Gigabyte GeForce RTX 4080 AERO OC 16GB GDDR6X

The RTX 4080 AERO OC scores 34,452 on PassMark G3D, landing in the 95th percentile for ray tracing and 92nd for rasterization. It runs cool at 50-55C under load and handles 4K gaming at 85/100 in our scoring. But the included 12VHPWR adapter has a verified defect report involving black screens and fire risk, so budget for a replacement cable before you power it on.

Let's talk numbers. The 34,452 PassMark G3D score puts this card among the best we've tracked for consumer GPUs. In practical terms, owners report maxing out every current title at 1440p while running dual monitors and a VR headset simultaneously. The 16GB of GDDR6X with 432 GB/s of memory bandwidth means you won't hit VRAM walls in 4K textures, and the 9728 CUDA cores chew through rasterization workloads without breaking a sweat.

Ray tracing is where this card really flexes. The 3rd gen RT cores push it to the 95th percentile in our ray tracing rankings, and DLSS 3 support means you can crank settings that would make lesser cards cry. Compute performance is solid but not spectacular at the 78th percentile, and AI workloads land at 73rd. If you're doing heavy LLM work, the 16GB frame buffer helps but this isn't a workstation card. The triple-fan WINDFORCE cooler keeps things at 50-55C under load according to multiple owners, which is genuinely impressive for a 320W TDP card.

Against the ASUS ProArt RTX 5080 and MSI Ventus RTX 5070 Ti, the AERO OC holds its own in gaming but shows its age in newer features. The RTX 5080 competitors bring newer architecture and better AI acceleration, which explains why this card's AI score sits at 73rd percentile while its gaming scores are top-tier. The ZOTAC AMP Extreme Infinity and PNY ARGB OC both offer similar raw performance but with different cooling designs and aesthetics. Where the AERO OC wins is pure gaming muscle and that clean white look. Where it loses is efficiency at 67th percentile and connectivity at 58th, both below what you'd expect from a card in this price bracket. If you're building a white-themed gaming rig, this is the card. If you need AI or compute performance, the newer RTX 5080 options are worth the extra cash.

Here's where things get messy. The USD listing sits at $1,300, but Canadian buyers are looking at a wild spread from CAD 2,300 to CAD 7,139 across just two listings. That's a CAD 4,839 gap between the cheapest and most expensive option, which tells me some sellers are either gouging or listing different bundles. If you're in Canada, the CAD 2,300 listing is the only one worth considering. At $1,300 USD, you're paying a premium for the AERO's white aesthetic and the RTX 4080's raw gaming power, but the 4K gaming score of 85/100 and ray tracing at 84.9/100 justify it if you're building a high-end rig. Just don't expect workstation-level AI performance for that money.

The Gigabyte RTX 4080 AERO OC posts a PassMark G3D score of 34,452, which lands it in the 95th percentile for ray tracing and 92nd for raw raster performance in our database. That's top-of-the-charts territory. You're getting 9,728 CUDA cores, 16GB of GDDR6X on a 256-bit bus, and a 2,535MHz boost clock. For 4K gaming, our scoring puts it at 85 out of 100, and ray tracing comes in at 84.9. This thing is a monster.

But it's a monster with a caveat. A verified buyer flagged the included 12VHPWR adapter cable as defective, reporting black screens and a potential fire hazard until they swapped in an aftermarket cable. That's not a spec sheet problem, it's a safety problem. The card itself runs cool and quiet, with owners reporting 50C to 55C under load, but you'll want to inspect that adapter before you even think about plugging it in.

Skip this card if you're building in a compact case, because 342mm of length and 2.9 slots of width will eat your expansion options alive. Skip it if you need strong AI or compute performance, since the 73rd percentile AI score and 78th percentile compute ranking lag well behind the gaming numbers. Skip it if you're not willing to immediately replace the included 12VHPWR adapter, because the verified fire hazard report is not something to ignore. And skip it if you're price-sensitive, since the CAD 4,839 spread between listings means you could easily overpay if you're not careful.

The Gigabyte RTX 4080 AERO OC is a gaming beast with a serious asterisk. The performance numbers are undeniable: 95th percentile ray tracing, 92nd percentile rasterization, and a 34,452 PassMark score that puts it among the best consumer GPUs we've tracked. Owners love the quiet operation, the 50-55C load temps, and the striking white design. But that defective 12VHPWR adapter report is not something to shrug off. A potential fire hazard in the box is a real problem, even if an aftermarket cable fixes it. If you're willing to spend $30 on a quality replacement cable and your case can handle a 342mm card, this is a fantastic 4K gaming GPU. If you'd rather not gamble on the included adapter, look at the RTX 5080 alternatives.