Thanks to Nvidia announcing 3000 series graphics cards, including the $ 499 RTX 3070 beating the $ 1,200 RTX 2080 Ti, the same conversation popped up in Slack, every online game we play, the comments section, and everywhere this week. . .
When are you planning your next GPU upgrade? Do you regret your recent upgrade? Thinking of your next one? From what and what?
These are our answers, plus some answers from our forum.
Chris Livingston: Come on, computers. I recently got to know the technology by upgrading to 2080, and now this one. I enjoyed the shortest moments while I was at the highest level and Nvidia takes me back to the stone ages. This is the same feeling I had when I finally got a screen with a 144Hz refresh rate, and then the following week Emma posted a story about how awesome her 240Hz screen was.
As always, I plan to upgrade my GPU a couple of months before Nvidia announces a better GPU. That’s how it works, right?
Phil Savage: I tend to upgrade every other GPU generation, so, given my current card is the GTX 1070, it looks like I’m well deserved. My big question now is, do I stick to my regular pattern, fill up with the 3070 average, or get carried away in excitement and go straight to 3080 and its much bigger numbers. I tend to avoid the more premium graphics cards, as the 1970s tend to be good for a 1440p screen. But at the same time, I enjoy indulging in the vicious and perpetual excitement of buying new things. So it’s really neglectful.
Andy Kelly: I recently upgraded to the RTX 2080 Super, so I guess I’m cool at the moment. I’ve never been someone who should simply have every new piece of hardware coming out. If I can play most of the games at super or near-super settings, then I’m fine. I might consider upgrading to 3080 if Cyberpunk 2077 did run badly in 2080, but I doubt that would be the case. If that means missing out on some fancy Raytracing features, then so be it. I mean, I love the neon reflected in a pool like the next cyberpunk, but I can do without that if that means saving a few hundred rewards / dollars / insert local currency here.
Tim Clark: Last year, in Black Friday sales, I dropped an alarming amount of dollars on a new platform from NZXT with the 2080 Ti which is currently delivered to its OLED living room. Since it’s largely spending its time playing Destiny 2, a three-year-old game at this point, I clearly don’t need to upgrade. So obviously I’ll be going to 3090 on day one. Don’t make this face. I don’t have children, I don’t have a car, and I hardly go out because there’s nowhere to go in New York City. What the hell am I going to spend the money on otherwise, which let me assure you is covered, too.
Lauren Morton: About five years from now, probably. Like Chris, she recently bragged about getting a promotion. I spent about five years running the 970 and finally caved when Red Dead Online consumed my memory. It was time. I just upgraded to the 2070 Super, and like Phil, I’m buying all generations. See you all for the 4000 series card or whatever they end up numbering.
Robin Valentine: I’ve been evaluating a new PC purchase for a few months now – originally driven by the discovery that I can’t properly run Assassin’s Creed Odyssey on my now six-year-old device. To be honest, I am not very aware of the physical side of things, but at the moment I am just pledging my time. I’ll probably flood in October or November.
Drunk: I still have the 1080 Ti Founders version that served me well. It skipped the 2000 series for two reasons, one is price, and the other is a first-run habit of not adopting new technology. I’m definitely thinking it’s time for the upgrade, and I’ll either go for the 3090 or wait for the announcement of the Ti series.
Indecent Lowe: I am currently using 4GB 1050 Ti and am not planning to upgrade for another 2 or 3 years. The card is perfect for everything I throw at it and lowering a graphic setting or two to improve FPS is totally fine for me.
It would take a really special game or hardware malfunction to get me to upgrade early (touch wood)
Zloth: Time to upgrade your whole pc soon. The only thing I love at the moment is the case! The current card is 1080 so you definitely don’t regret having it.
bad man: The graphics heaviest game I do (or run) is Star Citizen, but the 1070 SC has little trouble doing that. I never switch the options to a “super” setting, as I think it adds so little to the game. I only upgrade when I have to turn most options “low,” so it happens every 5-7 years or so. I still have some time to always skip a few generations with Nvidia, I’ll probably intervene again when they announce the next RTX series.
Friend. I got an Acer Nitro N50-600 with an I7-8700, GTX 1070. The computer looks like an industrial fan and is warm enough to make an omelette. I get rid of it before it burns down my apartment and maybe invest in an RTX 3070 somewhere in November.
Jonway: When will I be planning the next GPU upgrade? Maybe when I get a new computer. I am very happy with my GTX 1070 as it runs most of the games at a high level. The concern with ATMs is that everything else will be a bottleneck like a skylake processor, motherboard, etc., so it might be best to do this when everything else needs to be replaced.
That is of course, if my graphics card is dead (I was horrified this week) or if the games are running very poorly and I badly need to replace it for better framing.
Shadowclash10: So, I have the RTX 2060S, Ryzen 7 2700. and 16GB RAM / 500GB SSD. I will probably be upping my RAM to 32GB soon, buy an M.2 1tb nvme ssd, and install an old 1 TB sata hard drive. I’m not planning to upgrade my GPU for a while – even though the 3070 is pretty attractive. I would say I’ll be upgrading my GPU around the RTX 4000/5000 – so another generation or two. I think it happened when I was struggling with gaming at 1440p mid / low 60fps.
McStabStab: I’ve got 1080ti with EKWB on it. I would probably start with the 3000 series but I am wary of thinking about all that install again.
Sarfan: I have a GTX 1060 and am very inclined to do an upgrade now. Maybe I’ll be able to wait until Nvidia releases RTX 3060 graphics cards. My goal is definitely mid-range and everything above would be an overkill. It would probably be a good idea to buy something from the older generation, especially when the RTX 3060 only has 6GB of RAM. In that case I would probably get the RTX 2060 Super or … wait for the RTX 3060 Ti.
Ryzengang: New hardware, especially the GPU, is always exciting. For me, it can be difficult to balance excitement with practicality. I have 2070 Super now. Realistically speaking, in the next two years or so (whenever the 4000 series launches), will there really be a game I want to play that will struggle enough in the 2070 Super to require an upgrade? The 3080 is very attractive, but I think it’s very unlikely to be worth it. That’s a long way to say that I’ll likely upgrade when the next architecture launches (like the RTX 4000).
Maser: Anytime soon so I’m currently counting on my vision deteriorating at the same rate my computer slips out of whack so I’m not noticing the graphics settings drop over time.
XoRn: I usually wait a generation or two. Since I have a 1070 I have to see how the 3070 seat compares and if I can get a good upgrade for around 400 then I will.
Freezer burn: Unfortunately, I have two hobbies in building mountain bikes and building computers. I usually upgrade my computer once a year. I am planning to upgrade this month with a 10700k processor, LGA1200 motherboard and I am hoping to have a 3080. My name is FreezerBurn and I am addicted to replacement parts ….
Zloth: Come on FreezerBurn! Parts are parts!
Freezer burn: Unfortunately yes. I upgrade my computer then I take these parts and put them in my son’s computer. Then I take those parts and put them in my daughter’s computer. Then I take those parts and put them in a box … there are no steps after that.
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