="https://www.techradar.com/computing/gpu/nvidias-ai-dominance-will-be-the-death-knell-for-its-geforce-graphics-cards">theory for quite some time now</a> that Nvidia is — what's the polite way to put this? — let's say deprioritizing PC gamers, perhaps, or more specifically, its gaming graphics cards. But this week has added more evidence to the collective weight that GeForce GPUs are increasingly at risk of being sidelined further by Team Green.</p><p>I'm talking first about the story that emerged a few days ago, where a leaker claimed Nvidia is diverting all GB202 (Blackwell) chips to make AI (RTX Pro) graphics cards. That's the graphics processor used in the RTX 5090, but apparently not anymore; <a href="https://www.techradar.com/computing/gpu/gpu-pricing-to-climb-significantly-warns-pc-maker-as-rumor-suggests-its-the-end-of-the-road-for-nvidias-rtx-5090">it's for AI boards only now, we're told</a>.</p><p>That makes some sense as the RTX 5090 is already disappearing from shelves, certainly in the US, where you can't buy one for less than the <a href="https://www.techradar.com/computing/gpu/nvidia-rtx-5090-gpu-prices-skyrocket-to-usd9-000-as-fresh-rtx-6000-rumor-suggests-a-2027-launch-that-fills-me-with-dread">best part of 10 grand</a> (from gouging third-party sellers, with no major retailers actually having stock anymore). So arguably this effective discontinuation of the RTX 5090 is already happening.</p><p>On top of that, the latest developments are that <a href="https://www.techpowerup.com/353767/micro-center-reportedly-drops-the-rtx-5090-from-its-catalog-as-end-of-life-rumors-pile-up" target="_blank">Micro Center is reportedly</a> listing the Blackwell flagship as 'not carried', and Nvidia itself has removed all mention of the RTX 5090 from its own GPU marketplace (though it is still mentioned elsewhere on the site). <a href="https://marketplace.nvidia.com/en-us/consumer/graphics-cards/?locale=en-us&page=1&limit=12&gpu=RTX+5090" target="_blank">Search for the RTX 5090</a> on that marketplace, and you won't find it any longer — the highest-end graphics card listed is now the RTX 5080 (<a href="https://wccftech.com/nvidias-rtx-5090-disappears-from-its-marketplace-adding-fuel-to-discontinuation-rumors/" target="_blank">hat tip to Wccftech</a> for spotting this being <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/pcmasterrace/comments/1x6pmcm/nvidia_officially_removed_5090_series_from_their" target="_blank">flagged up on Reddit</a>).</p><p>Aside from an actual announcement from Nvidia (which probably wouldn't ever happen anyway), that seems like about as clear an indication you can get that the RTX 5090 has been shoved out of the exit door, never to return, because Nvidia needs those GB202 chips where they are most profitable. RTX Pro GPUs offer a much heftier premium that Team Green can heap on top.</p><h2 id="a-new-blackwell-flagship">A new Blackwell flagship?</h2><figure class="van-image-figure inline-layout" data-bordeaux-image-check ><div class='image-full-width-wrapper'><div class='image-widthsetter' style="max-width:2625px;"><p class="vanilla-image-block" style="padding-top:42.86%;"><img id="qbNbyPDpZWUcwj46SaFPhC" name="hero-alternate-alternate" alt="An Nvidia GeForce RTX 5080 leaning against its retail packaging with the RTX 5080 logo visible" src="https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/qbNbyPDpZWUcwj46SaFPhC-1920-80.jpg" mos="" align="middle" fullscreen="" width="2625" height="1125" attribution="" endorsement="" class="inline"></p></div></div><figcaption itemprop="caption description" class=" inline-layout"><span class="credit" itemprop="copyrightHolder">(Image credit: Future)</span></figcaption></figure><p>So, what does this mean? For starters, if it is true that the RTX 5090 has been scrapped, the RTX 5080 becomes the flagship Nvidia GeForce GPU. Once the existing stock of RTX 5090s has been depleted, this could mean the price of the RTX 5080 is inflated. When I say inflated, I mean jacked up <em>even more</em>, because it has already seen some nasty price hikes. Currently, the RTX 5080 is at around $1,800 in the US on Newegg, or £1,450 on Overclockers in the UK – and those are the lowest prices; it goes up from there. It's a very similar story in many other regions.</p><p>This is clearly a concern for gamers as you can see from the Reddit thread I pointed out above, with <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/pcmasterrace/comments/1x6pmcm/comment/pgy65o3/" target="_blank">comments such as</a>: "If you want a 5080 better buy one while you can still afford one." Really, it's debatable if the card is anything like 'affordable' relative to its graphical frame rate muscle even now.