NVIDIA is looking to produce something that can fill up the GPU shelves of virtual hardware stores, and apparently, they have found the answer on the GeForce GTX 1050 Ti. First released back in May 2018, the particular chip was an entry-level product in the 10xx series that stroke a very good balance between cost and performance.
The 1050 Ti was “good enough” for 1080p gaming back then, but it has been superseded by other more efficient budget-minded models, like the 1650, for example. So, why is NVIDIA going for the 2018 model specifically?
The answer is the cryptocurrency mining craze. You see, part of the reason why there are no GPUs left to buy is the production disruptions caused by supply shortages due to the still ongoing pandemic. The other reason is that coin-miners who are riding the wave of extreme value rise right now are snatching all cards as soon as they become available by using automated bots. Even though vendors deploy anti-bot systems to stop this problem, it seems that so far, they have failed miserably.
So, NVIDIA is putting out the 1050 Ti because that’s the best possible product that is not powerful enough to make the investment for mining purposes worth it. Yet, it’s still adequate for consumers and even gamers who are content playing stuff at “medium” settings.
Of course, this is an emergency response to fill the market availability void, as there are literally no GPUs out there. Many online retailers are already touting large stock availability on the 1050 Ti, so this is set to become the “Volkskarten.”
The bad thing for the consumers is obviously the fact that they will still pay around $200 for a product that had dropped down to $120 at some point before the COVID-19 disruptions took their toll. Right now, there’s little hope that the situation with the GPU product shortages will resolve any time soon, and some are pushing their estimation down to summertime. AMD and NVIDIA have increased capacity, but it will take time to catch up with the demand and the already placed orders.
If you’re building a new PC right now, we would recommend that you just use the GPU that’s integrated into your processor and “persevere” for a few more months. If you absolutely need some graphics power, the 1050 Ti won’t blow you away with its performance, but it will be able to do well enough with most of the stuff you throw at it. It’s a really good graphics card, just not worth its current price tag.
