The Nvidia CES 2022 Special Address saw a whole host of new gaming hardware and software announced at the presentation, with the most noteworthy additions being the additions to the RTX 30 series family in both standalone video cards and mobile form factors. A new line of gaming monitors was also unveiled, but with no concrete price point or release date at the time of writing.
After months of being heavily rumored, the RTX 3090 Ti was briefly confirmed at Nvidia CES 2022 Special Address. No release date or price point has been confirmed yet for this model. The RTX 3050 desktop GPU was unveiled with a price point and release date.
It's looking as though budget PC gamers are in luck, as the RTX 3050 carries a retail price of just $249 making it $80 cheaper than the RTX 3060. What's more, it's launching on January 27, mere weeks away. If you've been after current-gen RTX performance at affordable prices, this is looking like the one to watch.
However, as we've seen with all the RTX 30 series launches since November 2020, the RTX 3050 isn't likely to be around for long. You will need to get your pre-orders in as soon as possible in order to have a shot at securing the 8GB GDDR6 GPU before it becomes as elusive as other RTX 30 series video cards. This GPU targets 60 FPS in Full HD with RTX on, so it's perfect for anyone looking to experience Reflex, DLSS, and ray tracing for less.
It's not just graphics cards and gaming laptops that see fresh blood, as panels also receive rejuvenation for the Esports scene, too. It's fair to say that if you're after one of the best graphics cards, best gaming laptops, or some of the best gaming monitors on the market, that Nvidia has you covered this year.
New RTX graphics cards
RTX 3090 Ti announced
During the end of the hardware and software portion of the Nvidia CES 2022 Special Address, Jeff Fisher is seen physically holding the RTX 3090 Ti model which looks almost identical to the November 2020 model. No release date or price point was announced, however, Fisher did verbally confirm some of the specs of the GPU.
The memory remains the same as with the original model, that's 24GB of GDDR6X at 21Gbps, however, there is a bump up to 40 teraflops (over the standard GPU's 36 teraflops). What this means, in theory, is roughly a 10% power increase over the first model, when taking into account the added bulk.
We were told that more information on the RTX 3090 Ti will be unveiled later in the month, so will keep you updated as soon as we find out more.
RTX 3050 desktop GPU announced
The RTX 3050 graphics card has been announced as a budget option successor to the GTX 1050 and GTX 1650 lines. This graphics processor is currently only available in RTX 3050 gaming laptops. The desktop variant utilizes 8GB GDDR6 VRAM and will retail for $249 starting on January 27.
The RTX 3050 comes in at $80 cheaper than the entry-level RTX 3060, which was released in June 2021, and is aimed solely at hitting 60 FPS in the latest games in Full HD (1080p) using third-generation Tensor cores and DLSS A.I. upscaling.
We will keep you in the loop as soon as RTX 3050 preorders go live at all the major retailers.
New RTX gaming laptops
Two new RTX 30 series gaming laptops were announced at Nvidia CES 2022 Special Address, these models being RTX 3070 Ti laptops and RTX 3080 Ti laptops. On the productivity front, Nvidia Studio laptops were also unveiled running high-end hardware built with intensive tasks in mind, such as large-scale 3D rendering.
RTX 3070 Ti laptops announced
RTX 3070 Ti laptops were unveiled with a starting cost of $1,499, which will be available for purchase on February 1. The starting price is consistent with the current RTX 3070 laptops on the market right now. However, with a proposed 160 plus RTX gaming laptops configurations due to hit the market throughout 2022, prices are likely to fluctuate greatly depending on manufacturer and components used, as expected.
RTX 3080 Ti laptops announced
RTX 3080 Ti laptops were unveiled and carry a starting MSRP of $2,499 and will also be available to buy on 1 February. What's most noteworthy about this particular mobile GPU is that it features 16GB GDDR6 VRAM, for some serious power potential in a mobile form factor.
Max-Q 4.0 announced
The newest version of the A.I.-powered Max-Q gaming laptop technology was announced. It sees new features, such as a CPU optimizer, as well as rapid core scaling and Battery Boost 2.0. Max-Q 4.0 will be present in over 160 of the new RTX 30 series laptop models which will be released this year. The technology claims to offer up to a 70% improvement in battery life for efficient play sessions.
New Nvidia G-sync gaming monitors
Harnessing the power of its G-sync technology, Nvidia announced a line of 360Hz 1440p 27-inch gaming monitors which will be made by the likes of AOC, Asus, MSI, and ViewSonic in order to target high FPS with higher graphical fidelity. Nvidia reports, according to a recent Steam survey, that 68% of PC gamers are still playing in Full HD for the higher frame rate cap. These new panels can not only play in the full 360Hz 27-inch 1440p mode, but will feature a dual-format mode to drop the resolution down to 1080p (Full HD) at 25-inch as well.
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