Friday, March 7th 2025
NVIDIA Readies RTX 5050 Series for the Entry-Mainstream
NVIDIA is readying an entry-mainstream graphics card in the RTX 50-series "Blackwell" generation, likely called the GeForce RTX 5050. There is also the possibility of an RTX 5050 Ti positioned a notch above this, below the RTX 5060. The RTX 5050 is intended to be a successor to the RTX 3050. The RTX 40-series "Ada" generation did not have SKU in this segment, and its absence was felt recently when Intel launched the Arc B580 offering high performance/price under the $300-mark. There are no known specs of the RTX 5050 and RTX 5050 Ti, except that both feature 8 GB of memory size—something that turned the tide in Intel's favor with the B580 having 12 GB of it—and both SKUs come with a total graphics power (TGP) of around 135 W.
The two will be intended for 1080p gaming with mid-thru-high settings. It remains to be seen if NVIDIA implements Multi Frame Generation, because MFG is not a magic toggle that turns unplayable framerates to 60 FPS, however DLSS 4 with transformer upscaling, and perhaps even single frame generation could make it. NVIDIA is looking to target price-points of $199 and $249 with the RTX 5050 and RTX 5050 Ti, respectively. As for probable launch-date, Wccftech says that the cards could launch in the second half of April 2025, following the launch of the RTX 5060.
Source:
Wccftech
The two will be intended for 1080p gaming with mid-thru-high settings. It remains to be seen if NVIDIA implements Multi Frame Generation, because MFG is not a magic toggle that turns unplayable framerates to 60 FPS, however DLSS 4 with transformer upscaling, and perhaps even single frame generation could make it. NVIDIA is looking to target price-points of $199 and $249 with the RTX 5050 and RTX 5050 Ti, respectively. As for probable launch-date, Wccftech says that the cards could launch in the second half of April 2025, following the launch of the RTX 5060.
39 Comments on NVIDIA Readies RTX 5050 Series for the Entry-Mainstream
Some games will also downgrade the textures while you're playing. It's possible to hit the limit without even knowing it.
I don't play any modern games. PUBG is the closest to modern, but that's limited by it's own code, like how they managed to turn the Sanhok map into a stuttery mess, even for players with RTX 4080s.
Maybe Nvidia will allow enough flex in the 5050/5050Ti spec to lower these cards into the slot-powered range. I certainly hope that's the case. Elsewise it's going to get the same treatment as the 3050 8GB.
After doing unspeakable to the GPU market for more than a decade already, NVIDIA won't stop. 5050 series is doomed to be a clown fiesta.Supply doesn't exist, simple as that. Demand is at its lowest since forever.If there's a way to remove the cooler (if it's ever too big) without losing the warranty then I don't see that as a REAL issue because if you can't afford a PSU with a single PCI-e connector then next-gen GPUs, even the entriest levels thereof, ain't to be of your concern.
Want less power draw, just limit the GPU via software, it's a 0 IQ task.
The only real problem with these GPUs is that they're gonna be prohibitively expensive for what they're offering at best.
There is a specific demographic of buyer that the slot-powered low-profile card attracts, where other cards cannot apply:
- Chassis only supports half-height and/or <=2-slot cards (HTPC cases, NAS boxes/rackmounts, OEM 'SFF' style computers)
- Power supply cannot support a PCIe power connection (OEM proprietary power supplies with non-standard pinouts, PicoPSU/12-19V external power/< 350W FlexATX)
- Wants to tamper with the PC as little as possible (inexperienced/unwilling, reasoning matters little anyways)
- No room in budget for additional components
I met all four of these check-boxes as a teenager trying to get into PC gaming. I had maybe $200 to rub together and a Dell Inspiron that was our family computer. No PCIe power connections, no compatible PSU replacements with PCIe cables, wasn't comfortable messing with what was the house's only desktop computer at the time, and I wanted to pour as much as was reasonable into a proper GPU so I could enjoy games at comfortable framerates and resolutions instead of struggle-bussing at 720p Low on Intel HD graphics. So I went and got a 1050Ti.Were I in the same position in current day, I know damn well I'd be excited to get the latest and greatest of slot-powered cards when they're just around the corner. As-is, the only niche the 5050/5050Ti fills is 'can't afford anything better', which is a NOTORIOUSLY terrible segment in the GPU market.
Far more important is DLSS4 upscaling, which is available in the 2060, 3050 6GB and 4050 laptop so there's is no "IF" there. That feature will be included.