Nvidia GeForce RTX 5070 and 5060 could launch sooner than expected, says leak

We could be getting the Nvidia GeForce RTX 5060 as soon as March 2025, while the RTX 5070 will arrive in February 2025, according to a new rumor. If this leak is to be believed, then Nvidia GeForce RTX 5070 and RTX 5060 graphics cards could be here far sooner after the RTX 5090 and 5080 launch than we would normally expect.

The next generation of Nvidia graphics cards have long been rumored to be publicly announced during the CES 2025 tech trade show in Las Vegas in January 2025. Based on everything we’ve seen so far, we’d strongly expect these new GPUs to be among the best graphics cards you can buy, with the RTX 5090 in particular replacing the Nvidia RTX 4090 at the very top of the performance pack. However, realistically it will be cards like the RTX 5070 and RTX 5060 that most gamers will be buying, so news of a sooner-than-expected arrival is cause for celebration, if it turns out to be true.

The leak comes from Board Channels, a Chinese tech industry website and a regular source for hardware leaks (although not always a reliable one). According to the post on Board Channels, top-end Nvidia RTX 5090, RTX 5090D (the Chinese-specific model), and RTX 5080 graphics cards will launch in January 2025.

Following the top-end launch, Board Channels suggests that the Nvidia RTX 5070 and RTX 5070 Ti GPUs will hit store shelves just one month later in February 2025, while lower tier RTX 5060 and RTX 5060 Ti cards would become available in March 2025. We’ve already heard rumors about the 5090 and 5080 announcement, with speculation that the two cards will be announced together in January, but launch a few weeks apart. We’ve also seen some speculation about the RTX 5070 release date, but nothing concrete.

There are two problems, though, as far as I can see. First, this is just one leak so far, and while Board Channels has had a few successful leaks over the years, this is a big one. Secondly, and more importantly, it would mean that Nvidia plans to launch what (could very well be) its entire RTX 5000 series line up over the course of just three months.

Let’s compare and contrast that to the RTX 4000 series launch. Cards like the RTX 4070 Ti and the RTX 4060 launched several months after the top-end RTX 4090 and 4080 reached the public. In contrast, this leak would seem to suggest that this time around, Nvidia is taking a different tack, not waiting so long for enthusiasts to get tempted by top end cards before launching more affordable options. That’s probably a sensible tactic given how potentially few gamers will feel the need to upgrade from the likes of an RTX 4090 to an RTX 5090.

However, again, it’s important to stress that this is just one, very much unconfirmed leak, and Nvidia is unlikely to say anything concrete until it formally announces these new RTX 5000 series cards for itself.

This is one of the first hints at the launch dates for mid to lower tier RTX 5000 series GPUs that we’ve seen, but even if there’s truth in it, a lot can change between now and Q1 2025, and we’ve already seen the RTX 5000 series delayed from 2024 to 2025.

If you’re an optimist, you might be thinking about holding off on a GPU upgrade for a few months, even if it’s to grab an existing RTX 4000 series card like the RTX 4070 Super at a potential discount. Until then, take a look through our RTX 5090 guide to read up on what we know (and don’t yet know) about Nvidia’s next-gen flagship GPU.