Don't agree with anything in this so long post. Everything that you just posted is wrong.
420 watts for a mid-range card is unacceptable and ugly by nvidia.
4080 won't be high-end. There will be 4090, 4090 Ti and allegedly a Titan-class flagship.
Yes, climate change is indeed influenced by the energy use - transport, industry, etc. which burn polluting coal, oil and fossil gas.
Let's hope AMD's new 7000 cards are ok with power consumption (look at the thread above which states 750-watt and 650-watt PSU recommended), and with this generation nvidia will lose market share.
And no, 1080p gaming is crap, move on to 2160p - better and nicer.
You...seem to be a few steps behind.
The TI branding is a refresh nomenclature. As in, after enough time on the market, and with enough process refinement, they can push out a new revision that is a bit better. That is to say that the 4080 is replaced by the 4080 TI...as such naming it that way makes no sense. You're trying to get to EoL without taking any time to frame the rest of the product lifecycle, which is less than honest.
On top of this, 4050-4060-4070-4080-4090. The Titan, or equivalent, is not part of the regular product stack. The 4080 is therefore 1 from the top, and 3 from the bottom. Exactly how is this a "middle range" product? I ask rhetorically, because by mathematical definition it isn't. It's only "middle range" if you jam in the Titan and TIs that are refreshes....and ignore anything coming from the low end.
You seem to have a funny way of claiming energy usage as a thing. "Even if you use 100% green energy it's going to cause global warming" was your thesis. Fine...then theoretically we could make a dent by simply expunging all radioactive materials and shooting them into space...right? No... Now the definition is just that anybody using power anywhere causes climate change... But, it's also not apparent that the huge string of "how efficient can you actually make it" means that all modern computing is wasteful slips by you. If you would open your eyes a little you'd see that the point here was the logical extension of your argument is stupid. If the logical extension is stupid it's your opportunity to refine it. If your response to that is to stick your fingers into your ears and yell louder, then you've demonstrated that you have a goal, but no real idea of why or how. For the record, the reasonable answer would have been: "While the use case itself is based upon desires rather than need, a card consuming this much power isn't a responsible way to use the limited resources we now have access to." That's something that can't be argued against...unless it's by the apathy of someone who flies around world leaders inside private jets to summits on global climate change.
Let's end on 1920x1080 resolution gaming. You want to bring things up to the next level...when there's literally no comparable hardware infrastructure. Why? Oh...that's personal opinion. Cool.
Now, let's not be bound by personal opinion. Why is 1920x1080 so much of a thing? Well, all TVs are setup at 720p, 1080p, or 4k. There are 8k exceptions...but it's just that. 720p is basically also a joke...so TVs are 1k and 4k. Most people can reasonably do a basic computer, and if they can snag a sub $200 card for good 1k gaming they've got something that effectively competes with modern consoles...but actually has a good game library. Funny that, what I'm really asking for is a reasonably priced option of card that most people can buy, and can effectively introduce more people to PC gaming.
Oh, but consoles do 4K now. Fine. You can get 4k with a huge asterix, for the $600 that you might be able to buy a unit from a scalper for. Not enticing. I'm asking for a genuinely good $200 or lower card for the masses...which will be significantly more valuable than a million 4080 cards. Not everyone cares about VR and high end gaming (two valid requirements for a massive leap forward in performance). That said, a fantastic "for the people" card in the next generation is what we need...hence my apathy to $1000+ offerings.