Nvidia RTX 4000 GPUs are on the horizon, and whispers claim the RTX 3080 12GB is already discontinued. The green team has reportedly stopped sending chips to board partners, but it’s not to make room for its next best graphics cards, as the rest of the GeForce RTX 3000 series is allegedly safe for now,
According to Zed__Wang, RTX 3080 12GB GPU production has stopped, something that’s attributed to a “dramatic” RTX 3080 Ti price drop (via El Chapuzas Informatico). Both options are currently available for almost the same price on the likes of Newegg, but 12GB variant stock is limited.
While the RTX 3080 12GB is heading to the big PC case in the sky, the 10GB model seems to be clutching on. Its lower spec’d sibling costs significantly less at around $800 USD, which is perhaps why it’s getting to stick around for a little longer. That said, the 12GB card features more cores and a wider memory bus, so enthusiasts would probably rather it was spared from retirement.
A slight RTX 4000 delay has pushed the GPU lineup release window to between September and November, so the RTX 3000 range has a few months of relevancy ahead of it. Even if the entire Ampere collection is canned, it might end up back on shelves again at some point, as even the RTX 2060 made a comeback earlier this year.
You are very lucky to get a brand new 3080 12G since it’s already been stop produced.
— MEGAsizeGPU (@Zed__Wang) June 26, 2022
While performance rumours suggest the RTX 4060 holds up against high-end options like the RTX 3090, you may still be tempted to pick up a current-gen card. However, if you’re considering an RTX 3080 12GB, you’ll want to be quick, as its apparent discontinued status could cause supplies to dry up.