Recent leaks have revealed that Nvidia’s upcoming RTX 5080 graphics card, set to launch on January 30, 2025, may not meet the high expectations set by its predecessor, the RTX 4090. Benchmark tests indicate that the RTX 5080 is slower than the RTX 4090, raising concerns among gamers and tech enthusiasts alike.
Key Takeaways
- The RTX 5080 scored 261,836 points in Vulkan and 256,138 points in OpenCL tests.
- Compared to the RTX 4080, the RTX 5080 shows a 22% improvement in Vulkan but only a 6.7% increase in OpenCL.
- The RTX 5080 is built on Nvidia’s Blackwell architecture with 10,752 CUDA cores and 16GB of GDDR7 memory.
- Initial benchmarks suggest the RTX 5080 is about 10-11% slower than the RTX 4090.
Performance Overview
The RTX 5080 was tested using an MSI-branded unit paired with an AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D processor, an MSI MPG 850 Edge TI Wi-Fi motherboard, and 32GB of DDR5-6000 memory. The results from the Vulkan benchmark show a score of 261,836 points, while the OpenCL test yielded 256,138 points. This performance indicates a significant leap over the RTX 4080, which is approximately 22% faster in Vulkan and 6.7% in OpenCL.


However, the RTX 5080’s performance falls short when compared to the RTX 4090, which has historically set the standard for high-end graphics cards. The RTX 5080’s results suggest it may not be able to surpass the RTX 4090, a trend that has been consistent with Nvidia’s 80-class GPUs traditionally outperforming the 90-class models from previous generations.
Specifications
- Architecture: Blackwell
- CUDA Cores: 10,752
- Memory: 16GB GDDR7
- Memory Interface: 256-bit
- Theoretical AI Performance: 1,801 TOPS
- Ray Tracing Performance: 171 Teraflops
Market Position
The RTX 5080 is priced starting at $1,000, which positions it as a more affordable option compared to the RTX 4090, which is expected to retail around $1,599. Despite the lower price point, the performance metrics suggest that the RTX 5080 may not be the game-changer many were hoping for. Instead, it appears to be a solid upgrade over the RTX 4080, but not a significant leap forward in the high-end market.
Conclusion
As the launch date approaches, potential buyers are advised to temper their expectations regarding the RTX 5080. While it offers improvements over its predecessor, the RTX 4090 remains the benchmark for performance in the current generation of graphics cards. Until official reviews are released, it is prudent to wait for more comprehensive testing to fully understand the capabilities of the RTX 5080 in real-world gaming scenarios.
Via: DigitalTrends, TruthPhoenixV