Nvidia's RTX 20 Series Debut Met with Underwhelming Response
Key Points:
* Nvidia acknowledges the lukewarm reception of the RTX 20 series graphics cards.
* Ray tracing and DLSS, introduced with the RTX 20 family, failed to impress initially.
* The RTX 50 series appears to follow a similar trajectory, relying heavily on Multi Frame Generation (MFG) for performance improvements.
* MFG introduces latency issues, albeit minimal.
Background:
A recent book on Nvidia, "The Nvidia Way," reveals that the company recognized the lackluster performance of the RTX 20 series at launch. Senior vice president Jeff Fisher acknowledged that ray tracing and DLSS were met with "a thud."
RTX 20 Series Performance:
The RTX 20 cards exhibited negligible frame rate gains compared to the previous-generation Pascal cards. Ray tracing, touted as a killer feature, caused a significant 25% drop in frame rate. Early DLSS upscaling algorithms resulted in noticeable image quality degradation.
RTX 50 Series Outlook:
The upcoming RTX 50 series faces similar challenges. While it brings improvements over the RTX 40 series, the inherent performance advantages are minimal. Multi Frame Generation remains the primary driving force behind generational uplift. However, MFG introduces a trade-off: reduced latency but also some image quality loss.
Conclusion:
The RTX 20 series debuted with significant new features but failed to make a lasting impact. The RTX 50 series appears to share a similar fate, relying heavily on a limited set of differentiators for appeal. It remains to be seen whether it will experience the same lukewarm reception or generate more positive reviews.