PNY GeForce RTX 4060 Ti: Two-minute review
When we reviewed the Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 Ti Founders Edition earlier this year, we were slightly disappointed with the mid-range offering from its small performance boost compared to the base 4060 (let alone 3060 Ti) alongside 8GB VRAM and design issues. Regardless of its faults, it was still a worthy buy for many reasons, like DLSS 3 being the current standard when it comes to AI upscaling tech while overall ray tracing performance saw significant improvements as well. As third-party versions of the GPU have been released, the PNY Geforce RTX 4060 Ti is a strong contender for the best graphics card using the RTX 4060 Ti GPU available on the market.
Despite still inheriting the under-the-hood flaws of Founders Edition, the PNY take on the GPU makes some significant improvement in terms of its design. The most obvious is that it only needs a single-power 8-pin PCIe power connector and not the special 16-pin adapter. Of course, this means opportunities for overclocking are severely diminished.
Meanwhile, having only 8GB VRAM is a shame considering that many of the most visually impressive AAA games released over the past year blows past that even at 1080p. When it comes to best bang for buck, the 16GB RTX 4060 Ti can be purchased for around $50 more. With DLSS 3 also comes Frame Generation. This employs AI-enhanced hardware to enhance resolution by generating new frames and interleaving them among pre-rendered GPU frames. While this enhances the fluidity and visual smoothness of games during rendering, it comes with the trade-off of heightened latency and input lag. Then there’s the reality that only around 50 games even support Frame Generation.
Even when pushing the PNY RTX 4060 Ti past its limit, it still manages to keep cool and quiet. Just be mindful that aesthetically, the overall design is a bit bland. If a potential buyer is looking for something to complement their RGB lighting extravaganza build, it’ll unfortunately stand out like a sore thumb. Compared to the Founders Edition, Nvidia still is unmatched with the sleek unified build.
Those looking for raw native power in the 1440p or above range will need to look at the best 1440p graphics cards and best 4K graphics cards, but this GPU becomes more of a testament to how awesome DLSS 3 is in terms of AI upscaling. Not only can this make 1440p gaming a pleasurable experience, it can handle some games at 4K with some settings tinkering.
If a fantastic 1080p experience playing more esports games at high frame rates like Fortnite and League of Legends matters more than playing Cyberpunk 2077 or Alan Wake II at max settings, the PNY GeForce RTX 4060 Ti could be considered a seriously attractive purchase, especially when it comes to form over function.
PNY GeForce RTX 4060 Ti: Price & availability
- How much does it cost? MSRP listed at $389 but can be found for around $350 (around £395/AU$575)
- When is it available? Available now
- Where can you get it? Available in the US, UK, and Australia
The PNY Geforce RTX 4060 Ti is currently available now in the US, UK and Australia. Though the MSRP on PNY’s online store is $389, it can be found for as low as $350 on other stores like Amazon or Newegg. Due to the more 1:1 nature of the PNY take vs. the Founders Edition, interested buyers are usually going to save a solid $10 for the same performance.
For PC Gamers on a budget, those looking for one of the best cheap graphics cards for their new rig can look toward its AMD rival the RX 7700 XT. Be mindful that AMD FidelityFX isn’t as good as DLSS, Nvidia simply does ray tracing better at the moment and that card is about $40 more. However, the Radeon RX 7700 XT comes packed in with 12GB VRAM if that matters. When it comes to overall gaming experience between the two, the Geforce RTX 4060 Ti is a very solid performer.
PNY GeForce RTX 4060 Ti: Specs
Should you buy the PNY GeForce RTX 4060 Ti?
Buy the PNY GeForce RTX 4060 Ti if...
You require great native 1080p performance
The AD106 GPU features phenomenal 1080p performance even with Ray Tracing enabled where it applies.
You want the best upscaling tech available
DLSS3 improves on the steller upscaling tech and allows some fantastic performance alongside image quality at 1440p. For games that use it, Frame Generation pushes that even further.
Don't buy it if...
You require more than 8GBs of VRAM
Right now, running visually demanding games at 1080p with max settings alongside ray-tracing may bring the graphics card down to its knees with only 8GBs of VRAM. It may be best to get the 16GB 4060 Ti for around $50 more.
You are looking to push your graphics card to the absolute limit
Compared to the 16-pin PCIe power connector set-up of the Founders Edition, slicing that in half does limit potential overclocking.
PNY GeForce RTX 4060 Ti: Also consider
How I tested the PNY GeForce RTX 4060 Ti
- I spend about two weeks with the PNY GeForce RTX 4060 Ti
- I played games alongside Adobe creative Suite including Premier Pro and Photoshop
I used the PNY GeForce RTX 4060 Ti as the graphics card on my main computer for about two weeks.
Some of the games played included Dead Space (2023), Cyberpunk 2077, Alan Wake II, and Starfield. Outside of gaming, video and photo content was created on Photoshop and Premiere Pro. Considering this is a 1:1 spec of the 4060 Founders Edition, the benchmarks were the same.
We pride ourselves on our independence and our rigorous review-testing process, offering up long-term attention to the products we review and making sure our reviews are updated and maintained - regardless of when a device was released, if you can still buy it, it's on our radar.
First reviewed December 2023
