Tomorrow marks the official launch of the much-anticipated GPU, but if you’re eyeing the Founders Edition, you’ll have to wait until late March to get your hands on it.
In recent news, NVIDIA decided to push back the retail launch of its GeForce RTX 5070 FE GPU. While this information hasn’t been formally announced by the company, Andreas Schilling shared that NVIDIA reached out to inform him of the delay. Just as reviewers got the green light to publish their assessments of the RTX 5070 a few hours ago, many were expecting the product to hit shelves imminently.
According to Schilling, NVIDIA informed him about this abrupt change right before the reviews began flooding in. So, if you were planning to snap up a Founders Edition of the RTX 5070, you’re out of luck, at least for now. It’s unclear if this will also push back the launch of third-party AIB versions, but given recent whispers about inventory levels, it seems unlikely we’ll see widespread availability anytime soon.
In a tweet, Schilling relayed NVIDIA’s last-minute message: “The RTX 5070 Founders Edition will be available later in March,” echoing the frustration that potential buyers might face.
We might witness another paper launch similar to what happened with the RTX 5090, RTX 5080, and RTX 5070 Ti. Various publications have released their RTX 5070 reviews, and the performance has been pegged as comparable to the RTX 4070 Super. Although there aren’t any major leaps forward on a generational level, the RTX 5070 does offer slightly better value than the 4070 Super at a price of $549.
For those feeling a bit crestfallen, it might be wise to hold off and consider the Radeon RX 9070 XT and RX 9070 options. Both are scheduled for launch on March 6th, with their reviews debuting a day earlier. Priced at $599 for the XT and $549 for the standard version, the RX 9070 presents itself as a strong contender against the RTX 5070.
As to why the GeForce RTX 5070 is facing these availability hiccups, the reasons remain murky. There were recent rumblings about a bug impacting the GPU’s performance, not to mention supply chain hiccups. Yet, NVIDIA has stayed mum on these speculations.
Even as we await the delayed Founders Edition, there’s hope that custom AIB editions of the GPU will roll out in various markets. Just yesterday, retailers like B&H Photo Video listed the GPU, priced at $549 for both standard and overclocked models. If AIB models start creeping above the $600 mark, you might want to reconsider unless it’s the only option available in your area for a similarly powerful performance.
