NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Laptop GPU Now Comes With A 12GB VRAM Variant

NVIDIA recently announced a new GPU model that is rather unusual in nature: the GeForce RTX 5070 12GB Laptop GPU is essentially a more memory-rich version of the RTX 5070 Laptop GPU, courtesy of higher-density GDDR7 modules that allows the original 8GB VRAM configuration to get a 50% capacity increase.

A New RTX 5070 Laptop GPU

NVIDIA only briefly mentioned the new GPU’s existence in its driver patch notes last week:

Demand for GeForce RTX GPUs remains strong, and memory supply is constrained. In order to maximize memory availability, we are releasing the GeForce RTX 5070 Laptop GPU 12GB configuration with 24Gb G7 memory. This gives our partners access to an additional pool of memory to complement the 16Gb G7 supply that currently ships with most GeForce GPUs. The 12GB configuration will exist alongside the current 8GB configuration, and allows our partners to bring a broader range of GeForce RTX 5070 laptops to consumers.

While not explicitly stated, the new GPU variant is likely the same as the existing RTX 5070 Laptop GPU on the silicon level, with the VRAM capacity being the only difference – the same way desktop GeForce GPUs have seen multiple variants in several generations by now. The new model will also be the second SKU to feature 3GB (24Gb) GDDR7 modules, following the RTX 5090 Laptop GPU. So far, no desktop GPUs have tapped into 3GB supply yet, short for the purported RTX 50 SUPER series, which still remains on hold.

To recap, the RTX 5070 Laptop GPU features 4,608 CUDA cores, 128-bit memory bus (max 384GB/s bandwidth), and a TGP range of 50-100W depending on laptop designs. As mentioned, both versions will co-exist to cope with supply constraints, though it is likely that the 12GB variant will see additional surcharge on top of inflated memory pricing affecting laptops at large.

Pokdepinion: At least VRAM increased, instead of the other way around.