Nvidia Says It Shipped Twice as Many RTX 5000 GPUs Than 4000, But There’s a Catch

Has Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 5000 series been a paper launch? Scarce supplies and exorbitant prices have certainly spoiled the excitement for the next-generation graphics cards. But Nvidia is trying to paint a rosier picture by claiming that its shipment levels haven’t been all that bad. 

In a briefing with journalists on Wednesday, Nvidia’s VP of the GeForce Platform, Jason Paul, acknowledged that many gamers have been “frustrated” at the often non-existent supplies for the RTX 5000 GPUs, which first launched on Jan. 30.

“Do know that Nvidia and our add-in card partners are working overtime to keep supply flowing and catch up with demand as quickly as we can,” he said. 

To try to reassure GPU buyers, Paul said, “In the first five weeks since 50 series GPUs hit shelves, we’ve shipped twice as many GPUs compared to the 40 series in the same time frame, so supply is flowing.” 

(Credit: Nvidia)

At first glance, Nvidia’s statement suggests a smoother rollout for the RTX 5000 series compared with its predecessor. But a closer look at the launch timelines reveals the comparison isn’t quite apples to apples.

From Jan. 30 to March 6, Nvidia launched four RTX 5000 models for desktop PCs, with the 5070 arriving on March 5. That didn’t happen with the RTX 4000’s rollout. The RTX 4090 launched on Oct. 12, 2022, and was the lone RTX 4000 GPU on the market for five weeks until the RTX 4080 arrived on Nov. 16. 

Hence, doubling the number of shipments from 2022 isn’t that impressive, given the slower rollout for the 4000 series. It also suggests that supplies for the RTX 5000 are quite low, which has been obvious to GPU buyers from the start. To nab the products, some consumers have even resorted to consulting scalpers. 

In an earnings call last month, Nvidia executives also noted that its gaming GPU shipments for the November to January period were “impacted by supply constraints.” However, the company anticipates that supply will increase in the next few months.