In order to use Windows 11 properly, I am planning to renew my main desktop PC for work for the first time in 6 years. Intel has released a 12th generation Core processor and a new chipset, so it shouldn’t be a bad timing. However, the high wall that stands there …
Video card procurement failed
Five years seems to be long and short. There are many elements that make up a PC, but firstly the processor, secondly the memory, thirdly the storage, and the motherboard for integrating them. Nowadays, it’s normal for every function to be installed on the motherboard, so you don’t have to think about it, and you can get an environment that is close to all-in-one. It’s really easy.
However, there are a lot of things to think about GPUs. We know that the superiority and inferiority of GPUs have a great impact on the usability of PCs, but the cost for doing so remains high. If you choose a high-end GPU, it’s still not enough to pay the same price as the entire PC. For example, in order to load a reasonable GPU on a PC with a system set of 300,000 yen, an additional investment of 300,000 yen is required. This amount of investment is a bit unusual. The video card unknowingly pulled out the CPU and became one of the most expensive parts of a PC system, but it’s confusing because you can pretend to be unaware of it.
The night before writing this manuscript, ZOTAC announced the ZOTAC GAMING GeForce RTX 3050 Twin Edge as a cost-effective product at 23:00 on January 27, 2022. The expected market price is 39,800 yen, which is reasonably reasonable under the current circumstances. Video cards with GeForce RTX 3050 were released at the same time by each company, but this seems to be the lowest price. Personally, this price is barely enough when considering the cost and use of the entire system. I don’t feel like investing more than 40,000 yen in purchasing a video card because it is used without games or mining.
However, they tried to buy the product by opening the EC site of each company, but it seems that it was close to an instant kill, and all the shops are out of stock. I have no choice but to give up.
5 years ago when the video card wasn’t that expensive
The situation hasn’t improved for a long time with GPU soaring. For example, the PC I’m currently using is a 7th generation Core i7-equipped machine that I made in 2016, but the Radeon RX 480 is installed as a video card. I don’t remember how much the price was at that time, but a little research reveals that it was around 30,000 yen.
Do you want to use graphics with a built-in processor, expand your budget to 60,000 yen to find a high-end RTX 2060-equipped video card, or continue to use the Radeon RX 480 five years ago? Thinking about this, I can’t really sleep at night.
In the PC environment, there are some that can achieve surprising effects with a small investment, and some that do not seem to have much effect for a large investment. And it also depends on what the PC is used for.
GPUs aren’t necessary for business use. In particular, online conferencing apps such as Teams and Zoom are easier to use if you have abundant graphics resources. The rendering comfort of the browser also depends on the performance of the GPU. Simply wandering around the Internet, the GPU helps with that comfort. Whether you refer to PDF or edit high-resolution photos and videos, the superiority or inferiority of the GPU has a great effect on usability. However, the effect is difficult to understand. It’s difficult to compare in general work.
I have never experienced how much the difference in usability of everyday work is between when the graphics with a built-in processor and when a video card worth hundreds of thousands of yen is installed, but thinking normally, another PC I don’t think there’s a reward for the amount of money you can buy. Of course, unlike cars, PCs have no speed limit. Therefore, the processing performance has never exceeded. The problem is the balance of costs.
In that sense, graphics with a built-in processor is a welcome solution. It would be nice for non-fighting users if Intel took it a little further here, but it feels like the desktop processor isn’t, even though it’s been reasonably focused on the integrated graphics of the mobile processor.
Is it worthwhile that the cost of the video card accounts for nearly half of the cost of the entire system? It’s a difficult place for users who don’t fight in the gaming scene where the high and low frame rates lead to the game.
Even if I think that the GPU is as important as the processor, I feel that the limit is about the same as the processor. For example, the 12th generation Intel Core processor is the high-end Core i9-12900K for 70,000 yen. I think it would be convincing if you could buy a high-end video card around that point. A healthy image would be convincing if the motherboard, graphics card, and processor each cost 50% of the total cost.
High-end video card at a reasonable price someday
The cost of a PC is really a pinch. If it can be configured with the desired combination of components, it will be cheaper as a result to purchase the finished product from the manufacturer or shop brand. Choosing your favorite parts for your own work is endless and you have to be prepared for a fairly expensive purchase.
You can do the same for both PCs that you can buy for 50,000 yen and PCs that cost more than 300,000 yen. Especially if you don’t fight someone, that’s the case when it comes to business. Whether it’s gaming, mining, or office work, the processing power of the tools is directly linked to the game.
How to procure the processing power that seems appropriate for the game. And how reasonable is the cost required for the procurement? It is difficult to judge the value of the world without the speed limit.
Still, the current market price for soaring video cards is a bit too harsh, even if we know that demand will determine the market price. There are some troubles at semiconductor manufacturing sites, but if you don’t find a good spot now, vendors may miss out on big business opportunities. Now that the niche is becoming a mass, we need something to grow it further. Otherwise, the efforts of vendors who have increased the value of GPUs will not be undermined. They wouldn’t want the odd highs to continue.
That is why it is necessary to make efforts to convey the power of GPUs, which bring high added value to PCs, in a more understandable and concrete manner.
