GeForce RTX 5090 shortage: How graphics cards are being sold in mandatory bundles

The severe shortage of flagship-class devices on the global market is causing extremely unusual and even absurd situations. According to ixbt.com, some Taiwanese retail stores have completely stopped selling the most powerful graphics chips separately and have started offering them only as part of massive bundles with other components. Ixbt.com reports .

Such market conditions are putting buyers in a difficult position, as they must purchase various spare parts they do not need just to get their hands on the latest-generation flagship. This artificial shortage and these conditions are causing serious backlash among technology enthusiasts.

The most absurd and expensive bundles

One of the most astonishing cases involves the Gigabyte Aorus GeForce RTX 5090 Master 32G. Customers who want to purchase this graphics card are immediately required to buy eight Gigabyte motherboards and one 1000 W power supply for a single device.

The motherboards in this bundle vary: two use the B860M chipset, one uses X870E, and no fewer than five are models with the B850 chipset. Sellers are asking approximately $7,480 for the entire bundle. Calculations show that the average combined market value of the eight motherboards and the power supply is $1,600, meaning the graphics card itself is priced at $6,000.

Other manufacturers’ policies

It has become clear that the market situation is not limited to a single brand. Special bundles have also been prepared for customers who want to purchase the MSI GeForce RTX 5090 Gaming Trio OC. They include three MSI MPG X870E Carbon motherboards, two B650M Gaming Plus motherboards, and a high-performance AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D processor. The total price of such a bundle is estimated at $8,500.

It is worth emphasizing that in some cases, sellers are not stopping at motherboards alone. For example, the Asus ProArt RTX 5090 OC is being offered to buyers together with several additional graphics cards:

• A bundle with four Radeon RX 9060 XT graphics cards manufactured by Asus costs $7,720
• A bundle comprising the Gigabyte Aorus RTX 5090 AI BOX with an external Thunderbolt 5 interface, one X870E Aorus Master, three B850M Force motherboards, and two GeForce RTX 5060 cards is priced at $8,280

Normally, purchasing an entire system or hardware bundle should be cheaper, but in this case buyers are being forced to pay extra for unnecessary and unwanted equipment. This indicates that the artificial shortage surrounding the RTX 5090 and the pricing policy have become even more extreme.