Nvidia has asked its retail partners to limit the maximum number of GPU sales to just two per customer after increased demand from cryptocurrency miners sent the price of its graphics cards through the roof, it has been revealed.
A number of the firm’s leading GPUs are now selling for more than double their retail price as chancers are prepared to pay a premium to get their hands on the hardware required to mine virtual currencies, like Bitcoin, Ethereum and Ripple.
Related: Best Bitcoin alternatives
Nvidia isn’t at all pleased with the situation, however.
In a statement issued to Computer Base, it stressed that the GPUs it manufactures are intended for gamers – so they should come first. It then went on to recommend that its trading partners make the appropriate arrangements to ensure availability.
For NVIDIA, gamers come first. All activities related to our GeForce product line are targeted at our main audience. To ensure that GeForce gamers continue to have good GeForce graphics card availability in the current situation, we recommend that our trading partners make the appropriate arrangements to meet gamers’ needs.
At the time of writing, the price of Nvidia’s high-end GTX 1070 had reached £640 – almost two and a half times more than its affordable £270 retail price. Its flagship GTX 1080 Ti was also selling for £860, a little less than double its launch price.
Nvidia’s plan could backfire, though.
Capping the amount of units retailers can offload to each customer could force those looking to build a more powerful rig to source their components from independent merchants at a similar premium.
That said, Nvidia doesn’t really push SLI (Scalable Link Interface) setups with its cards, so most PC gaming enthusiasts are probably best off plumping for builds which utilise a single GPU.
Check out guide to building the best gaming PC and roundup of the best graphics cards for more.
Do you think Nvidia has made the right decision? Let us know over on Facebook or Twitter @TrustedReviews.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
