The Nvidia RTX 5080 provides a glimpse into the future of gaming, but does its performance justify the upgrade from the previous generation RTX 4080 Super? This article delves into a comprehensive comparison, examining specs, real-world performance, thermal efficiency, and overall value, ultimately helping you decide if the RTX 5080 is the right choice for you.
The Nvidia RTX 5080 didn't significantly outperform our test rig, but it showcased itself as a very fast, modern GPU with several exciting features. However, how much faster is it compared to its predecessor? And is upgrading worthwhile if you're a generation behind? If you simply want the best graphics card available right now, we have a guide for that. But if you're curious about the comparison between the RTX 5080 and 4080 Super, here's a breakdown.
\Spec for spec, these two cards are remarkably similar. The RTX 5080 boasts a mere five percent more CUDA cores, a nearly identical boost clock, the same amount of memory, and the same bus width. RT and Tensor cores are of a new generation, so they should perform better, but core counts are almost identical. The only real difference with the RTX 5080, aside from the Blackwell architecture, is the faster GDDR7 memory, which increases the overall memory bandwidth by a couple of hundred Gigabytes per second. However, this added power comes at a cost, with a near-15% higher TDP. If Blackwell was such a significant redesign of Nvidia's GPU architecture that we could expect substantial gains from it alone, we might be more enthusiastic. Multiple frame generation is a nice feature for the newer card that the 4080 Super lacks, but outside of that, there isn't much to be excited about on paper.\When it comes to real-world performance, the RTX 5080 doesn't offer any major surprises. At 4K, where this card should truly shine, it does surpass the RTX 4080 Super, but not by a significant margin. Overall, it's around 20% faster, but there are some games where the difference is much smaller, and even a few where the 4080 Super manages to keep pace with the newer card. This is without considering the full potential of multiple frame generation, which isn't a universal feature and not one that everyone even prefers to enable. The story at 1440p is very similar, but with an even smaller gap between these two cards. The performance boost from the 5080 here is closer to 16%, further emphasizing the limited benefit of upgrading from the older 40-series card to its 50-series counterpart.\One area where the RTX 5080 holds a clear advantage, at least, is in ray tracing. Here, we observed a much greater generational leap, and it's one of the few instances where the RTX 5080 offers credible competition to the last-generation king, the RTX 4090. The fact that it can maintain 60 FPS in Black Myth: Wukong, even with DLSS assistance, is a solid achievement. The multi-frame generation is another win for the RTX 5080. In compatible games where the frame rate might not be as smooth as desired (but still high enough to provide the algorithm with enough frames to work) it can double, or even triple, your frame rate, resulting in a much smoother experience. It's something the RTX 4080 Super can approximate with its older tensor cores and single frame gen option, but it's not in the same league as what the 5080 can accomplish. With DLSS 4 as well, multi-frame generation can be a potent combination for achieving incredibly high frame numbers – like 200+ FPS at 4K in some games. But outside of these specific scenarios, the 5080 doesn't do much that the 4080 Super can't already do.\The RTX 4080 Super features the same robust cooler as the RTX 4090 (in reference design, at least), making it incredibly cool and quiet for such a high-end GPU. However, it's massive, occupying four slots and barely fitting into even large ATX cases. With the RTX 5080, Nvidia worked some magic to develop a truly compact cooler for such a demanding card. It's only two slots wide, making it more suitable for small form factor PCs. However, it draws a monstrous 360W of power, so it will heat up small case systems even if the GPU itself stays relatively cool and quiet.\The RTX 4080 Super might be a better option... The RTX 5080 should be the high-end RTX 50-series card we recommend, but it's really difficult to. Its generational performance uplift isn't that impressive, it's limited to just 16GB of VRAM, which is already being strained by some of the most demanding games, and its pricing is already going crazy. Suggested retail at $1,000 is all well and good, but stock is limited, and third parties are already pushing that price to around $1,500 on some models. Not to mention what scalpers will do. The 4080 Super isn't easy to get at a good price either. If you can, it's still a fantastically capable card, and you might be able to find a bargain from a retailer that hasn't caught up with the times. But a quick look around today shows them out of stock almost everywhere. Want some alternatives? Here are the cards we recommend instead of the 5080
RTX 5080 RTX 4080 Super Nvidia GPU Gaming Performance Upgrade Ray Tracing DLSS Blackwell Architecture Thermal Efficiency PC Gaming
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