Jacob Roach / Digital Trends
It ’s me . I ’m one of the hoi polloi who buy one of Nvidia ’s worst - value nontextual matter card , theRTX 4080 , and now have some regrets . However , it ’s get nothing to do with the performance of the GPU and everything to do with the fact that there are now good options uncommitted .
That ’s not all there is to it , though . Despite meticulous provision , I did n’t account for another expression of owning a high-pitched - end graphics card that only became clear once I used this GPU for a few months . Grab a bite , and let me take you on a journey through my GPU - associate regrets .
I knew what I signed up for
Although it might seem like I did n’t do my research , and now I ’m paying the Mary Leontyne Price , I did n’t buy my RTX 4080 on a whim .
I pass months planning out my newPC buildlast class , and the GPU was the one choice I paid the most attention to . pick a processorfor a gambling build was easy , as theRyzen 7 7800X3Dis an obvious choice , but the graphic card ? Choosing one turned out to be quite a vexation .
I always knew that the RTX 4080 was terrible value . There ’s nothing wrong with its performance — although it ’s significantly ho-hum than the RTX 4090 — but the time value - for - money aspect is pretty unspeakable ; in that regard , it ’s one of theworst GPUswe’ve ensure in the last couple of days . Priced at $ 1,200 from the get - go , the GPU was only about 25 % cheaper than the RTX 4090 at launching but over 30 % slower . The grocery corrected those toll slightly over metre , and at the time of my leverage , the RTX 4080 was price at around $ 1,050 for the tatty model , with overclocked card still reaching $ 1,200 and beyond .
Buying the RTX 4090 might have made more sense at those price margin . Better yet , I could have buy the RX 7900 XTX , which was my initial plan when AMD unveiled RDNA 3 . However , once both GPUs total out , it became clear that AMD would n’t be such a clear - prune selection for me .
The RX 7900 XTX turn out to be just slightly faster than the RTX 4080 , but the latter fared better in ray tracing . It also offered Nvidia ’s DLSS 3 , which still trumps AMD ’s FSR 3 . When I was buy the contribution for my new microcomputer , the two GPUs were only about $ 100 apart , while the RTX 4090 sat at around $ 1,650 ( which is no longer the case , asthe cost of the 4090 have skyrocketed ) .
If AMD priced the RX 7900 XTX lower , I would ’ve been happy to buy it . It did n’t , which is why I went with the Nvidia card . I was full disposed to bear $ 100 excess for a GPU with more rich capabilities . I never seriously regard the RTX 4090 — I did n’t ask that kind of power , and I certainly was n’t willing to spend $ 500 more to get it .
All in all , the RTX 4080 was a conscious decision ; I knew I was overpaying , but I was willing to do it to achieve smooth gaming at every resolution on maximum setting . Shortly after building my PC , I had no regrets .
But if I was buy a new GPU right on now , I never would have made the same choice .
If only I had waited…
Right now , just a few daylight aside from the loss of theRTX 4080 Super , it ’s unvoiced not to sense some regret — and that ’s despite the fact that the new GPU is in all probability going to be very standardised to the one that ’s already doing its business inside my personal computer .
Before Nvidia announced the RTX 40 - series refresh , there had been lots of speculation about the likely specs of the RTX 4080 . I was hesitant to trust the rumour that turned the RTX 4080 into a slue - down version of the RTX 4090 , though , and even more so , the ones that said it ’d offer much better performance at a depressed price . Sure , it ’s decent to trust that Nvidia had learned its lesson when it had to “ unlaunch ” the overpriced RTX 4080 12 gigabyte , but historically , Nvidia lean to go for performance over economic value .
Leading up to Nvidia ’s keynote atCES 2024 , the specs of all three Super GPUs have been leaked enough times that all Nvidia had to do was repeat the rumors . The RTX 4080 Super is coming out with the same AD103 GPU , a little increment in CUDA burden ( 9,728 versus 10,240 ) , and the same remembering contour . Nvidia betoken it ’ll be about 3 % quicker than its forerunner , and something like that was never croak to bother me .
It ’s the toll that got to me .
I could n’t have predicted Nvidia ’s next move , but it still stings .
I have to admit that Nvidia ’s terms snub whole blindside me — in a good room . I ’ve all but give up on Nvidia ever adjusting the prices in our favour , but alas , it happened . The RTX 4080 Super is set up to launch with a $ 1,000 recommend list Mary Leontyne Price ( MSRP ) , mean it ’ll be ever - so - slightly faster at $ 200 less .
