NVIDIA, the computer company known for its chips and graphics cards, has announced a new GPU specifically geared toward mining Ethereum cryptocurrency.
The NVIDIA CMP (cryptocurrency mining processor) is purely focused on computing power, and isn’t built to handle graphics. A lack of display outputs is meant to improve airflow, and lower core voltages will supposedly increase efficiency.
The company is also lowering the computing power of its RTX 3060 graphics drivers, making them less efficient for mining—something that may annoy gamers looking for top-of-the-line components, though the company says the GPUs which make use of these drivers will be "tailored" for gamers.
Graphics cards like NVIDIA’s are notoriously difficult to get a hold of, in part because they’re so in demand for professional crypto miners. By intentionally lowering the computing power of the RTX 3060, and launching a new processor designed specifically for pro miners, NVIDIA is hoping to address those shortages.
According to a press release, the new CMP products are built to satisfy the "specific needs of Ethereum mining" and “don’t meet the specifications required of a GeForce GPU and, thus, don’t impact the availability of GeForce GPUs to gamers.”
The lower-end CMPs will be available sometime in Q1, and the higher-end models will be released in Q2.