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GPU deals are starting to pick up again on Amazon as we move into the Back to School period, which typically sees excellent reductions on tech. Mind you, purchasing a GPU for University doesn’t exactly spell ‘focused study and hitting deadlines’, but now does look like a great time to upgrade your system – especially with new game launches like Baldur’s Gate 3 hitting the scene.
Typically speaking, the best GPU deals can be found on older generations, and you can find some great savings on the RTX 30-series throughout the year – arguably peaking around Black Friday and Prime Day (or when a new series releases…keep an eye out on the RTX 50-series people).
The good news is that right now, you can grab the impressive Asus Phoenix GeForce RTX 3060 V2 12GB GPU for its lowest price ever on Amazon, saving you a cool $90.
ASUS Phoenix NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 V2 Gaming Graphics Card
Asus is well known in the PC market for producing excellent prebuilt PCs, monitors, and components, and their GPUs are up there with the best. The Phoenix line in particular delivers on both price and performance and is a great option for both gamers and those looking for something that can handle heavy-duty tasks, such as design and content creation.
This single fan design 12 GB card comes with Nvidias Ampere Streaming Multiprocessors designed with improved power efficiency. It boasts 12GB of VRAM, giving you the power to run the latest tiles in top settings.
The strength of this GPU comes from the solid single-fan design, leaving it quiet and highly efficient. It takes just 650W rated power supplies to integrate it into a build, and many report this GPU being whisper quiet for 4K gaming. Other cards that run several fans and have massive power requirements can be harder to integrate and can generate more heat and noise.
Here’s a closer look at some of the features.
- Improved fan design: Axial tech fan has a smaller fan hub with longer blades. This GPU doesn’t require multiple fans because it has a long-lasting and larger design.
- Improved details: RT cores from the second generation offer improved shading and ray tracing in your favorite games.
- VR Ready: 3 display ports and one HDMI port for easy hookups to multiple monitors or VR headsets.
- Ai boosted: Tensor cores include AI capabilities for improving rendering and editing performance and improved game framerates.
- 8K Ready: Has the power to offer display in 8K but thrives in 1440P and 4K gaming.
Is the RTX 3060 still good today?
With the somewhat lackluster offering from Nvidia’s 40-series GPUs, asides from the 4090 of course, the 30-series is arguably still as popular as ever. The closest comparison would be the RTX 4060, a card we’ve pitted against the 3060 in our RTX 4060 vs RTX 3060 comparison.
We’ve found that while the 4060 has a faster GPU clock speed and lower TDP, the RTX 3060 actually has more memory bandwidth.
For most games, the 3060 is a quality choice, and for the price (especially the new deal price) it’s a bit of a no-brainer for anyone looking to build a powerful and cost-effective gaming PC.
Should you buy the ASUS Phoenix NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 V2 Gaming Graphics Card now?
According to price-tracker camelcamelcamel, this card is at its lowest price ever right now. There is a chance it will drop further around Black Friday, but it’s our prediction that it won’t be by more than $20 – $30.
As for how long the deal itself will last, it’s difficult to say, but typically Back to School deals go on till the end of August. If you’re considering it, we’d say it’s worth making a decision sooner rather than later.
As always, we’d advise checking out the Ti versions of this card too. We’ve selected our top picks for the best RTX 3060 TI GPUs for you to browse for deals, as from what we’ve seen so far, it’s likely that many of them will be discounted!
ASUS Phoenix NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 V2 Gaming Graphics Card