The RTX 4080 Super is n’t the only reason I ’m questioning my decision from a few months ago . In fact , it ’s the RTX 4070 Ti Super that ’s receive me think . One reason I did n’t settle for an RTX 4070 Ti in the first post was its 12 GB of VRAM , but the Super reading fixes that number , break the computer memory up to 16 GB . Sure , it has few cores than the RTX 4080 , run around just 8,448 CUDAs — but it ’s still an ascent over its predecessor with the same $ 800 price tag .
Long tarradiddle short , if I had waited , I could ’ve acquire the RTX 4080 Super for $ 200 less or even root for the RTX 4070 Ti Super at $ 800 . Both option would have saved me some money , although the 4080S gain less of a difference because I was able-bodied to bribe my RTX 4080 for $ 1,100 .
Of naturally , I could n’t have predicted this , but still , it sting . My previous GPU was the GTX 1060 , so since I already waited that long , I could have stuck it out a little while longer .
I didn’t follow my own advice
I ’ve always been a gamer , so every PC that I ever built for myself was build up with that in mind . The end goal was to wager all of my favorite games on high mount and then still be able to play newer titles as they come out for a in effect few twelvemonth before take to retrieve of upgrade . It ’s safe to say that I achieved that with my current personal computer .
Unfortunately , I fell victim to the classicPC - building mistakeof not love where to turn back . It ’s all too gentle to do , but it ’s especially annoying because I always tend to state people to think twice and not overspend — it ’s simply not postulate .
My initial budget formy new buildwas much more sensible . But then , as I pick out the component after lots of research and stand by my personal experience , I started slipping . After all , why not spend $ 50 more on a good liquid cooler if I be intimate the one I ’m choosing is far more effective ? likewise , why notget a better motherboardfor some extra slots and amend connectivity ? The case was another matter where I budged , expend more than I had to just to get a little bit more cooling and , truthfully , better aesthetics .
The graphics card was , obviously , where I really dropped the ball on my budget . take up with the RTX 4070 , the acerate leaf run inch by in until I told myself that I desire the option of 4 K gaming on max configurations and that I might as well seat in some futureproofing with the RTX 4080 .
It ’s clear I could ’ve gotten away with something much cheaper .
However , having used this play PC for a few calendar month now , I can say with full confidence that I did n’t need it to be as secure as it is .
Over the last duet of class , I ’ve gotten used to avoiding the rubric that seemed like they ’d make my one-time GTX 1060 have a breakdown . I still successfully played many AAA gamesat high context , and the games I opt to croak up on , likeCyberpunk 2077 , did n’t make me feel like I was missing out .
Some title were off - limit to me because I detest play on humiliated configurations and/or with dispirited frames per 2nd ( Federal Protective Service ) , but I guess I ’m just not the type of person who jump at every blockbuster game and has to sample it out . In fact , a mess of the game I ’ve expend hundreds of time of day on are n’t very demanding , such asWorld of Warcraft , Elden Ring , orSpelunky 2 . I was unrestrained to try out some newer game and make the most of ray tracing and max options with my Modern GPU , but the truth is , I just do n’t have the metre to play every plot that looks remotely nerveless . Such is the burden of adulthood . Teenage me would have loved this microcomputer .
I have n’t made the most of my high - end play PC . I could ’ve gotten away with something much bum , and I credibly would n’t have felt it too much , so it ’s intemperately not to sense some vendee ’s self-reproach .
Was this always bound to happen?
personal computer building is a womb-to-tomb hobby of mine , so even though I kept my sure-enough computer for several years , I ’ve built peck of desktops in the meantime — for friends , family phallus , or colleagues . Whether it ’s cast together a list of components or gather them , I love doing it . It ’s no wonder that , as I finalized my own build , I poured all that passion into it and love it every footprint of the way .
leave how much I cared , I think that there was always resile to be some letdown . The RTX 4080 was a controversial choice , and in retrospect , I know now that I did n’t need it . Not to mention that if I check my build by just a little longer , I could ’ve stuck to my budget while dumbfound something of a alike gauge . On the other hand , I ’m still passably happy with my choice and the hours of enjoyment I ’ve already arrive out of it .
This is a coarse trouble with microcomputer building and even tech in general . Even if you buy the best - ever product today , there ’ll be something even best coming out in a yr or two . It ’s easy to get stuck in a eyelet of “ Well , there ’s a new coevals coming out in X months ; maybe I ’ll just wait . ”
Ultimately , I broke out of that grommet at a time that worked for me , and even though there are better options now , I ’m trying not to dwell on those regrets and enjoy the personal computer I was able-bodied to build , terrible - note value RTX 4080 include .
