Unlike the GTX 1650 and 1660 Ti cards, GTX 1660 stock is still available. A variety of factory-overclocked models are still available from major online retailers from $230 and up, slightly above the launch price of $219. We’re hopeful to see some good deals on the entire 16-series of GPUs towards the end of November, but the original 1660 currently sits in a strange, crowded place in the graphics card hierarchy.
The release of Nvidia’s own GTX1660 Super, 1660 Ti, and 1650 Super, as well as AMD muscling in with their own new budget and midrange cards like the RX 5500 XT, means that there’s a great deal of competition and the poor GTX 1660 might not be the best pick of the bunch anymore. But could it still be a worthy Black Friday purchase?
What is the GTX 1660?
CUDA Cores: 1408
ROPs: 48
Core Clock: 1530MHz
Boost Clock: 1785MHz
Memory Clock: 8Gbps GDDR5
Memory Bus: 128-bit
VRAM: 6GB
TDP: 120W
Release Date: 03/14/2019
Release MSRP: $219
The first GPU in Nvidia’s budget-conscious GTX 1600 series, the GTX 1660 was a revelation at the time of it’s launch, bringing affordable 1080p and 1440p gaming directly to the eyeballs of many a cash-strapped PC gamer. The retroactive addition of ray-tracing support might’ve been a framerate-battering disaster, but the card itself is still reasonably good.
The 1660’s big problem right now lies with its immediate competition from Nvidia itself...
What are the alternatives to the GTX 1660?
The 1660 Super, released in October 2019, is essentially a straight upgrade to the GTX 1660 packing faster memory and better bandwidth which makes it more stable for 1080p and more viable for 1440p. It overlaps with the 1660 Ti in some areas, but with an RRP of $229 it falls a lot closer to the 1660.
Current pricing puts the Super very close to the 1660, and unless major sales see the 1660 end up far cheaper, the 1660 Super effectively renders it redundant. AMD has the 5500 XT sitting within this arena, but it also pales in comparison to the 1660 Super.
Should I buy the GTX 1660 and at what price?
Ultimately, unless GTX 1660 sales see the price drop below $200, it’s not a huge recommendation unless the GTX 1660 Super remains at $230 and up. This seems unlikely, though—if you spy a 1660 Super for $220 or less, it’s an excellent deal on a GPU that will comfortably outperform the 1660.
Eyeing sale trends online, GTX 1660 cards rarely go for less than two hundred bucks anyway, so sadly this once-game-changing GPU might now be one to pass on.
