The latest GPU pricing information paints a rather bleak picture. Average graphics card prices appear to have doubled between 2020 and 2023 and show no signs of stopping.
We all knew GPUs were expensive, but did anyone really expect the prices to jump this high? More importantly, when will it end?
Jacob Roach / Digital Trends
A rare look at the numbers
If you want to own one of the best graphics cards from the latest generation or two, you have to be prepared to pay a pretty penny. While there are still plenty of RTX 30-series and RDNA 2 cards in stock, their prices are fairly stable. Meanwhile, the current generation is expensive everywhere and is not going down in price for now. The only exception could be Nvidia’s RTX 4080, which could get a price cut due to disappointing sales.
While it’s very clear that GPU prices have risen over the past few years, we rarely get actual numbers to back up that assumption. This time, the sales data of the German retailer Mindfactory tell us the whole story — and the news is not good at all.
In February 2020, the average selling price (ASP) for an AMD graphics card was 295 euros (about 314 USD), and AMD’s total revenue was 442,870 euros (471,997 USD). Meanwhile, Nvidia’s ASP was 426 euros ($454), with total revenue of 855,305 euros ($911,558).
Fast forward to February 2023 and the price increases are staggering. The average selling price of an AMD card rose to €600 ($639), a 103% increase, while revenue rose to €1,026,046, over $1 million ($1,093,508) and a 130% increase in compared to 2020.
Nvidia’s results are even more impressive, although the gains are smaller. The ASP is now €825 ($879) and the revenue is €1,844,323, which translates to almost $2 million ($1,965,550). These figures mean a growth of 93% and 115% respectively compared to 2020.
Keep in mind that these figures represent only a small portion of the graphics card market. They were also posted on Reddit, but the data appears to have come from Mindfactory itself. It is not the first time that we have received data from this German store, and these figures are usually our only insight into the state of the market, as most retailers do not share sales data.
The shortage of GPUs is over, but prices are not falling
Jacob Roach / Digital Trends
A lot has happened between the start of 2020 and now, and there are many reasons why GPUs have gone up in price. The pandemic has caused many problems with the supply chain, and there has been a global shortage of chips. Cryptocurrencies were booming for a significant part of that time frame, and as a result, GPUs were bought for mining purposes.
These days, most people have given up on crypto mining, and there are plenty of GPUs in stock at all times. Only the RTX 4090 and RX 7900 XTX continue to sell out fairly quickly if they appear at MSRP. However, you can always buy a more expensive model from most retailers.
You’d think that given the circumstances, GPU prices would start to normalize, but that doesn’t seem to be the case. You no longer have to pay a fortune to scalpers, but you’ll still spend a lot of money just buying from regular retailers.
With Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang believing that lower chip prices are “a thing of the past,” it seems unlikely that we’ll ever return to pre-pandemic GPU prices. This could be the new normal and we may just have to get used to having to pay over $1,000 for a mid to high end graphics card.
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Categories: GAMING
Source: newstars.edu.vn