GeForce RTX 5060 And 5060 Ti Could Launch Way Earlier Than Expected
Most of the early attention on NVIDIA's upcoming GeForce RTX 50 series graphics card has been on the flagship GeForce RTX 5090, along with the two other GPUs that are expected to be announced at (or at least around) the same time—the GeForce RTX 5080 and GeForce RTX 5070. Historically, there can be a longer wait for more affordable variants on the lower-end of the mid-range spectrum to emerge, but there's chatter that NVIDIA might do things a bit different this time.
Before we go any further, note that the standard disclaimer applies—as with any leak or rumor, take what you read with a healthy dose of skepticism. That's especially true when it comes to NVIDIA's GPUs, because the company has been known to throw last-minute curve balls. And we've already seen some wild claims, one of which suggests the GeForce RTX 5090 could cost as much as $2,499, a price that at least one prominent leaker said is "totally fake."
Disclaimer out of the way, what are we looking at here? There's a post on the Board Channels forum in China that we can't view, but according to Videocardz, it apparently outlines NVIDIA's proposed launch dates for several of its next-generation graphics cards. It's said that NVIDIA has been communicating with its partners what it's plans are for both its high-end and mid-range GPUs.
As was already rumored, the post claims NVIDIA will release its GeForce RTX 5090 and GeForce RTX 5080 at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in January, 2025 (NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang is scheduled to deliver a keynote at CES). Likewise, it will release a gimped variant for the Chinese market, the GeForce RTX 5090D.
Following that, the forum post claims we'll see the release of the GeForce RTX 5070 and GeForce RTX 5070 Ti in February, followed by the GeForce RTX 5060 and GeForce RTX 5060 Ti in March.
Supposing that information is accurate, we're looking at a robust lineup of at least half a dozen SKUs in a short time period. This would be a significant departure in NVIDIA's launch strategy when compared to the GeForce RTX 40 series, which launched as follows:
- GeForce RTX 4090: October 12, 2022
- GeForce RTX 4080: November 16, 2022
- GeForce RTX 4070 Ti: January 5, 2023
- GeForce RTX 4070: April 13, 2023
- GeForce RTX 4060 Ti: May 24, 2023
- GeForce RTX 4060: June 29, 2023
A little more than seven months elapsed between the GeForce RTX 4090 and GeForce RTX 4060 Ti, and eight months for the GeForce RTX 4060. If the Board Channels info is to be believed—the post claims that NVIDIA's release schedule is "basically determined" at this point—then only two months would separate the GeForce RTX 5090 launch from both the GeForce RTX 5060 and 5060 Ti.
That would certainly be an aggressive launch schedule. We also have to wonder if anything is getting lost in translation, particularly with possible discrepancies between the terms unveiling, announcement, launch, and release.
We'll find out soon enough if the rumored GeForce RTX 5060 release is accurate, as CES will be here before you know it.
