Nvidia RTX 5060 Launches: Consider Waiting Before Buying

Nvidia unveiled the RTX 5060 and RTX 5060 Ti in April 2025, and now, the more budget-friendly RTX 5060 is finally hitting the market, following an exciting reveal at Computex.

Priced starting at $299, the Nvidia GeForce RTX 5060 comes equipped with 3,840 CUDA cores spread across 30 Streaming Multiprocessors, making it well-suited for 1080p gaming. Nvidia boasts that the RTX 5060 can achieve some remarkable feats at this resolution, such as hitting 223 fps in Doom: The Dark Ages at 1080p on max settings, but this is with Multi-Frame Generation cranked up to 4x.

This generation's key highlight from Nvidia is the focus on Multi-Frame Generation technology, and even though the RTX 5060 is the entry-level option in this series, it fully supports Multi-Frame Generation and the entire DLSS 4 tech suite. However, bear in mind that with only 30 SMs, there are still limits to what DLSS can achieve.

It's important to note that the $299 price is just the starting point. While some models will be available at this entry-level price, many RTX 5060 variants will be pricier, often featuring enhancements like factory overclocking and RGB lighting.

Reviews Are Coming... Later

Even though the RTX 5060 is positioned as an affordable graphics card, it's wise to hold off on buying until you see how it performs in real-world scenarios. Nvidia's performance claims are impressive, but they're based on tests with Multi-Frame Generation enabled. We'll need to conduct our own lab tests to get a clear picture.

Unfortunately, we'll have to be patient. Unlike previous launches in this generation, such as the RTX 5090, Nvidia isn't providing an early driver to reviewers, so expect a delay of about a week before reviews start rolling in. The RTX 5060 is likely to be a solid 1080p graphics card, but the rest of the Blackwell lineup has shown mixed results in terms of generational improvements.

There's a chance the RTX 5060 will show a performance increase similar to what the RTX 5070 achieved over its predecessor, especially in traditional gaming without frame generation. When I inquired about the performance uplift over the RTX 4060, Nvidia stated that the 5060 could deliver up to double the performance with frame generation enabled, but only about 20% more in games without ray tracing or frame generation – and that's assuming the best-case scenario.

As with any significant tech purchase, my recommendation is to wait for the reviews before making a decision, ensuring you get the best value for your money. Those reviews are on their way, but they might take a few days to appear.