The soft-launched, downspecced 8GB version of the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 (opens in new tab) has been examined downunder by Hardware Unboxed (opens in new tab) and located horribly wanting regardless of providing no price financial savings, for now.
The standard efficiency deficit versus the original 12GB model (opens in new tab) is round 15–20%, with some video games tanking by as a lot as 26% at 1080p. Put one other method, meaning the 12GB card is as a lot as 35% sooner at 1080p.
Including insult to your body charge accidents, if we take Newegg as a fairly consultant retail value pattern, present pricing for the 8GB and 12GB fashions is similar. The most affordable 8GB RTX 3060 from Newegg is $359 for both cards (opens in new tab).
It is value understanding that the efficiency deficit with the 8GB card goes past merely working out of graphics reminiscence. Each playing cards use the identical GPU silicon in GA104 with the identical 3,584 shader rely and certainly run the identical official 1,777MHz enhance clock. Nonetheless, there are different key variations. For starters, the 8GB runs a 128-bit bus, whereas the 12GB’s bus is 192-bit. Consequently, complete bandwidth is all the way down to 224GB/s versus 360GB/s. The 12GB additionally will get 50% extra L2 cache.
The upshot, in some video games, entails an enormous efficiency benefit for the 12GB card. The worst instance is Dying Light 2 (opens in new tab). At 1080p, on excessive graphics settings, the 12GB card runs 35% sooner than the 8GB. That is 69fps versus 51fps. Only for slightly extra context, the a lot maligned Intel Arc A770 (opens in new tab) GPU hits 85fps in the identical check.
Halo Infinite (opens in new tab) is probably a bit extra consultant of the everyday efficiency hole, with the 12GB card up 21% at 1080p Extremely over the brand new 8GB board. All instructed, it makes for ugly viewing for the 8GB.
The issue right here is twofold. Firstly, the thought of paying the identical cash for a lot worse efficiency is disastrous in itself. However even when the 8GB was less expensive—one thing which will occur in future—the overlap in branding might find yourself being an issue.
Is it truthful to count on anybody not steeped in GPU lore to actually recognize at a look simply how a lot distinction there’s between these two RTX 3060 boards? I do not assume so.
Certainly, it is arduous to see how this twin RTX 3060 state of affairs is any higher than the confusion brought on by the 2 RTX 4080s Nvidia introduced in October. Nvidia recognised the issues brought on by two playing cards with almost similar branding, however very completely different efficiency, and unlaunched the unwanted RTX 4080 12GB.
Seems like a lot of the identical. For now we will solely stay up for getting our fingers on certainly one of these 8GB playing cards, so we will check it for ourselves.
