NVIDIA RTX 60 Launch Timeline: Delays, Specs, and Industry Impact Explained

In October of last year, a report said the RTX 5090 was essentially at the end of its life, even though Nvidia never publicly acknowledged such a strategic shift. There was already evidence of supply problems, MSI prices were going up, and there were signs of intentional throttling.

By early 2026, the prediction had come true: prices rose to $4,000 or more, and the number of items available at MSRP dropped to almost nothing. A lot of people who thought PR-driven claims were true were surprised, but those who acted fast got ahead. The situation shows a rising problem: access journalism is taking the place of reporting that is useful for readers

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NVIDIA appears to be aggressively limiting supply across a wide range of GPUs. Once again, their public response contradicts what is happening behind the scenes. We have seen outlets repeat Nvidia's talking points without scrutiny, the same behavior witnessed last year regarding the RTX 5090. After consulting numerous sources across retail and distribution, we can confirm that the concerns raised by Hardware Unboxed are valid.

After calling as many industry contacts as possible, we received consistent confirmation: the RTX 5060 Ti 16GB and RTX 5070 Ti 16GB are effectively being ended by Nvidia this year.

Supply constraints extend beyond these two models, and it is becoming clear that Nvidia is pulling back from high-end PC gaming in 2026.

If you want any Nvidia GPU with at least 12GB VRAM at MSRP, we recommend acting quickly. From what we're hearing, it's not just desktop GPUs being affected—laptops with Nvidia GPUs with more than 8GB of VRAM are also experiencing dramatically reduced shipments.

On the desktop side, the RTX 5060 Ti 16GB, RTX 5070 Ti 16GB, and even the RTX 5080—already drifting to almost double its MSRP—are all being throttled. While the RTX 5070 may continue to receive small shipments, they are still lower than last year.

They will not be enough to stabilize availability or pricing. It will likely feel end-of-life functionally as well. Meanwhile, we've confirmed that the RTX 3060 12GB supply is increasing, with retailers receiving fresh batches of 8nm cards originally launched in 2021. They also use GDDR6, which suggests that Nvidia is keeping faster memory for AI contracts.

One Nvidia developer said the company took too many AI gear orders and is now under a lot of pressure from big AI clients. Big AI companies have recently moved to secure RAM wafers, tightening supply. This has led Nvidia to prioritize AI contracts over gaming contracts. According to this source, the result is straightforward: gamers are being deprioritized throughout 2026.

Regarding AMD, everything Hardware Unboxed reported aligns with what we've been told. As of January 15, AMD has no plans to restrict supply. However, prices are expected to continue rising gradually—something we have warned about for months.

With AMD temporarily holding a monopoly in high-end dedicated graphics, demand is naturally pushing prices upward. If you want a 9070 XT at MSRP, we advise buying now. While prices may not spike as dramatically as Nvidia's lineup, they will continue to trend upward throughout the year.

There is genuine supply throttling across Nvidia's entire GPU line, not just the RTX 5090.

This affects all types of GPUs, from desktops to laptops to mid-range models. AMD is still stable for now, but prices are rising as demand increases.

During these unstable times in the PC graphics market, it's important to support retailers that put customers first over public relations. Subscribing, engaging, and supporting independent reporting helps ensure more accurate information reaches the gaming community.