How much WILL you pay for a graphics card?

[pp111]

I have needed a new graphics card for a while now, but refuse point blank to pay inflated prices. Now prices are starting to fall I guess I seriously have to start thinking about how much I will pay rather than how much I won't pay!
Before all this started I was willing to pay £700 for a card but after I have spent nearly a year thinking about other stuff to spend money on it's kinda made me think that graphics cards really are over-priced even at RRP. Especially when you think that I used to buy one every two years. is PC gaming really worth £350 a year on hardware? I guess what I am saying is that I am really not sure any more whether I am even prepared to pay what I was going to pay a year ago.

 

[Aretak]

I don't know really. I don't feel like spending much on a graphics card right now though. I've been getting by lately with an R9 285 and I can't say I've really missed having something hugely more powerful. I mostly play World of Warcraft anyway and it does just fine for that. If I could pick up a 1070-ish card for less than £200, I think that'd satisfy me for now. I'm interested in seeing what Intel bring to the table before committing a large amount of money to AMD or Nvidia.

 

[TheRandomGuy7]

They are currently so expensive largely due to how profitable mining is. If you're uncomfortable spending several hundred on a GPU but you want one badly, why don't you just get one and mine on it yourself? It will make the hundreds back if you stick to it. Even if not, get a ***NO COMPETITOR MENTIONING!*** drop or an OCUK promo code and the pricing is relatively good, considering the £60-per-game-plus-online-fees you'd pay after spending £500 on a console.

The days of xx70 tier cards priced at £250 are long gone. For years Nvidia and AMD have both been creeping their prices up far greater than the rate of inflation. But honestly even in this worst-case market we're in now I still see PC gaming as far more cost effective than console gaming. Tenfold if you mine on the side with your new GPU.

 

[ahar]

I spent around £550 on my 1080Ti and want to spend around the same level for its replacement. That means a 3080 FE (have been unsuccessful so far) or a 3rd party 3070 when prices come down a bit or I'm quicker off the mark if there is another OCUK forum discount.

Obviously would prefer more bang for my buck - my 1080ti is 3 years old so its a couple of hundred quid a year, minus what I would get back if I sell it. However, both options are a good enough upgrade from my current card to make it worth it if I sell my current one.

 

[willhub]

£650 for a 3080

 

[Squink]

I still see PC gaming as far more cost effective than console gaming.

I paid £580 for an XBox Series X with 3 years of Games Pass Ultimate. You can't say that a £2000 PC with a 3080/5800X is far more cost effective. Faster, yes. More games, yes. Cheaper games, yes. Most cost effective, no. The PC is in an entirely different cost bracket and arguably fulfils a different need.

To answer the OP - I actually think the RRP for current gen cards is fairly okay. Even the mid range stuff can play high res and decent settings, as long as you're not one of the OMG MUST HAVE 240FPS 4K ULTRA SETTINGS people.

 

[pp111]

They are currently so expensive largely due to how profitable mining is. If you're uncomfortable spending several hundred on a GPU but you want one badly, why don't you just get one and mine on it yourself? It will make the hundreds back if you stick to it. Even if not, get a ***NO COMPETITOR MENTIONING!*** drop or an OCUK promo code and the pricing is relatively good, considering the £60-per-game-plus-online-fees you'd pay after spending £500 on a console.

Because I refuse to put my own interests ahead of the kids. Mining is a hugely wasteful process and is really contributing to climate change. It may not affect me, but it would most certainly affect the children of this world when they grow up to a screwed up planet.

 

[TheRandomGuy7]

I paid £580 for an XBox Series X with 3 years of Games Pass Ultimate. You can't say that a £2000 PC with a 3080/5800X is far more cost effective. Faster, yes. More games, yes. Cheaper games, yes. Most cost effective, no. The PC is in an entirely different cost bracket and arguably fulfils a different need.

Don't know where you get £2000 from. 3080=£649. 5800x=£330. Rest of build=£400 or so, total is no more than £1400. That is for a high-end PC which obliterates the new gen consoles.

Savings per year from cheap games, free online etc - £200-1000

Mining profit on a 3080 running only at nighttime now til Christmas - minimum £250

And look at that, your incomprehensibly overpriced high-end gaming PC has... paid for itself??

