MSI plans to increase the prices of its graphics cards, DigiTimes reported today, as the result of ongoing GPU shortages that it expects to continue throughout 2021.
The report said that MSI chairman Joseph Hsu told investors he expects double-digit growth in graphics card, gaming notebook, and motherboard shipments this year as global demand continues to rise despite the COVID-19 pandemic's abatement.
Unfortunately, that demand has coincided with dwindling GPU supplies from both Nvidia and AMD. Consumers aren't the only ones looking for new graphics cards, either, because cryptocurrency miners are rushing to cash in on the latest crypto boom.
Reports indicated in February that RTX 30 series graphics cards would be in short supply in the first quarter, and Asus confirmed last week that shipments for Nvidia GPUs dropped quarter-over-quarter, which has led to higher graphics card prices.
Hsu reportedly said MSI plans to release new graphics cards in the second quarter despite these shortages. He also predicted that shipping costs would fall as that industry (which includes planes, trains, and... boats) recovers from the pandemic.
That probably won't make it any easier for most people to buy the best graphics cards until Nvidia and AMD increase production, but it could help limit price hikes, and will almost certainly lead to higher profit margins for graphics card makers.
In the meantime, Nvidia has started to resupply its board partners with older GPUs so they can at least offer GTX 1050 Ti and RTX 2060 graphics cards. Using a four-year-old graphics card probably isn't ideal, but hey, it's better than nothing.
