Nvidia’s leaked 8GB GeForce RTX 5060 GPU is a disaster

Nvidia’s 8GB RTX 5060 will be a disaster for Nvidia – Here’s why

Specifications for Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 5060 have been leaked through WCCFtech, and they claim that the GPU will have 8GB of GDDR7 VRAM. As most PC enthusiasts should know, Nvidia plans to reveal its RTX 50 series of GPUs at CES 2025, replacing its RTX 40 series with new “Blackwell” based models.

If today’s RTX 5060 leak is correct, Nvidia’s RTX 5060 will be a poorly received product. In our eyes, the GPU would be a disaster for Nvidia, as it gives Intel and AMD the opening they need to gain GPU market share. Simply put, 8GB of VRAM isn’t enough for a modern gaming GPU. It was a problem for Nvidia’s RTX 4060 and will be a bigger problem for their RTX 5060.

New releases like Indiana Jones and the Great Circle highlight the problems that GPUs with too little VRAM face. Without dramatic reductions in graphical settings, 8GB GPUs do not deliver a great experience in this new release. Beyond that, it must be remembered that Nvidia’s RTX 3060 has 12GB of VRAM, which will make the RTX 5060 look like poor value by comparison.

An 8GB 5060 gives Intel an opening

Intel released their ARC B580 “Battlemage” graphics card earlier this month. It has 12GB of VRAM, and Intel heavily marketed this aspect of their new GPU. If Nvidia released another 8GB RTX XX60-class GPU, it would allow Intel to gain market share. Every game that struggles with 8GB GPUs will point lower-end GPU buyers towards non-Nvidia solutions. Simply put, releasing another 8GB gaming GPU would be a tactical mistake from Nvidia.

Would an 8GB RTX 5060 be good news for AMD?

Currently, the specifications of AMD’s upcoming RDNA 4 GPUs remain unknown. While we would hope that AMD wouldn’t release an 8GB replacement for their RX 7600 series GPUs, that isn’t guaranteed. If AMD releases an 8GB GPU in this area of the GPU market, it will not make any market share gains from Nvidia’s blunder. However, if AMD releases a 10GB or 12GB GPU in this price class, it could gain significant market share.

In our eyes, Nvidia would be crazy to release an 8GB RTX 5060 GPU for the mainstream GPU market. Regardless, recent leaks suggest that Nvidia are indeed making this mistake. If AMD releases a strong product in the same price range with more VRAM, they may capitalise on Nvidia’s blunder. With just 8GB of VRAM, Nvidia’s 5060 GPU will be hard to recommend. VRAM capacity matters.

You can join the discussion on Nvidia’s rumoured 8GB RTX 5060 GPU on the OC3D Forums.