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Nvidia GeForce RTX 5080 laptop version may launch with fewer CUDA cores than initially anticipated

The Nvidia GeForce RTX 5080 will get some important upgrades across the board, but CUDA core count isn't one of them (image source: Nvidia)
The Nvidia GeForce RTX 5080 will get some important upgrades across the board, but CUDA core count isn't one of them (image source: Nvidia)
A new leak has revealed the Nvidia GeForce RTX 5080 laptop version will not offer much in the way of a CUDA core count increase over its last-gen counterpart. Instead, it will leverage the new Blackwell architecture and 16 GB of GDDR7 VRAM to offer anywhere between a 40-60% performance boost.

Yesterday's leak told us a lot about Nvidia's upcoming GeForce RTX 50 series laptop graphics cards. For starters, the GeForce RTX 5090 and RTX 5080 would both get 16 GB of GDDR7 VRAM. Therefore, it stands to reason the only difference between the two will be in CUDA cores. Moore's Law is Dead has now revealed some new information about Nvidia's penultimate Blackwell laptop GPU.

The GeForce RTX 5080 will come with 7,680 CUDA cores. This is slightly higher than the 7,424 CUDA cores found on the GeForce RTX 4080 laptop version. Tom adds the Blackwell GPU could offer a 40-60% performance uplift over the GeForce RTX 4080. Given the marginal increase in CUDA core count and an equally marginal manufacturing node shift from TSMC 4N to TSMC 4NP, that figure seems a bit optimistic.

Additionally, the GeForce RTX 5080 will launch with a max TGP of 175 Watts across;- the same as its last-gen counterpart. This is unlikely to change anytime soon due to thermal constraints. While the new architectural improvements bought forth by Blackwell and GDDR7 memory will indeed result in a not-insignificant performance bump, it might not be as high as stated above.

Interestingly, this information goes against Tom's earlier leak which stated the GeForce RTX 5080 laptop version would come with 8,192 CUDA cores. That makes sense for a Ti-branded SKU, but there's no evidence of a RTX 5080 Ti existing so far. And it can't be the GeForce RTX 5090 either because the CUDA core difference between the two is too minimal. Perhaps it refers to the full, uncut die that Nvidia plans to cut down for stable operation.

Source(s)

Moore's Law is Dead on YouTube

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> Expert Reviews and News on Laptops, Smartphones and Tech Innovations > News > News Archive > Newsarchive 2024 12 > Nvidia GeForce RTX 5080 laptop version may launch with fewer CUDA cores than initially anticipated
Anil Ganti, 2024-12-21 (Update: 2024-12-21)