(PCMag/John Burek)
In a rare move, Nvidia is warning consumers that supplies of its GeForce RTX 5090 and RTX 5080 graphics cards will be scarce on launch day.
RTX 5000 GPUs go on sale Jan. 30, but Nvidia said in a Tuesday forum notice that it expects "significant demand for the GeForce RTX 5090 and 5080 and believe stock-outs may happen." In the meantime, Nvidia and its partners "are shipping more stock to retail every day to help get GPUs into the hands of gamers," it says.
(Credit: Nvidia)Evidence is mounting that supplies—especially for the RTX 5090—will be extremely low. One retailer in Europe, Overclockers UK, has told customers it expects to sell out almost immediately because its RTX 5090 stock is in the "single digits" while it only has a "few hundred" RTX 5080s.
In China, MSI has also told consumers it's dealing with tight inventory for the GPUs.
In the meantime, the upcoming launch has prompted at least a few consumers to line up outside Micro Center stores, which will carry the RTX 5000 GPUs on day one for US consumers.
In an FAQ, Micro Center says it won't have the Founders Edition models but promises "a wide selection of cards from top brands" in-store. The Nvidia RTX 5090 and 5080 are highly anticipated, and we expect strong interest on launch day. While availability cannot be guaranteed, we encourage customers to visit their local store early,” the FAQ adds.
The RTX 5090 and 5080 will start at $1,999 and $999, respectively. But in some bad news, the models from third-party GPU vendors are expected to cost about $100 to $400 more, based on early pricing posted to Best Buy.
If you’re hoping to snag an RTX 5000 on launch day, make sure to wake up early. Online retailers usually begin selling new GPUs on launch day at 6 a.m. PST/9 a.m. EST. Newegg and Best Buy have already posted product listings for the graphics cards, so be sure to visit as soon they begin releasing stock. Micro Center will only carry the products in stores.