</p><p>Here's where another rumor comes into play. <a href="https://www.tweaktown.com/news/114042/if-nvidia-rtx-5080-super-gpu-arriving-in-q1-2027-rumor-is-true-thats-surely-a-big-hint-we-wont-get-an-rtx-6090-for-ages/index.html" target="_blank">Elsewhere on the grapevine</a>, there's talk that Nvidia may actually release the RTX 5080 Super variant which has long been speculated about. This would be a 24GB graphics card, and it'd essentially replace the discontinued RTX 5090 – with the theory being that Nvidia would also ditch the vanilla RTX 5080 (16GB). This would leave the rumored RTX 5080 Super as the sole high-end GeForce graphics card, quite some distance above the RTX 5070 Ti.</p><p>If that happens, imagine the pricing concerns here – what MSRP would Nvidia attach to the RTX 5080 Super? And then consider the cost inflation that will be added when you take into account that this card will also be sought after for AI usage (as seen with the RTX 5090).</p><p>If an RTX 5080 Super is indeed inbound for early 2027, that would also suggest that the next-gen RTX 6000 family is further away than some rumors believe – as this Super version would be a stopgap GPU to keep the Blackwell range ticking over. The RAM crisis may have a fair bit to do with this strategy also, given that <a href="https://www.techradar.com/computing/memory/ram-is-getting-pricier-than-ever-with-ddr4-up-24-percent-in-the-last-quarter-and-intels-ceo-has-reportedly-said-we-have-another-2-to-3-years-of-this">most predictions foresee it getting worse next year</a> (and the <a href="https://www.techradar.com/computing/memory/ram-to-see-meaningful-price-increases-before-2026-is-out-as-the-memory-crisis-is-predicted-to-last-at-least-another-3-years">misery continuing into 2028</a>, and maybe beyond). Of course, launching a new GeForce range into such memory headwinds wouldn't be easy.</p><h2 id="software-focus-and-streaming-dreams">Software focus and streaming dreams</h2><figure class="van-image-figure inline-layout" data-bordeaux-image-check ><div class='image-full-width-wrapper'><div class='image-widthsetter' style="max-width:1200px;"><p class="vanilla-image-block" style="padding-top:56.25%;"><img id="6NXTvJSGUYDDBYZWZ38oyh" name="GeForce now.jpg" alt="GeForce Now" src="https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/6NXTvJSGUYDDBYZWZ38oyh-1920-80.jpg" mos="" align="middle" fullscreen="" width="1200" height="675" attribution="" endorsement="" class="inline"></p></div></div><figcaption itemprop="caption description" class=" inline-layout"><span class="credit" itemprop="copyrightHolder">(Image credit: Nvidia)</span></figcaption></figure><p>All in all, it feels to me like there's a stream of subtle – and not so subtle – hints and rumors that Nvidia is very much slowing down the development of gaming GPUs (while not wanting to give that impression, naturally). The other part of the equation here is the increased focus on the software side, of course, rather than the hardware. DLSS 5 is out and Nvidia is already pushing hard with honing and refining that neural rendering tech, and something else that happened earlier this week was that <a href="https://www.techradar.com/computing/gpu/half-the-gpu-overhead-with-comparable-visual-fidelity-nvidia-dramatically-improves-dlss-5-which-is-great-but-gamers-want-it-on-more-gpus">Team Green highlighted some big leaps in performance here</a>. Pretty huge strides forward, in fact.</p><p>Of course, you could argue that all the development resources being ploughed into DLSS – including frame generation, which got a hefty boost alongside DLSS 5 – shows Nvidia <em>isn't</em> abandoning gaming GPUs for PC gamers. And I concede that's true to an extent, but there is very much a vibe of a major slowdown leading towards the feared deprioritization of GeForce GPUs – and there's another angle to consider here too: cloud gaming.</p><p>Don't forget that GeForce Now also benefits from DLSS. Just this week, <a href="https://blogs.nvidia.com/blog/geforce-now-thursday-enshrouded-update/" target="_blank">Nvidia added DLSS 4.5</a> override controls to the streaming service to help push up frame rates – those on the RTX 5080 (Ultimate) plan can use Dynamic Multi Frame Generation of up to 4x now. Ray Reconstruction for bolstering ray-traced visuals is available, too, among other options.</p><p>Would Nvidia rather have you subscribed to its cloud gaming service, making monthly payments, than buying a GeForce GPU for a one-off sum? It seems an obvious direction for the company to be heading in, and with increasing warning signs around Team Green's gaming GPUs, I'm becoming more convinced that this is where Nvidia's priorities are shifting for the future of PC gaming.</p><p>This isn't to say GeForce graphics cards are definitely on their way out, or that an RTX 6000 line-up won't happen – it's already well underway after all – but beyond the next generation, I'm increasingly dubious about where GeForce GPUs might fit into the big PC gaming picture. Between AI demand and cloud gaming (plus increasingly faster internet connections), there's a squeeze underway that could prove painful for the GeForce line-up – and the ongoing RAM crisis is hardly helping, either.</p> </article> ]]>