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RTX 3090 Ti could consume an unheard of 1.2KW of power

It appears that a previous leak pertaining to certain Nvidia GeForce RTX 3090 Ti GPUs requiring a massive 1200 watts of power is true.

As reported by Tom’s Hardware, Nvidia board partners EVGA and Galax have introduced their custom GeForce RTX 3090 Ti graphics cards. Unlike the standard model, these modified variants will require two 16-pin PCIe 5.0 power connectors (12VHPWR) instead of one.

An EVGA Nvidia GeForce RTX 3090 Ti GPU inserted on a motherboard.
Image source: Vince Lucido Image used with permission by copyright holder

As a result, Nvidia’s new flagship graphics card could theoretically consume 1,200 watts of power.

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To put that figure into context, the regular RTX 3090 Ti already features a thermal design power (TDP) of 450W. Comparatively, the graphics card’s predecessor, the RTX 3090, comes with a TDP of 350W.

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The RTX 3090 Ti comes with the new PCIe 5.0 12VHPWR connector power cable, which consists of a 12+4 pin cable capable of providing 600 watts of power. But for a board to potentially be capable of consuming 1,200W is unheard of in the consumer GPU market.

In any case, a power consumption level of 1200W will not be a stumbling block for the enthusiast segment of the GPU market. The overclocking community is eagerly awaiting custom models of the GeForce RTX 3090 Ti so they can push the boundaries of what a GPU can deliver in terms of performance, and it certainly seems they’ll have their hands full with Nvidia’s latest product.

The dual 16-Pin connectors on EVGA's GeForce RTX 3090 Ti.
Image source: Vince Lucido Image used with permission by copyright holder

Tom’s Hardware highlights how due to the fact that some custom models will come with a TDP of 510W, Nvidia board partners are integrating huge 3.5 to 4 PCI slots for the video card, which is accompanied by an unprecedented cooling system. As for the EVGA GeForce RTX 3090 Ti KiNGPiN Edition, the GPU implements a hybrid cooling solution.

Although not officially unveiled yet, it was pictured by professional overclocker Vince Lucido on Facebook. VideoCardz points out how it features an OLED panel display that showcases technical data, while the dual 16-pin power connectors are situated at the back of the unit.

Galax, meanwhile, ​​is launching its own custom RTX 3090 Ti models that will also require two 16-pin PCIe 5.0 power connectors: The GeForce RTX 3090 Ti HOF OC Lab Edition and GeForce RTX 3090 Ti HOF OC Lab Limited Edition.

Nvidia officially launched its $1,999 GeForce RTX 3090 Ti GPU yesterday. We took a look at how it compares against its predecessor and whether it really warrants a purchase.

Zak Islam
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Zak Islam was a freelance writer at Digital Trends covering the latest news in the technology world, particularly the…
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