• Nvidia's RTX 5000 Super models are being readied, and board makers have the chips, a new rumor reckons
• However, these graphics cards are 'on hold' due to the high price of VRAM
• The Super refreshes pack a lot of VRAM, and so that cost could have an unfortunate impact on MSRPs – and none of this sounds particularly comforting for would-be buyers

Nvidia's RTX 5000 Super refreshes are apparently being readied, but they're on hold for now – and the reason why makes me even more nervous about the pricing of these GPUs when (well, if) they finally emerge.

Of course, these RTX Super models are still rumors – albeit so persistent at this point, there must be at least some validity to them – and the latest assertion comes from VideoCardz.

The tech site has apparently spoken to a source at one of Nvidia's board-making partners who claims that their company has already received 'graphics cards', which presumably refers to GPU chips (which is what Nvidia supplies, along with VRAM, to partners that make the boards).

At any rate, while this board maker supposedly has at least some of the necessary chips, it has been told by Nvidia that the RTX 5000 Super refreshes are now 'on hold'.

Why? Apparently, the delay is down to the price of the video RAM, specifically the new 3GB GDDR7 modules that are required (as per previous rumors) for the refreshed graphics cards.

Compared to the 2GB GDDR7 modules currently in use with Nvidia RTX 5000 models, the 3GB memory chips are around three times more expensive right now. Ouch.

This presents an obvious stumbling block because, due to these Super variants being packed with VRAM, the total cost of materials gets expensive quite quickly.

Remember that the grapevine believes that the RTX 5080 Super and RTX 5070 Ti Super will bristle with 24GB of VRAM, and even the RTX 5070 Super will have a weighty 18GB on board. Gamers are going to love the latter as an upgrade to the lean 12GB of the vanilla version – but not if it pushes the price of the GPU through the roof.

Going by what VideoCardz tells us about pricing in US dollars as the market currently stands, in the case of the RTX 5070 Super, the greater quantity of RAM, and more expensive modules, would mean 18GB costs in the order of $360 (maybe a bit more), versus $120 for the current RTX 5070's 12GB loadout, whacking an extra $240 on the price (or the regional equivalent elsewhere).

These graphics cards were already expected to be pricey, but that kind of additional premium lumped on top, this could make them real wallet-worriers.

The good news for those hoping for new GPUs from Nvidia is that at least these RTX 5000 Super models do seem to be happening. It's just that we may have to wait some time for them yet – although another recent rumor did suggest they were due this year. The latter speculation also theorized that an RTX 5060 Super 12GB model was incoming, but that didn't make a lot of sense, and I note that it isn't mentioned in this latest rumor. As ever, don't go lightly with the seasoning on all this.

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Darren is a freelancer writing news and features for TechRadar (and occasionally T3) across a broad range of computing topics including CPUs, GPUs, various other hardware, VPNs, antivirus and more. He has written about tech for the best part of three decades, and writes books in his spare time (his debut novel - 'I Know What You Did Last Supper' - was published by Hachette UK in 2013).