Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 40 series (Ada Lovelace) graphics cards are the first mainstream products to adopt a 16-pin (12VHPWR) power connector. However, his Nvidia claim on the power connector could change with his upcoming GeForce RTX 4070. Igor Warosek (opens in new tab)only some GeForce RTX 4070 graphics cards use a 16-pin power connector.
The GeForce RTX 4070 is rumored to launch in April. Wallossek sources claim that the GeForce RTX 4070 has two categories for him. The premium or factory overclocked model is reported to be in the first category of 225W TBP. There may be one 16-pin power connector or two standard 8-pin PCIe power connectors. The second category includes his standard GeForce RTX 4070 model. These are his MSRP levels for a 200W TBP. Wallossek believes the second category of graphics cards will stick to his regular 8-pin PCIe power connector.
The 16-pin power connector hits hard on one of the best graphics cards out there, the GeForce RTX 4090. A power connector is preferred for GeForce RTX 4070 Ti and newer SKUs due to more stringent power requirements. However, his lower-clocked GeForce RTX 4070 and lower models don’t need that.
Wallossek has confirmed to his sources that the GeForce RTX 4060 Ti and GeForce RTX 4060 will adopt a single 8-pin PCIe power connector. However, according to early leaks, the GeForce RTX 4060 may have a TDP of his 115W, so it draws a small amount of power.
The 16-pin power connector remains. However, if the rumors are correct, the GeForce RTX 4070 Founders Edition and some 225W custom models could be the last Ada-based graphics cards to use the 16-pin power connector for some time. So unless Nvidia launches his GeForce RTX 4080 Ti, GeForce RTX 4090 Ti or Titan RTX Ada, we won’t see a 16-pin power connector until the next generation of his GeForce gaming graphics cards.
AMD has been reluctant to use a 16-pin power connector on the chipmaker’s latest Radeon RX 7000 series (RDNA 3) graphics cards. Amazingly, instead of graphics cards consuming less power, graphics consume more power. So it may be only a matter of time before we find 16-pin power connectors on Radeon graphics cards.
