NVIDIA is expected to reveal the first details of its next lineup of graphics cards later this month, but leaks surrounding the GeForce RTX 4000 series continue to hint at specs that gamers can expect. Yesterday (1st), the leaker @KittyYYuko from Twitter revealed the alleged image of one of the most advanced models of the next generation.
The GeForce RTX 4080 in its “Founders Edition” version is shown in a transparent packaging, indicating that it may be a prototype model. It is possible to observe that the graphics card case has a much larger ventilation system than the predecessor, similar to the GeForce RTX 3090 Founders Edition. Check out:
Based on information from the leaker, we can conclude that the GeForce RTX 4080 Founders Edition has a dual (or even 2.7) slot design in its thick case. The fan only has 7 blades — the 9-blade configuration should be reserved for the GeForce RTX 4090, which is rumored to have twice the performance of its predecessor.
Another change can be found in the “RTX 4080” logo, which seems to adopt a different font for the model numbering, but again, it’s possible that we’re talking about a pre-production graphics card, so all the details should be handled in the rumor mill until NVIDIA reveals the official GPU images.
It is speculated that the GeForce RTX 4080 will work with an AD102-250 GPU manufactured with TSMC’s “4N” process. It is an optimized version of the 5 nanometer lithography created in partnership with the Taiwanese foundry to improve hardware efficiency. The hardware must work with 340W TBP, in line with the power of the RTX 3080.
The new GPU is expected to boast 16GB of VRAM with 23Gbps GDDR6X modules and a 256-bit bus, delivering a total bandwidth of 736GB/s. The capacity is lower than the predecessor’s 760 GB/s bandwidth due to the replacement of the 320-bit interface with 256-bit, but NVIDIA can make up for this with compression improvements.
Industry sources say that the production of the new graphics cards has already started in China, so it shouldn’t be long until we finally know the components that will compete with the AMD Radeon RX 7000, a line also scheduled to debut in 2022. For now, NVIDIA has not commented on the matter.
