Nvidia to face class-action lawsuit over GeForce GTX 970 memory

[HEXUS]

And makes a U-turn regarding GTX 900M Series mobile GPU overclocking.

Read more.

[spl]

Course like the 8000 series thing, these lawsuits only benefit American consumers, correct?

[kalniel]

Course like the 8000 series thing, these lawsuits only benefit American consumers, correct?

No, American lawyers.

[shaithis]

So (if they win) that'll be $5 per customer (paid out in 2020) and several millions for the lawyers.

[Mauley]

I hate that Gigabyte are backing Nvidia on this one.....especially as how I have that exact card up there as well. Very annoying. Let's see how this one pans out. Hopefully in the meantime UK retailers will crack on and start offering some form of compensation.

[crossy]

So (if they win) that'll be $5 per customer (paid out in 2020) and several millions for the lawyers.

Quite, I'm actually surprised that the ambulance-chasers took this long. When someone says "US lawyers" I invariably think of this quote:

... a rotting carcass, pullulating with indistinguishable maggots, whose sole purpose in life is to grab more of the dead flesh more quickly than their rivals.

(from "The Shockwave Rider")

I need to be less cynical...

[MustardCutter]

I'm surprised there has been so much fuss over this. The cards still perform the same as the reviews people would have made their purchasing decision on, surely? I know the original specs might not totally match reality but it's not like they are pretending a rubbish card is a good one. Do people get annoyed by cars that have engines described as 1.8l when they are actually 1.795?

[Dooms]

I'm surprised there has been so much fuss over this. The cards still perform the same as the reviews people would have made their purchasing decision on, surely? I know the original specs might not totally match reality but it's not like they are pretending a rubbish card is a good one. Do people get annoyed by cars that have engines described as 1.8l when they are actually 1.795?

I guess the problem only arises when you fill the memory on the card which a lot of reviews wouldn't of done (due to only certain games being that hungry).

To me it reminds me of buying those cheap '64GB' USB flash sticks off ebay that reported 64GB in windows, most people would be happy with their purchase for months but then there is the person that straight away trys to dump 30+ GB onto it and it falls over.

[Percy1983]

I'm surprised there has been so much fuss over this. The cards still perform the same as the reviews people would have made their purchasing decision on, surely? I know the original specs might not totally match reality but it's not like they are pretending a rubbish card is a good one. Do people get annoyed by cars that have engines described as 1.8l when they are actually 1.795?

To a point I would be buying with the idea of games are needing more and more VRAM so 4GB is a decent investment, but to find the reality its 3.5GB and not much use afterwards I wouldn't be very happy even if it wasn't an issue right now.

[raven1001]

Should have been marketed as an 3.5 gb card, but no scum Nvidia deceives the consumer once again.

[jag272]

I'm surprised there has been so much fuss over this. The cards still perform the same as the reviews people would have made their purchasing decision on, surely? I know the original specs might not totally match reality but it's not like they are pretending a rubbish card is a good one. Do people get annoyed by cars that have engines described as 1.8l when they are actually 1.795?

This is mostly true, the real problem behind it is more so futureproofing I think. 4GB is going to become a much greater concern in the near future, its just that a few games requiring that much popped up early which is the issue. People expect different degress of longevity for a card. Some people who want to remain at the top of the top will keep a card a few months then replace it probably, others on a budget expect a card to last atleast a year (ballpark figures).

The trouble is the release of 4GB games so soon accelerated the process so nobody got the longevity they expected. While budget builders may be more willing to just turn options down (though still be annoyed at their money being wasted) its off particular trouble to the people who really want to keep maxed and spend such money supporting the company frequently.

Its really a case of timing more than anything, though that doesnt excuse Nvidia for lacking that foresight all the same. I also doubt this is the only occurrence going on behind closed doors, they just got caught out this time, that me just be me being too cynical though.

[ZaO]

I'm surprised there has been so much fuss over this. The cards still perform the same as the reviews people would have made their purchasing decision on, surely? I know the original specs might not totally match reality but it's not like they are pretending a rubbish card is a good one. Do people get annoyed by cars that have engines described as 1.8l when they are actually 1.795?

I'd be mad. If I brought a 4GB card, I'd expect a properly useable 4GB. It's not quite the same with a car. And you're talking about a 5cc difference. Which, correct me if I'm wrong (because this is just something I was told a long time ago), is done so that if the engine needs reboring, it'll still keep it classed as a 1.8 in your example. If not, then yes, we should be a bit annoyed about engine sizes too! But to be fair, what percentage of a car's engine is 5cc? very small... These cards have a very big chunk of their memory handicapped. It's not cool...

[Percy1983]

I'd be mad. If I brought a 4GB card, I'd expect a properly useable 4GB. It's not quite the same with a car. And you're talking about a 5cc difference. Which, correct me if I'm wrong (because this is just something I was told a long time ago), is done so that if the engine needs reboring, it'll still keep it classed as a 1.8 in your example. If not, then yes, we should be a bit annoyed about engine sizes too! But to be fair, what percentage of a car's engine is 5cc? very small... These cards have a very big chunk of their memory handicapped. It's not cool...

With that engine size being not as stated isn't an issue, many are rounded.

But either way with the 1.795 example, the horsepower/torque will be as sold and will perform how they should right though the rev range.

With this card its more like only driving around at 30/40 as you don't use motorways, then one day you go on the motorway at it starts stutting at 65mph.

This is more like adding a 5th inactive cylinder to my 1.6 and calling it a 2.0

[BobF64]

This is more like adding a 5th inactive cylinder to my 1.6 and calling it a 2.0

Not at all. Its like having 4 cylinders and above certain speeds one of the cams is disengaged, there by reducing the overall power from the engine.

Its still a card with 4GB of RAM on board, its just split into 3.5GB and 0.5GB. At least thats my understanding of the problem.

[shaithis]

Not at all. Its like having 4 cylinders and above certain speeds one of the cams is disengaged, there by reducing the overall power from the engine.

Its still a card with 4GB of RAM on board, its just split into 3.5GB and 0.5GB. At least thats my understanding of the problem.

If you really want to go with this analogy it's like the 5th cylinder runs at 33% efficiency when engaged and can cause the engine to run not-as-smoothly as when it's not engaged.

[spl]

Given that most Hexus readers are going to be at least as knowledgeable in computer hardware as in engines, the value of these car analogies is questionable. I think most GTX970 owners understand the situation now, and there is a link right there in the article for those who require an explanation.