- Nvidia’s RTX 5080 and 5090 launch was just as the rumor mill forecast
- Stock was light and sold out very quickly indeed
- There were queues, an inevitable clamor for next-gen GPUs, and even chaotic scenes at one Japanese retailer
Nvidia’s RTX 5080 and 5090 graphics cards sold out in very quick fashion, just as the rumors predicted, on launch day yesterday – and there was a fair bit of chaos and clamor surrounding the release of these first Blackwell GPUs.
At the time of writing, the day after launch, everything remains sold out at the big US and UK retailers I’ve just taken a scout round, at least in terms of standalone graphics cards.
Even the seriously pricey third-party RTX 5080 models at the premium end of the spectrum sold out in the blink of an eye.
Yes, the only option to get a Blackwell GPU currently is to buy a full PC with one of the boards in it, where you’re obviously paying a lot of money for a high-end machine with a big markup.
As for the clamor, there were big lines at some retail stores in the US, with folks queuing for their shot at an RTX 5090 days before launch. As VideoCardz reports, there were somewhat chaotic scenes in Japan where, at a shop called PC Koubou, would-be Nvidia GPU buyers ended up scaling the fence of a kindergarten next door (in an effort to get in and purchase a GPU, presumably).
That was one of the stores in Japan where a lottery system was implemented to try and make buying a Blackwell GPU a fair process, but clearly, it went awry here.
All in all, there are accusations of Nvidia making the RTX 5000 a ‘paper launch’ meaning that there was only a very small amount of inventory available on release day.
As VideoCardz points out, theorizing on Reddit – which we should be particularly careful around – suggests that there were only 250 units of the RTX 5090 at Micro Centers in the US, and just 2,400 or so of the RTX 5080. Certainly, the flagship GPU was predicted to be vanishingly thin on the ground anyway, going by the rumors, but the RTX 5080 was expected to achieve somewhat better stock levels than this rough tally from Reddit suggests.
Analysis: Do not feed the scalpers
As mentioned, the only real shot you have currently of getting a Blackwell GPU is buying a full PC, inevitably a very expensive premium model that’s going to run you a few grand. You could, in theory, then replace the RTX 5000 GPU with your own (that you’re upgrading from), and sell the PC second-hand (as nearly new), but that’s potentially a lot of hassle and headaches, so most people won’t consider that option (I certainly wouldn’t).
The other choice, which again, isn’t really any kind of choice, is to buy an RTX 5090 or 5080 on an auction site from a scalper who has seriously jacked up the price. Don’t do this – do not feed the price gougers, whatever you do, please. It’s interesting to see on the likes of eBay that there are a good many more reasonably priced Blackwell listings which are made just to trap bots, and clearly state that they are only a photo of the GPU in the description. (As well as those trying to sell their in-place pre-orders, of course).
Just the usual chaos around the launch of a thin-on-the-ground new generation of GPUs, then. I’d suggest, for now, that you just try to be patient. (Don’t feed the scalpers, did I say that already? Just imagine the collective sweating going on if those listings don’t shift, and they have to keep dropping and dropping prices).
Keep your eyes peeled on our live blogs where TechRadar is still maintaining a watch on all the major retailers – for RTX 5090 graphics cards, and also RTX 5080 GPUs – and we’ll alert you there if any stock comes back in. But for now, the chances of buying an RTX 5090 or 5080 still seem very remote to say the least.
Of course, the attention will soon turn to the launch of RTX 5070 models next month, and how stock will shake out there. And after that, the eyes of gamers will be fixed on what AMD’s doing with RDNA 4 in March. As we know that some RX 9070 graphics cards are already at retailers, hopefully Team Red should have a much better next-gen launch for stock levels than we witnessed with Nvidia yesterday.
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