I just came across the Gigabyte GeForce RTX 5070 Ti WINDFORCE OC SFF 16GB at a great price and I'm considering upgrading from my RTX 3060 Ti with only 8GB of VRAM. However, I've seen some alarming discussions about 'thermal leaking' with the RTX 50 series cards. I want to know if this is still a problem or if it's something that's been resolved. My priority is to get this upgrade done without worrying about frequent updates for a while. I also prefer a card that's quiet, and the 16GB of VRAM is a big plus for me. Should I steer clear of Gigabyte GPUs, or is the thermal leak issue an exaggeration?
4 Answers
I recently bought the same model, and I can confirm that models made after mid-2025 don’t have the leaking issue. Mine was manufactured in September 2025 and it’s working great!
I’m not familiar with the term 'thermal leaking,' can you clarify what that means? And which sources are you referring to?
Yeah, that term makes me uneasy too! It seems like every time I look up Gigabyte cards, someone mentions this 'thermal paste drama' without much detail on what exactly happened.
It's not an issue anymore. Most problems were with vertically mounted cards, and newer models have fixed this problem. If you keep your card horizontal, it should be good!
I hear you! I always have my setup horizontal, so hopefully, the one I’m buying is from a newer batch and doesn’t have those issues.
There was a thermal leak issue, but it seems to have been addressed in cards produced after June. If you mount your GPU horizontally, it’s usually not a concern at all. So, if your new card is from a later batch, you should be in the clear!
Fingers crossed! I always keep my cards horizontal too, so I’m hoping for the best with my new purchase!
He’s likely talking about the thermal compound that melts when it gets hot, rather than using standard thermal pads.