I'm Not Upgrading My RTX 4090 Until Nvidia Doubles Performance

Why Twice the Speed Matters for Upgrades

Hamlin Rozario, a tech journalist with over nine years of experience, says he won't replace his RTX 4090 until Nvidia releases a GPU that's twice as fast. He made this statement in August 2026 while reviewing the latest RTX 50-series offerings. His decision stems from what he sees as insufficient performance gains in the current generation.

Rozario has covered technology for outlets including MakeUseOf, Android Police, and Beebom since 2017. He previously served as Senior Editor at Valnet's MakeUseOf. In his latest commentary, he argues that the RTX 50-series fails to deliver the leap needed to justify an upgrade cost. He believes the performance increase over the RTX 4090 is marginal for most users, especially given the high price of new cards.

What Would Make Him Consider an Upgrade?

Rozario explains that doubling performance would mean meaningful improvements in ray tracing, 8K gaming, and AI workloads. He notes that current generational gains often fall short of this benchmark, particularly when factoring in cost and power draw. For him, upgrading only makes sense when the new hardware enables experiences previously impossible or impractical on existing cards. He adds that software optimization and driver maturity also play a role in real-world gains, which the RTX 50-series hasn't fully demonstrated yet.

He says a GPU twice as fast as the RTX 4090 would need to deliver consistent frame rate doubles in demanding titles at max settings. This includes path-traced games and complex creative workloads like 3D rendering and video encoding. Rozario acknowledges that such a leap may require advances beyond raw CUDA core counts, possibly involving new architectures or AI-driven rendering techniques. He speculates that meeting this bar could take several years, given current trends in semiconductor development.

Is the RTX 50-series a bad upgrade from the RTX 4090? Not necessarily bad, but Rozario finds the performance gain insufficient to justify the cost for his use case. He says it offers modest improvements rather than a transformative leap.

Frequently Asked Questions

When might Nvidia release a GPU twice as fast as the RTX 4090? Rozario believes it's likely years away, based on historical generational progress and current technical limitations. He doesn't predict an exact timeline but suggests it won't arrive imminently.

Does he think others should avoid upgrading too? He clarifies that his stance is personal and based on his specific needs. He acknowledges that users with older GPUs or different workloads may still benefit from the RTX 50-series.