- Japanese retailers restrict RTX 5090 and RTX 5080 GPUs from Nvidia to Japanese residents only
- It is an attempt to prevent tourists from buying the Blackwell GPUs
- It comes after a previous attempt to block purchases in tax franchise
In addition to too expensive third -party models, RTX 5090 and RTX 5080 GPUs from NVIDIA are both difficult to obtain (in particular founders’ publishing cards). And in the end, a potential “easy” alternative for consumers was very quickly closed.
As reported by Videocardz, Japanese retailers have restricted purchases of RTX 5090 and RTX 5080 to Japanese nationals only. This comes after previous attempts to prevent tourists from buying prestigious graphics cards; In particular, the stores had blocked purchases in tax franchise, but they now adopt a much more aggressive approach.
The signs in stores indicate that the two high -end GPUs of Nvidia will not be sold to anyone intended to use the GPU outside the country, effectively preventing all tourists from buying. Customers would have gone through a “Japanese resident” test before buying.
This is a highlight of the short offer and the situation with high demand surrounding the graphics cards at the moment, and it is perhaps a fairly fun tactic on the part of consumers given the lack of availability at the launch price, elsewhere. On paper, catching an airplane to another country to buy a GPU seems to be an extreme measurement, but I suppose that a flight to Japan could cost less than the inflation differential in other regions.
It may seem an extreme measure, but it is actually rather familiar. Nvidia currently has its priority access scheme verified in place, which allows American customers to book the opportunity to buy a RTX 5090 GPU or RTX 5080 Founders Edition; The catch is that you must have made an NVIDIA account no later than January 30 to be eligible.
This prevents scalpers from spoiling the party for authentic buyers, while ensuring that there is enough to go around for consumers in the United States (although it is pleasant to see this becoming available for more regions), especially during periods of high demand.
Jump through these obstacles to get an RTX 5000 is not worth it if you ask me …
As I write this article on a RTX 5080 laptop, I can testify to the quality of the Blackwell GPU. However, going to another region to buy a graphics card is not worth the hassles.
As I am addicted to high -end game experiences to high resolutions, I would never refuse the opportunity of a powerful GPU. For other players, this is not a necessity, and the latest Steam results survey equipment show that 1080p is always the most used resolution.
We are now at a stage where the APU of AMD and the Intel SoCs (system on chip) work very well in games at 1080p and 1440p; For example, Ryzen Ai Max 395+ from AMD surpasses some discreet GPUs in games like Cyberpunk 2077.
The only problem is that these chips are only gradually starting to go to office PCs, and most PC material components face price inflation anyway (especially GPUs). It is now a question of weighing your options and of knowing whether high resolutions are a priority for you – please don’t spend too much, okay?
