RTX 5090 Price Gouging: Gaming PC Maker Shocked by $3,000+ GPU

Key Takeaways

1. The RTX 5090 is the top-performing GPU in the RTX 50 series, but it has very low availability, making it hard to find at a fair price even 1.5 months post-launch.
2. Price gouging is a major issue, with distributors quoting prices between $3,050 and $3,100 for basic RTX 5090 cards, affecting system builders like PowerGPU.
3. There is significantly more availability of RDNA 4 RX 9000 GPUs compared to the RTX 50 series, highlighting a disparity in stock levels.
4. The struggles of companies like PowerGPU to obtain RTX 5090s at reasonable prices raise concerns about scalping and price inflation for consumers.
5. Nvidia needs to take action to address the availability and pricing issues surrounding the RTX 5090.

Much has been discussed regarding the poor debut of the RTX 50 series. Interestingly, the top-performing GPU in this series, the RTX 5090, has the least availability. Even after 1.5 months since it was released, finding the RTX 5090 at a fair price is nearly impossible.

Price Gouging Issues

The situation is so bad that even system builders are affected by RTX 5090 price hikes. A recent video from PowerGPU’s CEO on X highlights the challenges in obtaining RTX 5090s from distributors post-launch. More troubling is that a company like PowerGPU is unable to acquire these GPUs at a reasonable cost. The CEO mentioned that distributors are quoting prices between $3,050 and $3,100 for even the most basic RTX 5090 AIB cards. He conveyed that the PowerGPU team feels “gross” and “disgusted” about this whole scenario.

Comparison with RX 9000 GPUs

The founder of PowerGPU also claims there is significantly more availability of the RDNA 4 RX 9000 GPUs compared to the RTX 50 series. Previously, we covered how PowerGPU highlighted a striking contrast in stock between the RX 9070 XT and the RTX 5090.

This predicament for PowerGPU sheds light on the extent of scalping and price inflation. If businesses that have contracts and connections with distributors are struggling to obtain RTX 5090s without facing outrageous prices, it raises questions about what ordinary consumers can do. We can only wish for Nvidia to take quick actions to rectify this situation.

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