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We’re only a handful of hours away from the launch of the RTX 4080 Super and I’m eagerly anticipating the new GPU. I’ve covered all manner of Nvidia video cards over the years and reviewed them as well, some for this very site. However, one trend I’ve observed that I’ve struggled to stomach in all my years of PC building and gaming is the inflating prices of the best GPUs – a blow that the upcoming refresh model looks to soften.
We’ve been hard at work preparing for the incoming launch of Nvidia’s latest GPU, and showing you where to buy RTX 4080 Super graphics cards tomorrow. That answers one question, but it leaves another open – should you consider one in the first place? We go into detail in our dedicated RTX 4080 Super vs RTX 4080 piece for a tech teardown, but there’s still more to be said about reviving the “Super” branding, especially as the new variant addresses the biggest problem – the price.
That’s right. The RTX 4080 Super is cheaper than the original variant by a full $200 as it carries a starting MSRP of $999 for the Founders Edition model and a starting rate for its partners. It’s considerably cheaper than the base retail price of the RTX 4080 from well over a year ago which staggered out of the gate at an eye-watering $1,199. we said in our RTX 4080 review that I liked the card, but couldn’t recommended it for that asking price, not with a cheaper, and ever so slightly better alternative on the horizon.
Even at the time of release, the original RTX 4080 was seriously pushing my patience and I know I wasn’t alone in my assessment. The previous 80-class GPU, the RTX 3080, retailed from $699, so there was a markup of 70% for those looking for a suitable upgrade. Combine that with the messy “unlaunch” of the RTX 4080 12GB, which was later renamed the RTX 4070 Ti, and the Ada Lovelace generation was suffering from a serious identity crisis.
The RTX 4080’s crucial second chance
It would be amiss of me to pretend that a $999 graphics card is a great value buy, and that’s something I’ve also taken to task with AMD over its RX 7900 XTX, too. However, new graphics cards coming out cheaper and being better rather than dialling up the prices is something that should be commended, I just wish that it had happened sooner. The landscape and reputation surrounding the RTX 4080 and its siblings at launch would have been far more favorable with these prices and specs from the jump instead of in the twilight of their availability.
But, it’s better to pay $999 for an RTX 4080 Super than fork out $1200 for a lesser card. Nvidia made a wise, albeit late decision, to give consumers more value for their money with the Super series, and I hope it’s a mantra that’s kept up with the inevitable 50 Series likely to be released at the end of 2024. Team Green won the hearts and minds of gamers in 2020 with the RTX 30 series for their real-time ray tracing prowess, amazing DLSS upscaling, and competitive pricing, but it’s fair to see the needle’s a little more slanted now.
Ultimately, the RTX 4080 Super is a step in the right direction and represents good change. I’m looking forward to going hands on with the card and testing it for myself, and very fortunate to have an RTX 4090 machine of my own. However, if Nvidia wants to take the lead and stay ahead, it needs to remember to keep the prices competitive while scaling the power. This is what made appeal of the RTX 4080 Super vs RX 7900 XTX so competitive for people that had previously never owned one of the best AMD graphics cards before. The ball’s in Team Green’s court now, it just has to shoot straight.
ASUS TUF RTX 4080 OC Edition
Base clock
2625MHz
Boost clock
2595MHz
VRAM
16GB
Dimensions
348.2 x 150 x 72.6mm
Recommended PSU
750W
How much is the RTX 4080 Super?
The RTX 4080 Super starts at $999 / £959 and will be available tomorrow (January 31, 2024). It was previously announced at CES at the beginning of the year.
Is the RTX 4080 Super powerful?
Yes, everything we’ve seen about the RTX 4080 Super, and based on our testing with the base RTX 4080, the upcoming card looks to be a powerful card for 4K gaming and creators alike.
Image Credit: Nvidia
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