ASUS has just announced that their new flagship RTX 5090 and 5080, are now available in ASUS TUF Gaming editions. The cards are built on the latest Nvidia Blackwell architecture, these cards deliver flagship performance with features like 4th-gen Ray Tracing cores, new Neural Shaders, and other AI-powered technologies such as DLSS 4 upscaling. These combined guarantee stunning visuals and unmatched frame rates that are sure to appeal to the enthusiast gamers out there, at least, those who can find stock of them right now.
ASUS TUF RTX
Why not check out our review of the ASUS ROG Astral RTX 5090 OC Edition Graphics Card here? We should have reviews of the TUF and some other models for you very soon too!
The GeForce RTX 5090 and 5080 are the top cards from the NVIDIA’s 50 Series GPUs. With the TUF Gaming GeForce RTX 5090 or 5080 graphics cards, ASUS are looking to deliver both extreme performance, but also their TUF “TOUGH” reliability and upgraded hardware.
TUF Gaming OC Edition
Regardless of if you choose the ASUS TUF Gaming GeForce RTX 5090 OC Edition, ASUS TUF Gaming GeForce RTX 5090, ASUS TUF Gaming GeForce RTX 5080 OC Edition, or ASUS TUF Gaming GeForce RTX 5080, you still get all the same new technologies you get in the Founders Editions. However, ASUS has put their own spin on the hardware and cooling.
Dual BIOS
These cards feature Dual BIOS support, allowing you to quickly toggle between Quiet or Performance modes, depending on what you need, be that silence in quiet more, or just flat-out performance with higher temps and fan speeds. You can even go beyond the Dual BIOS setup with GPU Tweak III software. This will allow you control over individual GPU parameters to create your own BIOS profiles, or to monitor performance stats.
Phase Changing
All TUF Gaming GeForce RTX 5080 and 5090 come equipped with a new Phase-Change GPU Thermal Pad which should provide improved heat dissipation, reliability and stability. Furthermore, you’ll get a robust suite of cooling technologies, such as the Axial-tech fans, which ASUS say can provide up to 23% more airflow than standard fans, as they have longer blades. There’s a new larger vapor chamber design, culminating in a card that keeps cool under extreme loads. On TUF Gaming GeForce RTX 5090 cards, you’ll get all that plus an impressive twelve heat pipes, helping deal with the cards bigger TDP.
ARGB
Each card features Aura Sync RGB as well as a light-up TUF Gaming logo, but we pretty much expect RGB as a standard on everything these days, so no surprises there.
ASUS Explain Their Auto Extreme Technologies
“Our Auto-Extreme technology enhances the cards’ durability through our manufacturing process, where we do all soldering in a single pass. This minimizes thermal strain on components and sidesteps the need for harsh cleaning chemicals, reducing stress on your card before it reaches your rig. These cards also benefit from ASUS GPU Guard, which puts adhesive on all four GPU corners to prevent crack damage and uses a GPU bracket to ensure uniform mounting pressure. Thanks to these measures, you can rest assured your card’s GPU will be in pristine condition when it’s time for it to enter your PC.” – ASUS
TUF
TUF 5K black metallic capacitors are a common sight on ASUS hardware. They provide 52% wider temperature tolerances, two and a half times longer life spans, and are generally just more reliable. The cards also feature a vented metal exoskeleton, protecting the card, stopping it from flexing and allowing for more airflow and cooling in general. TUF Gaming graphics cards also feature a protective PCB coating, which ASUS say can shield them from the short-circuiting harms of moisture and debris.
Power Requirements
To ensure your TUF Gaming GeForce RTX 5080 performs optimally, a 1000W Gold PSU is recommended, but for the TUF Gaming GeForce RTX 5090, a 1200W PSU would be ideal. Yeah, these cards are thirsty, but you also need room for a high-end CPU and other components.
Where to Buy?
A full list of retail listings can be found here. Of course, they’re likely out of stock right now, but stay away from eBay scalpers, nobody needs to feed that beast.
