AMD could be set to create a crypto-specific GPU if leaks are to be believed. The ‘Navi-12’ discovered by data miners wouldn’t have any display ports, making it useless for traditional uses like gaming, and it could finally mean the AMD Ryzen 6900 XT doesn’t sell out as soon as new stock becomes available.
If true, the leak suggests AMD is following in the footsteps of Nvidia, which is also working on a GPU targeted at cryptomining fanatics, who are after as much computing power as they can get, and who’ve been buying up graphics cards as quickly as they become available.
This rumored move from AMD would likely be an effort to capitalize on the interest in high-power GPUs for cryptomining, without penalizing gamers who just want to upgrade their PC with the latest hardware. Cryptominers and chip shortages have led to massively inflated prices for GPUs as people try to snatch up tech that's in high demand and short supply.
- Nvidia might throttle the crypto performance of the rumored RTX 3080 Ti
- AMD’s GPUs and CPUs are becoming seriously popular with Linux gamers
- Nvidia deliberately halves RTX 3060 hash rate to put off crypto miners
Is this move good for gamers?
For AMD and Nvidia it doesn’t really matter who buys their GPUs, be it gamers or crptominers, as either way they’re making money. But for regular consumers, there’s been a growing anger over chip shortages that have left some unable to upgrade their PC for over a year.
A dedicated cryptomining GPU would then likely be seen as a win all round. Cryptominers would get a specific product better suited to their needs, gamers could finally snag the components they’re desperate for, and AMD could just sit back and rake in the cash.
For now, nothing is confirmed, so we’ll have to wait and see if AMD comes out with an official announcement on this anytime soon.
- Check out our picks for the best mining GPU 2021
Via eTeknix
