- Joined
- Jun 21, 2021
- Messages
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System Name | daily driver Mac mini M2 Pro |
---|---|
Processor | Apple proprietary M2 Pro (6 p-cores, 4 e-cores) |
Motherboard | Apple proprietary |
Cooling | Apple proprietary |
Memory | Apple proprietary 16GB LPDDR5 unified memory |
Video Card(s) | Apple proprietary M2 Pro (16-core GPU) |
Storage | Apple proprietary onboard 512GB SSD + various external HDDs |
Display(s) | LG UltraFine 27UL850W (4K@60Hz IPS) |
Case | Apple proprietary |
Audio Device(s) | Apple proprietary |
Power Supply | Apple proprietary |
Mouse | Apple Magic Trackpad 2 |
Keyboard | Keychron K1 tenkeyless (Gateron Reds) |
VR HMD | Oculus Rift S (hosted on a different PC) |
Software | macOS Sonoma 14.7 |
Benchmark Scores | (My Windows daily driver is a Beelink Mini S12 Pro. I'm not interested in benchmarking.) |
An older model entry-level card is going to be the top GPU in the Steam surveys because so many people own one (time and cost); the average consumer doesn't change GPUs every year. At some point it will likely be the 2060. And then maybe the 3060 or 3050 in 3-4 years.Most gamers don't upgrade often though and I think the GTX 1060 6gb is still most popular GPU in gaming currently.
In the same way, the most commonly stolen automobiles are ten year old Honda Civics and Toyota Camrys simply because there are so many of them still on the road (they're inexpensive and durable) and the parts are worth more than the whole used car itself. In the same way, most people don't get a new car every three years.
Going back to the original topic though, prices still haven't returned to normal across the board in all markets. There's still tons of price gouging in smaller markets.
Even in the USA, some AIB partners are still listing some products at the original inflated MSRPs. EVGA is still selling the GeForce RTX 3050 XC Black at $329 (this is the "premium" 3050 model with a slight factory overclock and a meta backplate). The cheaper $249 XC Black Gaming model (no OC, no backplate) is still out of stock.
The high-end models are now frequently sold below original release MSRP here in the USA but that is not the case with the entry-level and mid-range cards.
My guess is that Nvidia and AMD will launch their halo cards (RTX 4090 and RX 7900 or whatever they end up being called) and then slash prices deeply on Ampere and RNDA2 to clear out channel inventory before they launch mid-range next gen cards early next year.
So in a convoluted and perverse way brought about by the pandemic, crypto market crash, supply chain issues, and inflation, prices won't really return to normal until 2023. I would expect some great deals on current models in Q4 of this year.
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