Skip to main content

Nvidia may keep producing one RTX 40 GPU, and it’s not the one we want

The Alienware m16 R2 on a white desk.
The Alienware m16 R2 is a stellar gaming laptop with an RTX 4060. Luke Larsen / Digital Trends

The last few weeks brought us a slew of rumors about Nvidia potentially sunsetting most of the RTX 40-series graphics cards. However, a new update reveals that one GPU might remain in production long after other GPUs are no longer being produced. Unfortunately, it’s a GPU that would struggle to rank among Nvidia’s best graphics cards. I’m talking about the RTX 4050 — a card that only appears in laptops.

The scoop comes from a leaker on Weibo and was first spotted by Wccftech. The leaker states that the RTX 4050 is “the only 40-series laptop GPU that Nvidia will continue to supply” after the highly anticipated launch of the RTX 50-series. Unsurprisingly, the tipster also reveals that the fact that both the RTX 4050 and the RTX 5050 will be readily available at the same time will also impact the pricing of the next-gen card.

Recommended Videos

Although the RTX 3050 existed in both desktop and laptop versions, the RTX 4050 has only made an appearance in laptops. It’s a budget-friendly option for those who want access to Nvidia’s DLSS 3, but it’s not an outstanding GPU in terms of performance. The cheapest laptops with an RTX 4050 can be bought for around $680.

Get your weekly teardown of the tech behind PC gaming
Check your inbox!

If Nvidia keeps the last-gen RTX 4050 going, then it wouldn’t be a surprise to find that laptops with an RTX 5050 will see a price increase. Some leakers predict that the RTX 5050 may rival the RTX 4060 in performance, so it’s a tight line to walk if Nvidia also keeps making the RTX 4060.

A screenshot from Weibo, talking about the RTX 4050.
Weibo

The RTX 4050 would be a strange choice to keep in production. With GPUs like the RTX 4090 (which is only going up in price as we speak) and the RTX 4070 reportedly no longer being made, Nvidia is now said to be making only low-end RTX 40-series graphics cards. The RTX 4060 is also said to live on, which is not a surprise given its popularity, but still, that could leave the GPU market looking pretty bare over time.

On the other hand, just because the RTX 4050 is reportedly still being produced doesn’t have to mean that it’ll stay that way for a long time. If Nvidia’s RTX 50-series will begin with the high-end RTX 5090 and RTX 5080, laptops with an RTX 5050 might be a good few months down the line. It makes sense to keep a steady supply of lower-end cards until there’s a new GPU to fill the gap.

Nvidia is likely to announce the next-gen RTX 50-series during CES 2025 in January. Until then, all we can do is speculate, so take all of the above with some skepticism.

Monica J. White
Monica is a computing writer at Digital Trends, focusing on PC hardware. Since joining the team in 2021, Monica has written…
Nvidia’s RTX 40-series is coming to an end
Three RTX 4080 cards sitting on a pink background.

Out with the old, in with the new. According to Board Channels, Nvidia has now halted production for nearly all of its best graphics cards as it shifts focus to the RTX 50-series. Only one GPU remains in production, and some of the cards that are the most in demand are no longer being produced.

Nvidia hasn't officially announced that it's sunsetting the RTX 40-series, but we've been hearing more and more reports that imply that might be the case. The RTX 4090 was among the first cards to go out of production, and the discontinuation appears to have immediately affected the markets. Nvidia's behemoth flagship was hard to come by at the best of times, and now, as no more new units are being produced, it's safe to assume that this situation won't improve. The cheapest RTX 4090 I could find on Amazon costs nearly $2,000, but you can still snag one for .

Read more
We just got our first hint of the RTX 6090, but it’s not what you think
A hand grabbing MSI's RTX 4090 Suprim X.

As we're all counting down the days to a possible announcement of Nvidia's RTX 50-series, GPU brands are already looking ahead to what comes next. A new trademark filing with the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC) reveals just how far ahead some manufacturers are thinking, because it mentions not just the Nvidia RTX 5090, but also an RTX 5090 Ti; there's even an RTX 6090 Ti. Still, it'll be a long while before we can count the RTX 60-series among the best graphics cards, so what is this all about?

The trademark registration filing, first spotted by harukaze5719 on X (formerly Twitter) and shared by VideoCardz, comes from a company called Sinotex International Industrial Ltd. This company is responsible for the GPU brand Ninja, which doesn't have much of a market presence in the U.S.

Read more
Intel’s Battlemage might beat Nvidia and AMD to the punch
Intel Arc A770 GPU installed in a test bench.

Out of all the GPU news we've been getting in the last few weeks, information about Intel Arc Battlemage has been pretty scarce, Now, it appears that Intel might still surprise us. According to a new leak, Intel's next-gen desktop GPUs might join the ranks of the best graphics cards as early as next month. Launching in December would certainly give Intel an unexpected edge over AMD and Nvidia, and it's an edge that it could really use right now.

As always with these types of leaks, we're working with a vague message and reading into it to try and figure out what's going on. In this instance, the gossip comes from Golden Pig Upgrade Pack on Weibo, a user with a pretty good reputation.

Read more