First launched in 2022, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 took the world by storm, instantly establishing itself as the world's fastest gaming GPU. Boosted by AI-powered technologies like DLSS 3 frame generation, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 bows to no one. The original ROG Strix and TUF Gaming variants of this card provided extra thick, robust designs with plenty of cooling potential to push your card to the limits and beyond. But those with smaller cases may prefer a more compact version of the RTX 4090, which is why we're introducing two brand-new cards. The ROG Strix LC GeForce RTX 4090 and TUF Gaming GeForce RTX 4090 OG bring the power of this flagship silicon to smaller form factor builds for gamers of all stripes.

Strix goes with the flow
The ROG Strix LC GeForce RTX 4090 (and its overclocked variant, the ROG Strix LC GeForce RTX 4090 OC Edition) is a gaming monster. Using the same pump, radiator, and fan combination that allowed us to tame last generation's flagship Strix LC GeForce RTX 3090 Ti, the LC card utilizes the increased thermal efficiency of liquid cooling to bring out the very best of NVIDIA's silicon. Featuring a full coverage cold plate that spans both the GPU die and the memory, as well as a sleek shroud and blower style fan for the power-delivery components, the ROG Strix LC GeForce RTX 4090 oozes ROG styling and engineering expertise. A 240 mm radiator, 560 mm long tubing, and a 2.6-slot design gives the ROG Strix LC GeForce RTX 4090 wide compatibility with different PC cases.

Late last week ASUS posted a cryptic announcement, as well as giveaway product questions, on its Twitter page about an upcoming product launch event (scheduled for today - May 10). Hopeful commenters were guessing that a TUF-edition RTX 4070 was incoming, or that a very premature (and potentially surprising) RTX 4060 Ti reveal was due. ASUS has in fact shown off a few new GeForce RTX 4090 custom designs, including a pair of "OG" TUF offerings: "TUF Gaming graphics cards have always been known for their rugged styling, rock solid stability, and excellent gaming performance. The TUF Gaming GeForce RTX 4090 OG and TUF Gaming GeForce RTX 4090 OG OC Edition feature three Axial-tech fans, with the center fan rotating in the opposite direction for less turbulence and fan noise. Dual ball bearing fans, military-grade capacitors, and other TUF components assembled via our Auto-Extreme manufacturing process guarantee reliability for years to come."

The two TUF OG cards look identical from the outside, but the OC edition adds some customized clock speed tunings: 2595 MHz (OC mode) / 2565 MHz (Default mode). The brand new OG models are slightly smaller than their older TUF siblings - 325.9 x 140.2 x 62.8 mm compared to 348.2 x 150 x 72.6 mm (respectively). ASUS thinks that this shrinkage in overall card dimensions will accommodate customers with tighter PC enclosure conditions: "What makes the TUF Gaming GeForce RTX 4090 OG truly stand out is its size. Its sleek 3.2 slot design allows for much better case compatibility than other RTX 4090 graphics cards. If you've been looking for a flagship GPU but couldn't find one that fits in your current build, the TUF Gaming GeForce RTX 4090 OG might be for you."

NTT-X, a retailer in Japan is advertising a strange promotion to its moneyed customers - a free Intel Arc A750 Limited Edition GPU with every purchase of an ASUS TUF Gaming GeForce RTX 4090 24 GB OC Edition graphics card. You would normally expect a couple of extra digital download codes for video games as some sort of bonus incentive, but NTT-X has chosen a non-traditional approach to getting fancy silicon into clients' hands. The shop is selling the high-end ASUS card for just over $2300 (converted from the value in Japanese Yen), and mid-range Intel board will set you back roughly $350 (when sold separately). It seems that PC hardware prices in Japan tend to be higher when compared to USA market trends.

It is not really clear if this particular hardware outlet is experiencing slow sales for top-end RTX GeForce 40 series cards simply because of high asking prices, or it is having difficulty in shifting the Alchemist card due to wavering hardware buyer perception. Super enthusiasts with plenty of cash to spare on cutting edge tech will tend to purchase the best stuff available - perhaps NTT-X are offering their target audience a chance to construct a secondary or tertiary computer. These additional PCs could host the promotional Intel Arc A750 graphics card, with the retailer gaining further sales via customers buying more components for another build, be it for a compact computer or home theater/media center PC.

A special edition of the Colorful GeForce RTX 4090 has been spotted online, the Colorful RTX 4090 iGame LAB. This will be a special limited edition graphics card designed specifically for overclocking. Spotted over on Bilibili.com, the Colorful RTX 4090 iGame LAB will be only made in 300 units and looks similar to the Colorful iGame Vulcan version, just in white color. The card is a result of Colorful's in-house overclocking team and will apparently have binned GPUs, which means it could reach higher clocks.

Since there is no Colorful RTX 4090 iGame KUDAN version, the iGame LAB will take the flagship place. According to the specifications the RTX 4090 iGame LAB will still feature a single 16-pin power connector which means it will still be limited to 600 W. The specifications also mention the 2625 MHz Boost GPU clock. Unfortunately, there is no word on global availability or will it be limited to China only.

ASUS ROG has started selling its RTX 4090 XG Mobile external graphics card in China and Japan this week. Japanese customers are being charged a cool $3000 for the pint-sized powerhouse external GPU, and Chinese buyers are getting a slightly better deal at $2700. It should be noted that this eGPU is the (GN21-X11) mobile variant of the GeForce RTX 4090, and not the full fat desktop version. The newly updated XG Mobile enclosure can only be connected to an ASUS Flow laptop, which limits the scope of compatibility to an already very expensive range of devices. The proprietary connection standard will keep customers in the ASUS ROG mobile hardware ecosystem - but their higher end laptop models can be configured with the very capable GeForce RTX 4070 mobile GPU, so the RTX 4090 XG Mobile seems to appeal to a very small buying niche.

The XG Mobile interface uses the PCIE Gen 3 x8 standard of connection, and the GPU has access to a dedicated 63 GB/s of bandwidth. This beats the Thunderbolt 4 standard of 40 Gb/s, by a 57% margin. The enclosure acts as a docking station - its features include an up to 2.5 Gbit Ethernet, a single HDMI 2.1 port, one DisplayPort 1.4 with G-Sync support and three USB 3.2 Gen 2 ports (3x Type-A + 1x Type-C). ASUS ROG has engineered the docking station/enclosure to be as compact as possible (21.7 cm x 16.5 cm x 3.26 cm), when compared to competing products from other manufacturers. The whole package weighs in at 1.3 kg, which will ensure decent portability for gamers on the move.