Nvidia is reportedly working on a new variant of the RTX 3050. According to users of the Board Channel forum, the 8GB RTX 3050 is eating away sales from the RTX 4060, so a new 6GB RTX 3050 replacement is apparently in the works.
Board channel sources (via VideoCardz), claim the new RTX 3050 model with 6GB of memory is expected to have either a 96-bit or 192-bit memory bus, given the amount of VRAM it will pack. However, most predict that the new model will use the shorter one.
As a reminder, the RTX 3050 was introduced at CES 2022, a year after the first high-end variants in the series were launched. Powered by the GA106 GPU, it features 2,560 CUDA cores and a 128-bit memory bus. The memory runs at 14 Gbps, and the TGP is around 130W.
The RTX 3050 has seen numerous modifications in recent times. Last year, Nvidia launched a new version featuring a GA107 GPU with a lower TDP of 115W. Meanwhile, rumours about a potential GA107-325 variant were mentioned before, suggesting the 6GB model may come alongside a 4GB model. However, those rumours were never confirmed. This new RTX 3050 6GB model is expected to launch in January. As of now, it's unclear if the 3050 8GB will be discontinued.
KitGuru says: Considering the performance difference between the RTX 3050 and the RTX 4060, it's hard to believe that the former affects the latter's sales. However, it seems potential buyers may be giving a fair amount of importance to how much VRAM both cards have.