Nvidia Reaches Into the Archives to Prep RTX 2050 GPUs for Laptops

It's a bit bizarre, but Nvidia is adding a new laptop GPU for the RTX 2000 series — a graphics line it originally launched for notebooks almost three years ago. 

The new GPU is called the RTX 2050, and it’s designed to fill out the lower end of the RTX 2000 series. The graphics chip actually features more CUDA cores than the RTX 2060 mobile chip, but it has significantly less video memory.  

But on the plus side, the RTX 2050 actually uses the Ampere architecture found in the RTX 3000 series, not Turing.

“The RTX 2050 GPU for laptops is based on Ampere GA107 GPU,” a company spokesperson said. “It is a specifically engineered GPU with 4GB video-memory support, to deliver the benefits of RTX into a new class of mainstream laptops.”

The specs for the RTX 2050 mobile GPU.
(Nvidia)

Still, the announcement is strange, since it was only back in May when the company launched the RTX 3050 and RTX 3050 Ti mobile GPUs. Specifically, the RTX 3050 is supposed to be available for laptops as low as $799, although prices can go as high as $1,000.

Nvidia didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment on whether it’s struggling to secure enough chip supplies for the RTX 3050. However, it seems the company is trying to address GPU demand in more affordable laptops.  

“Many people have different hardware requirements for the apps they use and the tasks they perform,” Nvidia said in the announcement. “To give more choices to gamers and creators, we’re introducing new GeForce laptop options that will be available via our network of partners worldwide.”

(Nvidia)

In addition to the RTX 2050, the company is releasing the GeForce MX570 and MX550 mobile GPUs for laptops. These graphics chips have been designed to power video- and photo-editing tasks. However, the new GPUs won’t arrive until next spring. 

It’s not the first time Nvidia has returned to the RTX 2000 series. Earlier this month, the company revived the RTX 2060 desktop graphics card to help “alleviate supply constraints” during the ongoing chip shortage. The problem is that US retailers have yet to begin selling the new RTX 2060 card. Nvidia later told PCGamer that supplies for the product won’t ramp up until the end of this month though January.