Nvidia has officially unveiled its GeForce RTX 5060 series graphics cards, completing the lineup for the highly anticipated 50-series. The company introduced three new GPUs, with the 5060 Ti set to release on April 16. It will be available in two memory configurations—8GB and 16GB—priced at $379 and $429, respectively. The standard RTX 5060 will debut in May with a price tag of $299, mirroring the MSRP of its predecessor, the RTX 4060, and maintaining the same 8GB RAM.
The availability of these new graphics cards at their listed prices remains uncertain. Many users have faced difficulties purchasing GPUs, including higher-end models like the RTX 5090 and the mainstream RTX 5070, at their suggested retail prices. This issue extends beyond Nvidia, affecting AMD’s Radeon RX 9070 series GPUs and Intel’s Arc B580 and B570 cards as well.
The specifications for the new cards align with previously leaked information over the past few months. Both the 5060 Ti and 5060 show minor increases in CUDA cores compared to the previous generation’s 4060 and 4060 Ti. They keep the same 128-bit memory interface, but an upgrade to GDDR7 memory provides a significant boost in bandwidth, which is likely contributing to an uptick in peak power consumption. The 4060 Ti previously faced limitations in memory bandwidth at higher resolutions, so the extra bandwidth in the 5060 series aims to enhance performance, particularly for 1440p gaming setups.
Nvidia’s xx60 tier has historically been its most popular, according to data from the Steam Hardware Survey. Multiple xx60 models from different generations represent seven of the top ten GPUs used on the platform, with the RTX 3060 and 4060 taking the lead. Thus, the introduction of new xx60 GPUs is crucial for establishing a performance baseline within PC gaming.
In line with its prior 50-series launches, Nvidia is again emphasizing its DLSS Multi-Frame Generation technology to support its bold performance claims. This technology allows the GPUs to insert up to three AI-interpolated frames between each pair of original frames rendered by the GPU. In contrast, the 40 series could only generate one additional frame, while earlier series do not support DLSS Frame Generation. As such, this complicates direct performance comparisons across different generational models.
Nvidia asserts that both the 5060 Ti and 5060 deliver double the performance of their 4060 counterparts. However, benchmarks provided utilize the maximum Frame Generation capability for each GPU, making it challenging to make accurate performance assessments. Limited native performance data, like Hogwarts Legacy running at 61 FPS at 1440p on a 5060 Ti versus 34 FPS on a 3060 Ti, suggests that the new card is not quite twice as powerful as its two-generation predecessor. Still, this improvement would be notable, particularly considering the lackluster refresh of the 4060 Ti. Further evaluations from third-party tests will be essential for a clearer picture of performance without the Frame Generation feature.
Nvidia’s performance claims for both the 5060 Ti and 5060 are contingent on enabling Multi-Frame Generation, which is not applicable to older GPU models.
Both the 5060 and the 5060 Ti are projected to exhibit a doubling of performance relative to the 4060 series, though this assertion should be approached with caution.
The reliance on Frame Generation technology complicates direct performance comparisons between generations.
Limited information surrounding the 5060 Ti’s native performance metrics suggests it may be slightly below double the speed of the 3060 Ti.
The effectiveness of Frame Generation technology tends to shine when the base frame rate is already quite favorable; it enhances good performance rather than remedying poor performance. This consideration is particularly relevant for the less powerful 50-series, complicating Nvidia’s reluctance to share native performance data.
Speculations from earlier this year hinted at Nvidia’s intention to release a low-end RTX 5050 GPU, marking its first new budget offering since the RTX 3050 was launched in January 2022. While the 5050 may still be in the pipeline, it was not included in the announcements made today.
