Nvidia could be doing something very different with the RTX 5090 Founders Edition compared to its previous flagship GPU, and the result could simply be a thinner graphics card, which would definitely be a good thing, given how bulky the RTX 5090 models have become. high end these days. .
VideoCardz picked up on a couple of speculations here, the first of which is that the 5090's video memory configuration will be very different, as claimed by Chiphell leaker Panzerlied (and we'd put a lot of spice into this). ).
We're told that the VRAM (rumored to be GDDR7) will be more densely packed to make it easier to have more memory: up to 16 chips in fact (instead of 12), connected via a 512-bit bus as previously rumored.
Panzerlied further believes that Nvidia will split the RTX 5090 into three PCBs or printed circuit boards.
Another leaker on (inputs and outputs, display drivers) and a separate board for the PCIe slot. (Mind you, the latter may be small; as Kopite7kimi points out, a third PCB may not even be considered.)
Kopite7kimi also gives more details about the GPU, which will apparently be a monolithic chip, but will consist of two groups of connected GPUs. However, there are no real details on exactly how this could work, or whether it could have negative ramifications for PC gaming, namely whether the RTX 5090 has been designed for heavier work (although hopefully this won't). Do it). be the case).
As you can see, the design is quite different, if all these rumors are confirmed. There's certainly already been plenty of talk about Nvidia running a 512-bit (and GDDR7) memory bus in the RTX 5090, so the new speculation makes sense in that regard.
In theory, with 16 memory modules, if Nvidia sticks to the 2GB size, the RTX 5090 could run with 32GB of VRAM if it has the full complement of chips. Although just because there is space for 16 modules doesn't mean Team Green has to occupy them all.
As for the new PCB design, it could have major implications for cooling. Panzerlied even hinted that Nvidia might be looking at a dual-slot cooling solution for the RTX 5090, and that would be a major change. In short, Blackwell's flagship could be a slightly fancier graphics card than the RTX 4090, and that would be great news for those looking to fit the next-gen GPU into a more modest PC case.
How the idea of a thinner RTX 5090 meshes with Nvidia's plans to increase performance, perhaps by quite a bit, and how much power Blackwell's leader could consume, we don't know, but it intrigues us. The latest twist in the rumor thread.
The obvious concern is the potential cost of the RTX 5090, of course, if it hits 32GB of GDDR7 VRAM and comes with a big performance jump as previously rumored, but there may be more eyes on the RTX 5080, which well I could arrive. first anyway.
