NVIDIA has reportedly shelved plans to launch its GeForce RTX 5080 graphics card with 24GB of GDDR7 memory in China, citing rising memory costs as the primary reason. The company was previously expected to introduce the upgraded model in January 2027.
According to a supply-chain report shared on the Chinese hardware forum Board Channels and subsequently reported by the Japanese publication Gazlog, NVIDIA has informed its add-in-board (AIB) partners that the planned launch will not go ahead. However, the company has reportedly not provided a revised release timeline.
The development could also affect NVIDIA's plans for its existing RTX 5080 16GB model, which was previously expected to be phased out ahead of the upgraded version.
The reported decision is linked to the rising cost of 3GB GDDR7 memory modules required for the proposed RTX 5080 24GB variant.
According to the report, these higher-capacity memory modules cost around three times as much as the 2GB modules used in the existing RTX 5080. This would make it difficult for NVIDIA to price the upgraded graphics card competitively.
The RTX 5080 24GB was expected to use eight 3GB GDDR7 modules instead of the eight 2GB modules found in the current 16GB model. This configuration would increase the graphics card's memory capacity without changing its existing memory interface.
Higher memory costs could make the 24GB version considerably more expensive, potentially limiting its appeal to buyers. NVIDIA is therefore reportedly continuing to purchase 2GB GDDR7 modules for the existing model.
With the 24GB variant reportedly shelved, NVIDIA is expected to continue supplying the RTX 5080 16GB model in China. This reverses earlier reports suggesting that the company would gradually discontinue the existing version to make room for its successor.
The latest development also contradicts claims made by Board Channels in late October. At the time, the forum suggested NVIDIA was accelerating the RTX 5080 24GB launch to December 2026 or January 2027 while preparing to wind down production of the 16GB variant.
The latest report does not provide a replacement launch date for the upgraded graphics card.
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NVIDIA has not officially confirmed the cancellation of the RTX 5080 24GB or announced any changes to its product plans. The information remains based on supply-chain reports and claims shared through Board Channels.
For now, the RTX 5080 16GB could remain NVIDIA's most powerful GeForce graphics card available to a wider group of buyers in China, particularly as the RTX 5090 remains financially out of reach for many gamers.
The reported cancellation also highlights how rising memory component costs could influence NVIDIA's upcoming graphics card launches and product configurations.