 

[TheRandomGuy7]

Because I refuse to put my own interests ahead of the kids. Mining is a hugely wasteful process and is really contributing to climate change. It may not affect me, but it would most certainly affect the children of this world when they grow up to a screwed up planet.

That is fair enough. But many providers e.g. Octopus use entirely renewable energy. Plus many people use solar panels etc.

Even still I think the cost of gaming PCs are being vastly exaggerated, while the savings on games etc vs consoles are still major. They aren't that expensive unless you're giving a scalper £1500 for a GPU alone

 

[MrRockliffe]

Don't know where you get £2000 from. 3080=£649. 5800x=£330. Rest of build=£400 or so, total is no more than £1400. That is for a high-end PC which obliterates the new gen consoles.

At MSRP, yes.

But realistically

CPU is 380
3080 will be more like 850
Mobo 150
RAM 80
Good PSU 90
1TB SSD 90
Cooler 70
Case 80

Total 1790


Then you’ve got peripherals, monitor etc


So 2K was a decent estimate.


With the Xbox, you get a very good 60Hz experience with good detail in game, a controller with super low latency and excellent game subscription offers for £580.

 

[man_from_uncle]

I'm looking for a reasonable upgrade from a gtx970, to pair with a 4790k, for around £300. Given I paid £199 for the gtx970 around 7 years ago, I feel like £300 should be able to purchase something considerably more substantial than it currently can.

 

[MagicBoy]

I paid MSRP.

HTH.

 

[TheRandomGuy7]

At MSRP, yes.

But realistically

CPU is 380
3080 will be more like 850
Mobo 150
RAM 80
Good PSU 90
1TB SSD 90
Cooler 70
Case 80

Total 1790

Personally got my 5800x for £260 and a B550 for £70 from a 'friend' but yes I see your point. Also the case, cooler and PSU should last 10-20 years if you don't cheap out whereas the console goes in the bin after 5 years. Generally though consoles are short-term better value for money for sure, and your arguments are 100% correct and valid - there are just too many braindead console owners who grossly exaggerate the cost of PCs while ironically paying the same amount over a 10 year period for a worse experience.

I'm looking for a reasonable upgrade from a gtx970, to pair with a 4790k, for around £300. Given I paid £199 for the gtx970 around 7 years ago, I feel like £300 should be able to purchase something considerably more substantial than it currently can.

3060Ti Founders is £360. That is almost the same £250-300 accounting for 2021 inflation. The 3060Ti is almost 3 times faster than the 970 - pretty worthy upgrade in my eyes?

 

[Squink]

So 2K was a decent estimate.

Yep - 2k is about the going rate for a 3080/5800X prebuilt with a few compromises on mobo, PSU and case. Start upgrading those and the price goes up.

Self building at MSRP is a different kettle of fish, but clearly - these days - it's not as easy as picking what you want, ordering and building.

 

[Zarax]

My budget is around £550 for a GPU, might go 10-20 higher but I refuse to spend more than that.

 

[Bug One]

About £500.

 

[Cadder]

I'd pay MSRP for the 3060 Ti, 3070, 3070 Ti and 3080.
For AIB boards I would pay:
3060 Ti - £450
3070 - £550
3070 Ti - £650
3080 - £750

But I am confident of catching a 3080 FE drop so I am happy to wait.

Those prices I listed are unrealistic at the moment, but I am not desperate to get another card so I don't expect to entertain anything higher than those.

 

[fastwunz]

No more than £400. Any more is daft

 

[man_from_uncle]

3060Ti Founders is £360. That is almost the same £250-300 accounting for 2021 inflation. The 3060Ti is almost 3 times faster than the 970 - pretty worthy upgrade in my eyes?

Totally agree. And as soon as I can find one (or a 2070S or 6700) at that price, I'll be all over it.

 

[CuriousTomCat]

It depends what people earn. One weeks wages is my limit. 40 hours work.

If somebody earns 3090 money in one week, I can understand it perfectly. It's when it costs them 4 weeks wages that I scratch my head and think they're crazy.