The Nvidia RTX 5060 shares GB206 silicon with the 5060 Ti, featuring 21.9 billion transistors, It offers 25% more cores than the RTX 4060, with 448 GB/s bandwidth from 28 Gbps GDDR7. Priced at $299, the 8GB VRAM and PCIe 5.0 x8 interface are limitations, especially on older systems. Unlike the multi-version 5060 Ti, it has one configuration. Historically popular for price-performance, its recent benchmarks show underwhelming results against AMD’s RX 9060 XT due to limited PCI and memory.
The Nvidia RTX 5060 utilizes the GB206 silicon, the same as the 5060 Ti series, which carries a higher price. This silicon die, measuring 181 mm², incorporates 21.9 billion transistors. However, in this specific RTX 5060 model, a portion of these transistors are inactive, resulting in a core count reduction of 17%.
Despite this reduction in active cores, the RTX 5060 incorporates 25% more cores compared to the prior-generation 4060. Furthermore, the implementation of 28 Gbps GDDR7 memory has led to an increase in bandwidth of 65%, reaching 448 GB/s.
The manufacturer’s suggested retail price for this graphics AIB is US $299, although the actual retail pricing following its introduction to the market remains to be seen. This particular model also incorporates a memory capacity limited to 8GB of VRAM, a potential drawback. On the other hand, only a single configuration of this AIB is offered, which may present a less complicated choice for gamers in comparison to the 8GB RTX 5060 Ti, which carries a higher price and has multiple configurations.
The limitation of the VRAM capacity is potentially exacerbated by the employment of a PCIe 5.0 x8 bus interface. While this interface may not be optimal even for systems equipped with PCIe 5.0, it could present a significant constraint for users with older hardware, particularly when the system is restricted to the PCIe 3.0 standard. A more detailed examination of this aspect will be conducted in subsequent, more comprehensive analysis.
Historically, Nvidia’s AIBs bearing the -60 suffix have gained significant adoption among PC gamers. These AIBs consistently secure prominent rankings in the Steam Hardware Survey. This success is primarily attributed to a combination of factors, including their competitive pricing, robust performance relative to cost, and frequent incorporation into prebuilt computer systems. The optimal balance of affordability and capability has positioned these AIBs as a preferred choice for a substantial portion of the PC gaming community, thereby contributing to their widespread representation in user hardware configurations, as documented by platforms such as Steam.
Unfortunately, due to a restricted PCIe and memory capacity, the AIB hasn’t performed well in various benchmarks run by several websites and sales outlets. Nvidia’s difficulties with acceptance of the RTX 5060 will be compounded by AMD’s recent release of the RX 9060 XT, which comes in two versions, 8GB VRAM and 12GB VRAM. See more about it here.
WHAT DID YOU THINK? INTERESTING ENOUGH TO SHARE WITH FRIENDS? IF NOT, TELL US WHY AT KAREN@JONPEDDIE.COM.