Nvidia Reportedly Resuming RTX 3080 12GB Production, Thanks To GA102 Over Supply
According to the tweet of @Zed__Wang, Nvidia has brought back the RTX 3080 12GB SKUs to clean out more GA102 dies from its overstock inventory. This is a very sudden change by Nvidia as the 3080 12GB has reportedly been removed from the production line. just two months ago. But you can’t blame Nvidia for the ongoing “oversupply” crisis surrounding high-end GPUs.
For those unfamiliar with Nvidia’s “stealth” 3080 model, 12GB was quietly introduced earlier this year at the sole request of an AIB partner. There’s no official explanation as to why it was made, but according to the 3080 12 GB specs, this model had all 12 memory controllers working, which were not available on the 3080 Ti and 3090, on its own. It has been suggested that it was designed to use the defective GA102 die. This GPU model was launched at the height of his GPU crisis, so AIB partners would have wanted this model specifically.
The full RTX 3080 12GB specs feature the 3080 Ti’s fully unlocked memory system with a 384-bit wide bus and 12GB of VRAM for a total memory throughput of 912GBps. However, the SM count dropped significantly from 80 to 70, and the CUDA core count dropped from 1,280 to 8960. However, compared to the 10GB model, this is a core count upgrade with an additional 256 cores.
Ironically, the enhanced memory system makes the 3080 12GB a gaming beast, with the card actually surpassing the 3080 Ti on the GPU benchmark tier. Considering the RTX 3080 12GB is significantly cheaper than the 3080 Ti, this is great value.
Now that Nvidia is dealing with its oversupply issue, it makes sense for Nvidia to bring back the 3080 12GB to more efficiently distribute its excess GA102 dies. Once this GPU becomes more widely available, Nvidia will be able to price his 3080 10GB more aggressively and keep the 12GB model at a higher price. This strategy will allow Nvidia to sell more cards and make more profit at the same time.
The 3080 12GB is also expected to sell at its lowest price since its launch in January. Even before the card supply ran out two months ago, you could grab the 3080 12GB for just $729 at a temporary discount. I wouldn’t be surprised if Nvidia priced his 3080 12GB around this price, or even cheaper on sale.
