Memory is one of the crucial aspects of a graphics card, and faster is always better — so it’s no surprise that Nvidia’s next-gen GeForce RTX cards, expected sometime in 2025, will feature cutting-edge GDDR7 memory modules.
But according to new statements, desktop PCs won’t be the only ones getting that tech. It’s coming to laptop cards in the 50 series, too. Buried deep in a presentation from a Chinese laptop manufacturer were a few details about Nvidia’s “Blackwell” laptop cards, specifically the xx60 version of the card. (That will almost certainly be called the GeForce RTX 5060, but we don’t have confirmation on nomenclature.)
According to a Shenzhen Hasee Computer Co. chairman, these laptop graphics cards will be the first on the market equipped with GDDR7 memory, now in the final stages of pre-production from suppliers.
The news was spotted by a social media user and picked up by WCCFTech, so there’s certainly room for error among lots of transcription from a live presentation and various translations. But it certainly tracks. Laptop GPUs are generally based on the same tech as the desktop cards they follow, even though the realities of mobile tech design mean they’re a little less punchy for pushing polygons. But it’s good to hear that speedy memory won’t be one of those compromises for laptop users.
The chairman went on to say that the newer chips will sip less power than current-gen laptop GPUs, down to 115 watts from a maximum of 140 watts for the RTX 4060. That’s despite offering better performance! The presentation said we can expect the RTX 5060 (again, unconfirmed name) to meet or beat the capabilities of the RTX 4070 laptop card.
The RTX 50 series is expected to span the usual range, from 5050 on the low end all the way up to 5090, on both desktop and laptop. No timeframe is known yet, but sometime in mid-to-late 2025 would fit the established patterns.
Nvidia refreshed the RTX 40 series on the desktop with upgraded “Super” variants, but it doesn’t look like those bumps will be coming to laptops anytime soon. Nvidia also downgraded the memory in the desktop RTX 4070, moving it from GDDR6X to the older and very slightly slower GDDR6 to save costs.
Author: Michael Crider, Staff Writer, PCWorld
Michael is a 10-year veteran of technology journalism, covering everything from Apple to ZTE. On PCWorld he's the resident keyboard nut, always using a new one for a review and building a new mechanical board or expanding his desktop "battlestation" in his off hours. Michael's previous bylines include Android Police, Digital Trends, Wired, Lifehacker, and How-To Geek, and he's covered events like CES and Mobile World Congress live. Michael lives in Pennsylvania where he's always looking forward to his next kayaking trip.