NVIDIA Corporation Preps Two Low-Cost Desktop Graphics Cards
Image source: Getty Images.
According to website hwbattle.com, graphics specialist NVIDIA (NASDAQ: NVDA) is preparing two new graphics processors aimed at gaming-oriented desktop computers. Both processors will be based on a chip that NVIDIA internally codenames GP107.
The first product, according to the leak, is known as the GeForce GTX 1050 Ti. This is said to be based on a fully enabled version of the aforementioned GP107 chip. Add-in-boards sold with the full GTX 1050 Ti graphics processor are expected to include four gigabytes of GDDR5 video memory, and will be sold at a manufacturer's suggested retail price, or MSRP, of $149.
The second product, known simply as the GeForce GTX 1050, is expected to feature a partially disabled GP107 chip, and just two gigabytes of video memory. It's expected to retail starting at $119.
Per the site, the GTX 1050 Ti is planned for a mid-October launch while the plain GTX 1050 is targeting a late October launch.
Strengthening the company's entry-level gaming offerings
Right now, NVIDIA's offerings in the mid-range of the desktop add-in graphics board market (GeForce GTX 1060-series) are leadership products, and its offerings at the high end of the market (GeForce GTX 1070/GTX 1080 and Titan X) are currently unrivaled.At the $119-$149 price points, the company's prior-generation offerings, based on its Maxwell architecture, are actually still performance/power competitive -- at least according to tests performed by TechPowerUp. However, the company's products don't command clear performance/power efficiency positions as in its mid-range and high-end products.
By transitioning from the older Maxwell architecture to the newer Pascal architecture in this segment, NVIDIA potentially stands to catalyze upgrades among users of its entry-level Maxwell and older-generation graphics processors.Indeed, according to the Steam Hardware Survey, a very significant portion of NVIDIA users within Steam user base (Steam users comprise a large portion, if not the majority, of PC gamers) are using GeForce GTX 950-class hardware or older:
Data source: Steam Hardware Survey.
Should the new GTX 1050/GTX 1050 Ti graphics processors offer a significant performance/power improvement over these prior generation NVIDIA x50-class parts, then their launch could spur a solid replacement cycle over the next 12 months or so.
Nice stream of graphics-card launches
NVIDIA has done a good job of releasing new graphics processors at a regular clip, beginning in May. The company clearly prioritized its higher end/higher performance parts first as that's where a lot of the revenue/gross margin dollars are.
However, it's clear that the company wasn't planning to neglect the more value-oriented portion of the stand-alone graphics card market. The GeForce GTX 1050/GTX 1050 Ti look as though they should capably serve this segment.
Another thing to keep in mind is that NVIDIA is likely to offer the GTX 1050/GTX 1050 Ti into the notebook market, as well. These chips should be quite power efficient, and should enable some very sleek, thin-and-light gaming-capable systems to hit the market.
Considering how much NVIDIA has talked up the growth opportunity ahead of it in gaming-capable notebooks, the GTX 1050/GTX 1050 Ti may be more exciting for those markets than they will be to desktop PC gamers.
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Ashraf Eassa has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Nvidia. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.