Gigabyte is making a splash with its new water-cooled GeForce RTX 3080 design, entering the vortex of custom Ampere graphics cards being swept away by the tide. The new Aorus Xtreme Waterforce WBs (noted by Computerbase) are overclocked by 8%, delivering a boost clock of 1,845MHz and doing so in an impeccable cyberpunk-style full-coverage water-cooled wetsuit.

Gigabyte also claims more efficient heat dissipation thanks to a "shorter distance between the water channel and the GPU," with a wide copper base plate covering the entire surface of the channel. Therefore, it should (theoretically) be quite effective. As for connectivity, there are three DisplayPort 1.4a, two HDMI 2.1, and one HDMI 2.0, allowing 4K displays to run at 120Hz or 8K at 60Hz.

While there are already a host of alternative water-cooling solutions available as separate units for the RTX 3080 and 3090, such as the EK-Quantum Vector, there are some real advantages to investing in a GPU with a pre-installed water block. It saves a lot of time and effort, and the fact that water cooling is pre-installed means that you are free from the stress of self-assembly and the possibility of voiding the GPU's warranty by cramming in a water block. Just ask Jacob, who bled for a custom water-cooled PC.

From a cost-performance standpoint, however, pre-installed waterblocks may not be the most cost-effective solution. [but the Aorus Xtreme Waterforce WB 10G, with its subtle RGB LEDs and cyberpunk looks, should be easily integrated into existing water cooling systems. It also has a leak detection feature with a flashing warning light in case it is installed incorrectly.

If you are concerned about such failures, according to the product page, the GPU comes with a 4-year warranty, but no information on pricing is found. The Aorus Xtreme Waterforce RTX 3080 WB card is expected to cost around $850, as the Aorus Waterforce-cooled version of the previous generation RTX 2080 Ti GPU costs $150 more than the MSRP.

But that remains to be seen!