With CES 2025 fast approaching and several Nvidia RTX 50-series leaks coming out of the woodwork, we're starting to get a good idea about what to expect from Nvidia's "Blackwell" graphics cards. Now, we may know what GPU to expect first — and when.
According to sources speaking with Wccftech, Nvidia is tipped to launch its first RTX 50-series GPU in January 2025, with the RTX 5080 graphics card being the first to ship. This GPU will offer 16GB of GDDR7 VRAM, which matches previous leaks suggesting the RTX 5080 will sport 16GB of video memory.
The report says that Nvidia's first next-gen GPU will be available "soon after" CES 2025, which is expected to be when the gaming giant unveils its new desktop and laptop graphics cards. The retail launch is expected to be around mid-January, but there's no word of where gamers will be able to pick it up first.
Interestingly, this means the RTX 5080 could arrive before the RTX 5090 GPU, which is expected to be a popular choice seeing as it is the flagship option offering the most power. That said, the report indicates the RTX 5090 graphics card will be available soon after the RTX 5080, as its release will only be "a few weeks apart."
If this is to be believed, we could see the RTX 5090 graphics card released sometime at the end of January or in February, but precise launch dates are still up in the air.
As per previous leaks, the RTX 5090 is expected to come with a whopping 32GB of GDDR7 VRAM. That's quite a step up over the RTX 4090, which boasts 24GB of GDDR6X VRAM. While the RTX 5080 is sure to be a popular choice for many, it's clear the RTX 5090 will be on many PC gamers' watchlists, judging from the pure difference in video memory.
The report notes Nvidia's RTX 5080 GPU will be available in Founders Edition and partner variants when it's due to hit shelves, and we've already caught wind of other PC manufacturers taking on the next-gen GPUs.
For one, GPU manufacturer INNO3D gave us a taste of what to expect thanks to a Nvidia DLSS 4 leak, and we're also seeing Nvidia 50-series laptop GPUs in Asus ROG gaming laptops in another leak. With CES 2025 coming up, it looks like we won't have to wait much longer until we finally see what Nvidia RTX 50 GPUs dish out.
Speaking of the biggest tech expo, find out our CES 2025 laptop predictions for a deeper dive into Nvidia RTX 50-series mobile GPUs, Lenovo's "rollable laptop," and more.
