NVIDIA is launching new cards specifically designed for cryptocurrency mining.
What you need to know
- NVIDIA to launch new cards with a Crypto Mining Processor (CMP) for "professional mining".
- Drivers will be updated to lower the hash rate on specific gaming GPUs, namely the GeForce RTX 3060.
- GeForce RTX 3060 is expected to launch on February 25 with CMP cards to follow in Q1 and beyond.
NVIDIA has been hearing the cries from the PC build and gaming communities who have been trying to purchase the best graphics card money can buy for years. The company is looking to help tackle the current crisis of supply and demand by attacking the crypto miners from two fronts.
Firstly, NVIDIA plans to roll out new cards with a dedicated Crypto Mining Processor (CMP), which can be utilized by professional miners to handle proof of work in cryptocurrency. Secondly, the company will be limiting the hash rate of the GeForce RTX 3060 GPUs so they're less desirable.
The goal is to have the GeForce RTX 3060 launch on February 25 and be in the hands of gamers alone. How the updated drivers will tackle miners is by detecting specific attributes of Ethereum cryptocurrency mining algorithms. The hash rate cut could be up to 50%, which would severely hamper performance (and subsequently profit).
But it's not all bad news for the mining community. The new NVIDIA CMP will not do anything related to graphics, so they will be specifically designed for cryptocurrency mining. These cards will lack any display output, and come rocking a lower peak core voltage and frequency to aid overall efficiency.
| Category | 30HX | 40HX | 50HX | 90HX |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hash rate | 26MH/s | 36MH/s | 45MH/s | 86MH/s |
| Power | 125W | 185W | 250W | 320W |
| Publisher | 30HX | 40HX | 50HX | 90HX |
| Connectors | 1x 8-pin | 1x 8-pin | 2x 8-pin | 2x 8-pin |
| VRAM | 6GB | 8GB | 10GB | 10GB |
| Availability | Q1 | Q1 | Q2 | Q2 |
Hash rate is based on DAG and algorithm in use in Epoch 394.
The CMP cards will be available through NVIDIA partners. Whether these measures will have any impact on the supply and demand issue with GPUs are yet to be seen, especially given how popular the new GeForce 30-series GPUs are with miners.
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