NVIDIA Reportedly Moves NDA Date for RTX Reviews to September 19th

[Raevenlord]

Videocardz is reporting that NVIDIA has moved their NDA dates for reviews on their RTX 2080 graphics cards to be published. They cite difficulties for review websites in securing samples, delays in shipment, and even unavailable driver stacks that would allow for reviewers to conduct their jobs with the usual professionalism. Remember that the original NDA timeframe for reviews, as reported by Videocardz, was set at September 17th, which would leave reviewers from today with less than a full week to conduct their testing.

The website reports that "only a handful" of reviewers have gotten their cards already, and that reviews for NVIDIA's GeForce RTX 2080 have now lined up with the NDA set for the RTX 2080 Ti, on September 19th, leaving reviewers with two huge card launches and a single deadline, just before the cards' general availability on September 20th.



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[qubit]

@W1zzard Are you able to confirm that this has happened? Presumably NVIDIA would have informed you.

 

[Steevo]

Unavailable cards and drivers for said card, sounds like shortage of multiple types to me. I still hope its worth the money they are asking, but I doubt it.

 

[coonbro]

'' They cite difficulties for review websites in securing samples'

they mean not enough cherry picked cards for sales hyped reviews . sure don't want to send them run of the mill cards we just buy a say newegg , right ?

 

[human_error]

@W1zzard Are you able to confirm that this has happened? Presumably NVIDIA would have informed you.

I'd expect that the NDA may be restrictive enough to say that you can't talk about the NDA. By reporting the post from a third party site TPU isn't breaking any NDA rules, and I doubt they'd echo the other site's report if it was not true.

 

[TheGuruStud]

Delaying the inevitable slaughter, eh?

 

[Luke51087]

I'd expect that the NDA may be restrictive enough to say that you can't talk about the NDA. By reporting the post from a third party site TPU isn't breaking any NDA rules, and I doubt they'd echo the other site's report if it was not true.

First rule of fight club is you dont talk about fight club

 

[ottonomous]

The reviews were probably disappointing and reworked drivers were dispatched quickly, or software emphasizing the ray tracing advantage over pascal.

Though the NDA provides nvidia near-total control, even after the reviews I would be interested in non-signatories reviewing purchased units.

 

[jaggerwild]

Lolz@Nvidia FAILURE!!!!!

 

[RejZoR]

The reviews were probably disappointing and reworked drivers were dispatched quickly, or software emphasizing the ray tracing advantage over pascal.

Though the NDA provides nvidia near-total control, even after the reviews I would be interested in non-signatories reviewing purchased units.

They still can't force reviewers to endlessly praise ray tracing and neglect classic rasterization. After all, 99,99% of games are the later. Ray tracing is barely coming into existence. Of course people will care more about rasterization than ray tracing. And if it's not particularly great there, then many people won't care about it. I think ray tracing will really take off with RTX 4080. RTX 2080 is initial release, RTX 3080 will be slight refinement and improvement, with RTX 4080 it'll finally actually became usable and widely available in many games. So, see you then

 

[cucker tarlson]

They'd better deliver at these prices, though if Pascal and Turing are to coexist, we'll not get much. 499 bought you 1080 performance, now 499 will buy you that +15-20% + RT functions you'll use in just a few games that can actually deliver acceptable framerate. I wonder if AMD will have 1080Ti performance before nvidia does 30 series.

 

[Steevo]

The way it's meant to be reviewed, only that way, or you will be sued.

 

[jsfitz54]

"The website reports that "only a handful" of reviewers have gotten their cards already, and that reviews for NVIDIA's GeForce RTX 2080 have now lined up with the NDA set for the RTX 2080 Ti, on September 19th, leaving reviewers with two huge card launches and a single deadline, just before the cards' general availability on September 20th."

This can only mean that the Nvidia Marketing Department has taken a hard dump.

You can't be that far behind and succeed.

 

[dj-electric]

'' They cite difficulties for review websites in securing samples'

they mean not enough cherry picked cards for sales hyped reviews . sure don't want to send them run of the mill cards we just buy a say newegg , right ?

You're a little bit out of touch if you think companies still do this, buddy.

 

[coonbro]

no cause it was just reported not long ago over this [think tPU had a article on that as well ]

its all about the prerelease sales pitch to help insure that money is burning that hole in your pocket on release day . don't be that naïve...lol.... se maybe your that guy there targeting and fall for it all ?? don't know .

 

[Hood]

This smells bad, like Vega's delayed release, and remember how that turned out? When a new GPU is worse than anticipated, they're never in a great rush to get it out there, instead hoping for hype and pre-orders to boost things at launch. And now comes the excuse of "shortage of samples to send reviewers". The "unavailable driver stacks" is another good one. There's a fly on this birthday cake, and a nest of maggots inside!

 

[ironwolf]

FYI, source link in article is borked, opens up the image in the article.

 

[TheoneandonlyMrK]

You're a little bit out of touch if you think companies still do this, buddy.

You think they dont?? Huawei just got stomped for it , intel do it All the time and the others would be wise to put their Best foot forward too.

I have this down as a decision to stop pre orders being cancelled personally but im a cynical brit.

 

[dj-electric]

You think they dont?? Huawei just got stomped for it , intel do it All the time and the others would be wise to put their Best foot forward too.

I have this down as a decision to stop pre orders being cancelled personally but im a cynical brit.

Reviewers don't get cherry picked GPUs.
Reviewers don't get cherry picked CPUs.

They might used to, they don't anymore. Not in recent years.

 

[TheoneandonlyMrK]

Reviewers don't get cherry picked GPUs.
Reviewers don't get cherry picked CPUs.

They might used to, they don't anymore. Not in recent years.

How so, im interested in knowing how you Know that, because they said so.
Every chip is binned.
To be as you say fair random chips from the production run would be used , however Nvidia will be dispatching these special review packs direct , and they always play fair right???.

 

[FordGT90Concept]

@W1zzard Are you able to confirm that this has happened? Presumably NVIDIA would have informed you.

Talking about the terms of the NDA is a violation of the NDA so, if he signed it, he won't talk about it.


These are really big, expensive chips and TSMCs plate is full. This doesn't surprise me at all.

 

[Steevo]

Reviewers don't get cherry picked GPUs.
Reviewers don't get cherry picked CPUs.

They might used to, they don't anymore. Not in recent years.

Like him or not, his math stands up, companies are still sending cherry picked samples.

 

[cucker tarlson]

Of course they cherry pick, they all do. Intel sent binned CL samples for reviews. AMD provided they own picked memory in the boxes they sent for reviewers and insisted on testing games at 4K. Press samples of R7 1700 hit 4GHz OC, how many 1700s could do that on average ? Do you expect nvidia to be better ? You crazy.

Question is, how much binning improves performance. A good bin of pascal and an average one will be fractions of fps apart.

 

[FordGT90Concept]

Question is, how much binning improves performance.

Not at all unless it is overclocked or thermal throttling.

 

[dj-electric]

Like him or not, his math stands up, companies are still sending cherry picked samples.

Being a part of the media itself, receiving over 50 CPUs the past 7-8 years, knowing and talking to many in this industry world-wide, I still stand by my words. RNG is RNG.
The sheer amount of horribly binned CPUs me and others got tops the better than average ones

People love fantasizing about evil-doings of big hardware companies. Seems like it almost turns them on.