Reports say that the upcoming Nvidia GPU, the RTX 3050, will utilize the companies Lite Hash Rate (LHR). This technology was first seen on Nvidia’s RTX 3060 and is being implemented to deter crypto miners from buying the new GPUs. Recent information has shown that the LHR has proved to be a success as the Nvidia RTX 3050 is terrible at mining.
Nvidia has not confirmed that the RTX 3050 will have LHR technology, but as the RTX 3060 did, the soon-to-be-released GPU is expected to follow suit. Unfortunately, fans won’t know for sure until the graphics cards hit shelves. While LHR has so far proved to be the most successful deterrent for crypto miners, some have found workarounds to hack the limiter. It will be interesting to see if miners are tempted by the RTX 3050, even with LHR.
The GPU-focused publication VideoCardz recently reported that a source from China tested out the mining performance of the Nvidia  RTX 3050. They said, “Our source in China provided some Ethereum mining performance of the upcoming RTX 3050 graphics card. It appears that the card ships with the Lite Hash Rate algorithm in place because the hash rate drops from 20-ish to 12.5 MH/s in a matter of seconds. You can see that to achieve this hash rate, and the card only consumes 73W.” VideoCardz provided a screenshot showing the GPU getting 20MH/s for about four seconds before immediately dropping down to 12.5MH/s. Doing the math means it would take 500 days of mining to earn back the $250 investment of purchasing the RTX 3050.
Chances are, most crypto miners will not be interested in investing in Nvidia’s RTX 3050 with its poor mining performance. There has been a severe GPU drought over the last couple of years due to shortages, with graphics cards selling out within seconds after coming back in stock. If the RTX 3050 had boasted a good hash rate, chances are gamers would never be able to get their hands on them. It seems Nvidia truly has gamers in mind with the upcoming GPU.