Nvidia announced the RTX 4090 earlier this month, which has been incredibly well reviewed, but it also announced two variations of the RTX 4080, the 16GB one that sounded like the true 4080 experience, and a 12GB version that it was obviously being launched to serve specific business goals. Nvidia.
This was rightly called out online as not only confusing, but also a likely rebrand of another card that was being served as a 4080 variant. Nvidia today canceled the 12GB version of this card or “launched” it as he said in his blog post. The 16GB RTX 4080 will still launch on November 16th as planned, and we expect to see the 12GB version again at some point (probably as the RTX 4070 or 4070 Ti).
In the blog post, Nvidia said:
“The RTX 4080 12GB is a great graphics card, but it doesn’t have the right name. Having two GPUs with the 4080 designation is confusing.
So we’re hitting the “unboot” button on the 12GB 4080. The RTX 4080 16GB is amazing and is on its way to delighting gamers everywhere on November 16th. If the lines around the block and the enthusiasm for the 4090 are any indication, the reception for the 4080 will be incredible.”
Reviewers of the RTX 4090 have been incredibly positive so far, with our friends at AusGamers saying:
“But what a start. And really, it makes the prospect of the upcoming GeForce RTX 4080, RTX 4070 and eventual RTX 4060 something to look forward to. From DLSS 3 to a new video encoding that will create a new era for streamers, content creators and their audiences, to simply being able to deliver visual fidelity. month performance in the games we play. The GeForce RTX 4090 is more than fast, and then some.
It will be very interesting to see how quickly we see this 12GB card return and what the rest of the line looks like. Obviously, it’s great to see Nvidia listening to online feedback and making the necessary changes.