Question GTX 1630 & RX 6400 INSANE prices

[starkplush]

What in the world is going on here? I just looked out of curiosity and found extraordinarily weird prices even among different brands and stores, even different countries.
I know people find the GTX 1650 a bit lame for gaming but I'm warning anyone looking into graphics cards now that the 3050 for example in my opinion is way too expensive. The only good deals are maybe the RX 6500 XT followed by the GTX 1650. Anything above or below seems like an outright rip-off.

 

[Shmee]

For a while now, the low end new GPUs have not really been worth it over decent integrated, IMO. If someone wants a decent new card, they may as well pay for an RTX 3060 or an RX 6600 or better. If they cannot afford that, best probably to buy a used card, or stick with a decent APU until they can afford more.

 

[DAPUNISHER]

If you are in the U.S. you should list the lowest prices you have found for each GPU series from reputable sellers. Because the last time I did here is what I found. (All observations are based on buying a GPU NIB with warranty in the U.S.)

The 1650 is still above launch MSRP over 3yrs later. The LP versions are stupidly overpriced, making them a terrible value for tiny builds.

The 1630 is hilariously overpriced and I only found it at 2 sellers I'd trust.

RX 6500XT is the best deal for under $200 right now.

RTX 3050 is overpriced, and as @VirtualLarry has pointed out, even the 12GB 2060 can be bought for the same money. Making the 3050 a terrible choice at anything above $250. Even then I would not pick it for gaming over a RX 6600. Only if NVENC was the killer app for my use case.

The RX 6400 is the king of tiny builds. There are single slot LP versions like the one I picked up on Amazon Day for $117.50 and it came with the new Saints Row game, a $40-$60 value = good deal. Usually they are $150-$170 Saints Row still included. For anyone planning to play anyways, that brings the price down to closer to what a card like this should cost. Still overpriced for the full sized version though.

The lack of media block on the RX falls flat for me. It only loses the old Optiplex type builds, which it is too expensive to be considering anyways, given the used market is not full derp anymore. For a ultra budget build, pair it with a i3 12100 and let it do all the media duties.

All that out of the way, I agree they are all bad values now due to the used market improving drastically. With the exception of the 6400 single slot for modern tiny builds. There is nothing that can touch it at the moment, for those.

On buying used: All the reviewers still suggesting Polaris or cards as old as the 1060 6GB can get rekt. They are out of touch with reality. Those cards are on the wrong end of the bathtub curve/cradle to grave of the product. Many could be former mining slaves.

But as @DeathReborn pointed out, there are cards like the 1650 Super and RX5500 under $200 again. Even if the 5500 8GB did some mining, it is still on the good side of the curve. And both make much more sense than the 6500XT for PCIE 3.0 use like in an old Optiplex. There are other newer used cards intruding on the space here and there now too.

My conclusion is only the 6400 LP single slot, like I picked up, is worthwhile. Everything else has been overtaken by the used market again, FINALLY.

 

[Leeea]

My conclusion is only the 6400 LP single slot, like I picked up, is worthwhile.

There is now a rx6500xt 8GB model floating around:
https://www.sapphiretech.com/en/consumer/pulse-radeon-rx-6500-xt-8g-gddr6

I speculate it would be a good deal better then the 4GB model. No need for the extra PCI bandwidth if all the data is already in GPU memory sort of thing.


That said, the jump up to a rx6600 is still far better value.

 

[NTMBK]

I'd wait for the Intel GPUs hitting the market. Intel is going to have to price them low to shift them, which should upset the market nicely.

 

[Leeea]

I'd wait for the Intel GPUs hitting the market. Intel is going to have to price them low to shift them, which should upset the market nicely.

They will hit the market just as a massive supply of mining cards show up.

Just a bit worried though people will be turned off by the experience under Intel.

 

[DAPUNISHER]

The MSI 6400 is $135 after MIR at Newegg. It comes with Saints Row. Challenge: Find something NIB that can touch that deal. Even if MSI nerfs the rebate.

And where is the 1650 a good deal? I have yet to see one here in the U.S.? Trades with a 6400 but costs considerably more. The Nvidia tax is real.

 

[AnitaPeterson]

The MSI 6400 is $135 after MIR at Newegg. It comes with Saints Row. Challenge: Find something NIB that can touch that deal. Even if MSI nerfs the rebate.

And where is the 1650 a good deal? I have yet to see one here in the U.S.? Trades with a 6400 but costs considerably more. The Nvidia tax is real.

You made some really good points - to which I have a couple of things to add:

The US market is an outlier when it comes to prices and availability. And the MSI is not a single-slot card.

It's impossible to find the single-slot RX6400 in Canada under CA$250 (about US$190). In fact, the cheapest way to get it would be to order it from B&H and have it shipped (!) - and it would still run around $200. And in Germany, the cheapest I can find it is at 170 Euro, which is around US$175.

IMHO, the closest single-slot, low-profile equivalent from Nvidia would be the Quadro T600, which can be found for CA$270 or 200 Euros. While slower in gaming and requiring an output dongle, it comes with superior video encoding capabilities.

So yeah, the single-slot, low-profile market is under-served and over-taxed.