Tips on obtaining a GPU?

[AshleyB]

Hi all,
I'm currently looking to buy parts to make a gaming rig... but theres no GPU's anywhere!.

Does anyone have any tips on how to get their hands on one? I'm looking for something around £500, prices are mad at the moment!

[Kovoet]

I got my two with patience unfortunately. But kept options open at which retailer. But £500 is not going to get you much.

[MrJim]

Hi all,
I'm currently looking to buy parts to make a gaming rig... but theres no GPU's anywhere!.

Does anyone have any tips on how to get their hands on one? I'm looking for something around £500, prices are mad at the moment!

Sadly, the easiest way to get a GPU these is either with a pre-built system, or as a part of a bundle deal (for example with a processor, motherboard and RAM). In the current market, £500 doesn't get you much new...maybe try the second-hand market? Although prices are over inflated there too, unfortunately...

[Spreadie]

Camp out on the Nvidia store page and refresh regularly. If there's a FE drop, it'll be at Scan at MSRP but it'll be over in minutes.

Opinions vary but the best chances of a drop seem to be Wed to Fri 9am - 12noon, on the weeks that there are any cards to drop. It's still a long shot, but you can improve your chances if you are logged in to Scan with your payment card details at the ready. Also make sure your delivery address matches the billing address of your card or any successful order will be cancelled.

Good luck.

[Ttaskmaster]

Buy a whole pallet direct from the manufacturer and then flog the ones you don't want for 3-400% of MSRP... or use them in a mining rig.
Seems to be the way most people are doing it, these days...

[Saracen999]

Short of eithrer buying a wholePC or large bundle (a LOT more than £500) and selling the rest, or buying a 3090 (bring north of £2000) the only practical way I know of is to join queues, to keep a very regular eye on main suppliers and when something appears, grab it quick. VERY quick. Hesitate and they're gone. Oh, and bring a large supply of patience, and some luck.

The only other method is to know the right people. That can still work.

[dannyboy75]

I got my 3080 FE by joining a couple of Discord stock alert channels and setting up stock alerts. Managed to grab one when there was a stock drop at Scan some months ago.

As others have said though, even then you have to be quick. I was at work when the alert pinged up, and my boss at the time was an a-hole. There's no way I could've gotten away with going through the frantic ordering process on my mobile with him sat right opposite me, so I had to fake a toilet emergency.

To save crucial seconds I also made sure I had a browser tab open on my phone for Scan (and made sure I was logged in). Even then there was an element of being in the right place at the right time. If I'd been in a meeting or even just away from my desk for a couple of minutes, that would've been long enough to miss out. I know it all sounds pretty crazy but unfortunately that's the state of the market still. Again, as others have said, you just need a slice of luck too. On another day I'm sure I could've done everything identically and still missed out.

Though again a long shot, one other option is to keep an eye on Custom PC magazine. A couple of times over the last 6 months or so they've done exclusive deals with Scan to reserve some stock of 30xx/RX6xxx cards for CPC readers. Hopefully they might do something similar again in the coming months....

[Kristian Hynes]

For me the best way to get a GPU is time and patience. If you're OK with a used one have good look on FB and Gumtree and send people messages asking if they will post and take PayPal G&S, some people are happy to post and you have some cover with G&S... If its new you need to join parts drop page to get notifications on when new stock is available... I personally would look for a used GPU that's not efficient at mining as they should be better value and less demand making the seller more likely to post it to you.

[badass]

If you check regularly and are prepared to wait 3 months or so you should be able to get a 3060 non Ti for less than that. I kept missing the FE stock drops at Scan but then I saw a 3060 12GB for £429 and simply didn't wait and bought it. Yes, it cost about £100 more than it would have in normal times but it also seemed to be about £100 cheaper than the rest that remained in stock for any amount of time.

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

CCL Computers have an RX6600 for £400:
https://www.cclonline.com/product/36...-Card/VGA6385/

There are also a few RX6600 8GB cards on Ebuyer and OcUK for around £430.

[Apex]

How much.....sweet lord

[Spreadie]

£400+ for a 1080p card with no legs. I'm so glad I don't need a GPU right now.

[Saracen999]

£400+ for a 1080p card with no legs. I'm so glad I don't need a GPU right now.

Yeah but, if you need a card, even that is better than nothing.

I want to do a PC build (or replacement) my current 'main' PC being pretty much Q6600 era (with a couple of newer laptops, but even they are like 5 years old).

Getting any GPU isn't easy these days, almost regardless of price .... though I have seen some 3090's, but at over £2000. Or, of course, outright scalper prices but that just grates to the bone. And an awful lot of people couldn't spend that on a card if their lives depended on it, never mind for gaming. An RX6600 would at least get people able to game reasonably, just not at maximum settings or much above 1080p. Still, when needs must .... better than nowt.

[wazzickle]

There's plenty available. You gotta set up alerts. Just put in a couple of hours work and you'll find one, if you work smart.

[Super_Ace]

I got lucky because I was on my phone when I got the notification for the 3080 FE drop on the 17/12. I had alerts setup using FE PartAlert channel on Telegram and I had my payment info saved on scan. Also, there is a spreadsheet you can find that records all the FE drops to give you an idea, can't post url due to being a new account. Best of luck!