ROP castration for ZOTAC RTX 5090: German retailer lists slimmed-down card for €2,899 – and withdraws it again

A small technical detail is currently causing a lot of confusion in the GPU scene: The ZOTAC GeForce RTX 5090 – in the supposedly “SOLID OC” version – was briefly listed by a German retailer with only 168 instead of the regular 176 ROPs (Render Output Units). The card was priced at a whopping €2,899 before the product page disappeared without a trace – only to reappear in a new form, this time without any information on the number of ROPs.

The render engine at the limit: Why ROPs are not a minor matter

ROPs are responsible for finalizing pixels – in other words, what ends up on the screen. If units are missing here, not only the theoretical performance suffers, but above all the image output in high resolution, including MSAA, depth calculation, etc. With the RTX 5090, the difference is not insignificant: instead of 176, the ZOTAC card only had 168 ROPs – around 4.5% less. This is definitely noticeable in benchmarks: In some games, the performance is 4-5% lower, and in isolated cases, differences of up to 11% were even measured.

Retailer “Alternate” as involuntary revealer

The German online retailer Alternate had the card in its store for a short time with a corresponding notice under “B-Ware” – including transparent naming of the 168 ROPs. However, the price of the card was not lower, but at 2,899 euros was around 600 US dollars above the MSRP of the regular RTX 5090. This corresponds to a US price of around 3,136 dollars (incl. German VAT), which is difficult to understand given the technical limitations. The original product page was quickly removed, but shortly afterwards the same card reappeared in the store under a new URL – this time without any reference to the reduced ROP features. It is unclear whether this is a new revision or simply a silent withdrawal. It is also possible that the few cards with defective ROP blocks were simply sold off quickly – which cannot be ruled out given the low quantities and high demand.

An isolated case or systematic “leftover utilization”?

The fact that GPUs are sold with slightly defective or deactivated units is nothing new. The practice is called “bin-splitting” and allows manufacturers to monetize chips with minimal defects. However, this is particularly tricky with the RTX 5090, as NVIDIA and board partners are explicitly positioning the high-end model as a flagship – including the corresponding price tags. The big question now is: How many of these “ROP-deficient” cards are in circulation? NVIDIA itself speaks of less than one percent of such units in the entire RTX 50 series, which can still mean tens of thousands of cards with production volumes in the millions. In addition to the RTX 5090, the RTX 5080 and RTX 5070 Ti are also said to be affected by similar ROP reductions, according to earlier reports.

Lack of transparency as a problem of trust

While NVIDIA remains silent on such cases, it is up to the board partners to clarify the handling of technically restricted GPUs. ZOTAC has not yet commented on the issue, neither on the short-term listing nor on the exact specification of the 168-ROP card. The fact that the information was initially communicated publicly – and then disappeared – is certainly a cause for mistrust among informed buyers. For end customers, this raises the question: How do you even recognize a stripped-down card? Without clear product labeling and without the possibility of re-measuring the number of ROPs, it is almost impossible to differentiate. Manufacturers could play with open cards here – but practice shows that transparency is not necessarily a priority.

Conclusion: If you pay (too) much, you don’t always get everything

The story surrounding the ZOTAC RTX 5090 with missing ROPs shows once again how thin the line between technical margin and deliberate deception can be. The fact that a card with demonstrably reduced performance is offered at a higher price than the full model raises questions – especially with regard to customer information and manufacturer responsibility. As long as such products are not clearly labeled, consumers can only compare data sheets, keep their eyes open – and if in doubt, wait and see.

Source: Videocardz