The countdown is on for Nvidia’s official announcement of the RTX 50-series, which is just a few days away. Information regarding the specifications of Nvidia’s latest graphics cards has already surfaced from various sources, but the pricing details have largely remained under wraps—until now. Recently, YouTuber Vex shared insights about the price of the Nvidia RTX 5080, hinting at a déjà vu from the previous generation, but potentially with even higher costs.
Before we delve deeper, it’s essential to note that we can’t independently verify the authenticity of this leak. Vex claims to have received information from a person associated with an Australian retailer, who allegedly sent a screenshot displaying multiple Asus RTX 5080 graphics cards along with some basic specifications and pricing details. This information may be accurate, or it could be fabricated—at this moment, we can’t say for certain. However, if this is true, it may not bode well for gamers.
The RTX 5080 is indicated to feature 16GB of memory, consistent with earlier leaks, although there’s uncertainty regarding whether it will utilize faster VRAM modules, as some have speculated. The listing includes the Asus Prime GeForce RTX 5080 16GB OC, suggesting that it’s an overclocked variant.
Now, let’s discuss the prices. According to the leak, the first price listed refers to the amount the Australian retailer paid to acquire the graphics card from Asus. The second figure represents the retail price, or how much customers would actually pay for the GPU. The purchase price is reportedly 2,544 Australian dollars, while the listed price is a staggering 2,799 Australian dollars.
Fortunately, the currency exchange rates soften the shock of these prices to some extent. When converted from Australian dollars to U.S. dollars, the purchase price equates to approximately $1,581 and the retail price is around $1,740 at the current exchange rate. It’s also worth noting that these prices already include sales tax, which would typically not be included in U.S. pricing.
Regardless of how you look at it, $1,740 for an RTX 5080 is a substantial investment. Some rumors suggest that the performance of the 5080 could be comparable to that of the 4090, but if it doesn’t quite meet expectations, the high cost may be difficult for many to justify.
There are already signs that the RTX 5080 might be on the pricey side. For instance, a leaked listing for an Acer Predator Orion featuring the RTX 5080 showed a price tag nearing $3,640. However, not all hope is lost.
Even if we take these prices at face value and assume the unnamed Australian retailer will be offering the RTX 5080 for the U.S. equivalent of $1,740, we must remember that this is an Asus card, specifically an overclocked model. Nvidia typically sets a more conservative MSRP for their Founders Edition and non-overclocked variants, which means they will likely cost less.
Nvidia’s RTX 4080 was originally priced at $1,200, which many considered excessive. The subsequent Super variant brought it down to $1,000. Could Nvidia possibly revert to a price range of $1,200 to $1,500 for the RTX 5080? One can only hope that this isn’t the case. We’ll learn more when Nvidia officially unveils the graphics card on January 6.
