- A new rumor suggests that the RTX 5090 will use 600W of power
- Comments in a Chinese forum point to the new GPU being much higher
- The requirements for the PSU are 1000W according to Corsair
Nvidia’s RTX 5090 promises to be a step up compared to the previous generation RTX 4090but it can come at a significant cost according to new rumors – and you might want to invest in a powerful power supply.
As reported by Tomasz Gawronski on X, discussions in Chiphell (a Chinese forum site about the latest PC hardware) suggest that Nvidia’s RTX 5090 Founders Edition GPU will use 600W of power, while being much higher compared to the 4090. This is based on what is seen appears to be an upcoming review with the embargo set for January 24th, with a post translated from Chinese saying “The editor cursed during testing… After all, the power consumption increased, the power increased, and the scream also rose~”.
Considering the pricing of the RTX 5090 ($1,999 / £1,939 / AU$4,039) and the reported 30% performance increase (according to Blender benchmarks highlighted by VideoCardz), this rumor probably won’t bode well for anyone intending to upgrade to Team Green’s latest flagship GPU. The RTX 4090’s power consumption is 450W, and while this is still plenty, the jump to 600W isn’t very appealing either.
Both an increase in noise and PSU requirements will be expensive in several aspects, but that is also expected if the performance ends up living up to the hype.
What does this mean in terms of PSU requirements?
It’s important to note that this is just a rumor, but if it’s legit, then RTX 5090 users will definitely have to pay more than $1,999 / £1,939 / AU$4,039. If you don’t already own a 1000W PSU, then you probably need to invest in one – recommended PSU requirement for RTX 5090 is 1000W according to Corsair.
This is especially the case if you have a high-end CPU equipped, as you want to avoid system failures due to your PSU not having enough power. When reviews arrive, we’ll have to gauge how much of a jump the RTX 5000 series flagship GPU is from the previous generation. To be honest, even the RTX 4090 is still overkill for gamers, which will also be true for the RTX 5090 – so if you’re investing in a new GPU and new PSU, you may have to wait a while to really get the most out of your rig.
