News Graphics cards hit lowest prices since Feb (German retail data)

I'm still not even going to think about upgrading, until at least next year.

 

Graphics cards at 50% above MSRP is GOOD news. This is what we've been reduced to.

 

And "very good availability" means if you look hard you might find one you can buy from somewhere at a stupid price.

 

Think I'll stick with my trusty 290X, still gets on with 1080p games rather well. No way am I paying a penny over MSRP.

 

With how old the cards are by now I wouldn't even pay MSRP...
Better to just wait for the RTX 4xxx / RX 7xxx cards.

 

Lets hope waiting matters. Scalpers arn't going to just vanish.

 

If the buttcoin market collapses for real this time and takes all the diggers out, that'll do a lot for the insane demand that makes this a scalper's paradise.

 

I wouldn't be so sure, tbh. Scalping was around before, now it's just more in your face and better organised.

Remember the NES Mini launch? Or the PS4 launch?

I hope this madness fades away before the launch of the next interesting generation of GPUs (RDNA 3 & Hopper, for me at least), but I wouldn't bet on it.

 

Nintendo stuff is uniquely scalpable. The company has a pack of fans that borders on a religion.

The PS4 scalpers were traditional console launch circus. That dried up fast as more systems entered the supply chain and the hype around the launch died down.
The PS5 scalpers have had a sustained run due to silicon shortages limiting supply and lockdowns keeping people at home and bored.


So I think we're likely heading back to the usual background noise scalping, where it is only viable at product launches(unless the product is from Nintendo).

 

I hope you're right and I'm just my typical (pessimistic) self.

 

I don't think circumstances will collide like that again for at least a few years.

We've had:
Peak demand driven by work / learn from home + mining
Government money that wasn't means tested and given to people who didn't need it as well
Crisis in international shipping
Water shortage in Taiwan
Shortages at suppliers

All at the same time... even if one or two of those things happened again simultaneously it won't be all of them.

(not saying it'll never happen again, but I reckon we'll get at least a couple of "normal" years first).

 

Yeah, sure. Rumours about a wafer shortage coming/starting next year together with slightly smaller capacities at foundries for the new leading edge nodes as well as every chip manufacturer moving to TSMC. What could possibly go wrong?

 

Thats the thing though, any one or two of those things happen again soon?

Sure.

All of them simultaneously happen again soon?

Nah.

 

Let's meet again. Same place, one year from now. This'll be really interesting and I'll be happy to be proven wrong.

 

Sure, although you won't get any useful words out of me if the RTX 4090 ends up launching as an ebay excusive for £4090

 

I'm lucky or crazy enough to ignore Lovelace entirely. I'm only interested in MCM GPUs next.

 

Linda AND Ada?

 

Had to google Linda, my answer is a clear "yes". And please don't ask me what my brain came up with as possible meaning for MCM in connection with Linda.

 

Yeah, this time next year gamers may get a look in at something near RRP...