This is a disappointing generation of GPUs

ALONGSIDE THE INTRODUCTION of the RTX 40-series Super models, this past month also saw the launch of AMD's RX 7600 XT. I think it's fair to say that this entire generation of GPUs has been disappointing on the whole, but AMD's offerings were particularly bad.

- Jarred Walton

The previous generation of GPUs were plagued by scalpers and cryptocurrency miners jacking up prices-why wouldn't AMD and Nvidia bump MSRPS? If that wasn't bad enough, AI and deep learning have come of age. Add China tensions and restrictions on what can be manufactured and sold, then factor in rising costs of chip manufacturing technology, and we have the current situation.

But even with all that, let's look at GPU lineups. Nvidia didn't hold back on the top AD102 chip. going with a tuned TSMC 4N process and 608 mm2 die size, but that's the exception. The previousgeneration RTX 30-series used Samsung 8N with a 628 mm2 die size on the RTX 3080 and 3090 class cards. The 4080 Super and below all have smaller die sizes: 377 mm2 for the 4080 class and 4070 Ti Super, and only 295 mm2 for 4070 Ti through 4070, with sub-200 mm2 die sizes on AD106 and AD107.