Is the NVIDIA RTX 2080 (Ti) worth it?

Nvidia RTX2080Ti does provide the expected incremental performance increase, with 25–40% or even better frame rate increase in most games. If we do not take the high price into account then it is a worthy successor to GTX1080Ti.

However, we can not ignore the current prices so we must discuss more.

Why has GTX2080Ti been launched with a significant price increase over the previous highest-tier gaming cards launch price? Part of it lies in the RTX. The GTX2080Ti chip has 18 billion transistors, while the previous model GTX1080Ti has 12 billion. A certain number of transistors were used to add more traditional resources to the chip, like shaders. RTX part that is doing raytracing, HDR processing, and AI component doing the DSLL account for the rest of the transistors. This large increase in transistor count has to lead to the chip is really large, and the manufacturing cost is certainly higher than for the previous model.

Does this justify the high launch price? For me personally yes and no.

Thing is, I am still gaming with a 1080p monitor, and getting a decent 4k gaming monitor is too expensive for me. This means that I will be able to game a bit more on my second-hand GTX980 while at the start of the year 2019 I may consider upgrading to the GTX2060. So, no, for me it is not worth it at all.

On the other hand, someone who can afford a $2000 monitor with 4k resolution and HDR may afford to buy GTX2080Ti at its $1200 price. My guess is that Nvidia has taken this into account. That is the main reason the new models are priced so high because people who are the target audience for this kind of product have no problem affording it. So for those who do not have a problem with the price, yes it is worth.

One more thing we must take into account is that the rumors of Nvidia having a large surplus of unsold Pascal GPU stock may be influencing high prices of RTX2080 and RTX2080Ti, to entice people into buying GTX1080 and GTX1080Ti. Once this left-over stock has been depleted, and it may happen around when AMD offers their Navi gaming cards to counterpart new RTX and GTX cards, only then can we expect a slight drop in prices. Those who can postpone their GPU upgrade may benefit from a better price value.

Finally, the two available RTX models are meant for early adopters - game developers, software professionals, 3D professionals who are eager to get their hands on a new, breakthrough technology. These kinds of customers do not have a problem dishing out $1200 so that they can speed-up their workflow. For them, it is definitely worth because they must get it. If they do not get it, their competition certainly will, and they will be able to produce better products.

Bottom line, for a gamer the GTX2018Ti is worth only if the money is not a problem.