[Opinión] The average price of dedicated graphics cards has doubled in the last three years and in 2021-22 it reached the point of out of control. The production/distribution problems dragged down by the COVID pandemic caused a worrying lack of stock, which together with the pressure of cryptomining, shot up prices to insane heights.
In recent months, production has been normalizing and inventories have risen almost to the point of meeting all demand. And we are already seeing some “sales” and “offers” that invite optimism in the medium term. But even with this there is a clear reality -in my opinion-: the prices of dedicated graphics cards remain at a very high level that does not correspond to their real valuebut that prevents PC gamers from being able to acquire a GPU at a fair price.
Is NVIDIA the “culprit”?
The green giant leads sales of dedicated graphics cards a long way from AMD. We know this from the data from analysis firms and also from sites specialized in games such as Steam, whose last survey left devastating data: 82% of users used NVIDIA GPUs.
NVIDIA, like any market dominator, goes “on its own”, to achieve the highest possible revenue and profit. The company leaves very little leeway for manufacturers who license its chips to create personalized cards. According to Jon Peddie Research, NVIDIA’s gross margins have grown to more than 60%, while its partners manage less than 10%. In short, manufacturers do not have the ability to lower prices, even if they wanted to.
NVIDIA has absolute control, partners and the market. He launches new models when and how he is interested and sets the prices he deems appropriate. All this strategy ends up being negative for consumers, but it is worth asking: is the situation in the graphic market the fault of the success of the green giant or is it the result of the inability of competitors to keep up?
We need a strong Intel in GPUS
AMD is unable to stop NVIDIA. Whether by architecture, performance, features, partners or marketing, there are few AMD dedicated graphics cards that compete well in sales against the NVIDIA catalog. It is clear that the market needs new competitors.
Intel is the world’s largest producer of PC processors and also of graphics chips (counting integrated ones). It re-entered the GPU market promising to market graphics cards with good performance and affordable price. The Intel Arc A770 with 16GB of VRAM for just $349 at launch was a good showing. And that is precisely what the vast majority of players and the entire industry need.
Intel still has a lot to do. In hardware, and also in drivers, added technologies and game optimization. But it is in it and the next generation Arc Battlemage points ways. They will be manufactured on modern 4nm process nodes and will feature 64 Xe cores, double the current generation and with it the capacity to double performance. And what is most important: at the same cost.
If NVIDIA seems unbeatable in performance in the short term, Intel’s commitment to affordability should raise the general level of benefits and lower the average price in entry and medium ranges, the most interesting for consumers.
