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A March 2025 report argued that NVIDIA’s difficulty meeting demand was limiting how much the PC GPU market could grow, while anticipated tariffs threatened to offset further gains. That was a dated forecast, not a conclusion about the market today. Later figures show growth in desktop graphics-card shipments in Q2 2026, alongside a separate warning from NVIDIA that gaming supply would remain constrained into fiscal 2027.
What the March 2025 report actually measured
The original story, published by HotHardware on March 5, 2025, relayed a Jon Peddie Research (JPR) report. Its headline referred to the PC GPU market broadly, but the figures must be read according to their specific measures.
- Total PC GPU shipments include integrated graphics packaged with CPUs as well as discrete graphics chips.
- Desktop add-in-board (AIB) shipments count standalone desktop graphics cards, a narrower market measure.
JPR reported that total PC GPU shipments rose 6.2% sequentially in Q4 2024. That does not mean desktop graphics-card shipments rose by the same amount: the two measures have different scopes. In the same March 2025 coverage, JPR president Jon Peddie said NVIDIA’s difficulty meeting demand had held back potential growth. He also forecast that tariffs would offset further gains for most, if not all, of 2025. Those were his assessment and forecast at the time, not a measured tariff effect or a forecast for 2026. HotHardware’s March 2025 report also named RTX 5090, RTX 5080 and RTX 5070 Ti cards as reportedly out of stock then; that historical detail says nothing about current stock or prices.
What the later shipment figures show
JPR reported 12.5 million desktop add-in boards shipped in Q2 2026, up 5.9% from the preceding quarter and 7.8% year over year, according to Tom’s Hardware. The same report put NVIDIA at about 90% of the discrete desktop GPU market for that quarter. These figures concern standalone desktop cards—not all PC GPUs—and cover one quarter. They show that the 2025 account of constrained potential growth should not be treated as a simple description of every later period. They do not establish why shipments changed or quantify the effect of tariffs. Tom’s Hardware’s Q2 2026 coverage attributes the shipment figures to JPR.
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NVIDIA’s later supply warning
Shipment growth in a particular quarter can coexist with supply constraints: shipment totals describe units shipped, while company statements describe expectations and operating conditions. On NVIDIA’s fiscal Q4 2026 earnings call, CFO Colette Kress said, “We expect supply constraints to be a headwind to Gaming in the first quarter of fiscal 2027 and beyond.” PCWorld’s coverage reported the statement.
CEO Jensen Huang separately said, “As much as we would love to have more supply, we do believe for a couple of quarters, it is going to be very tight.” Tom’s Hardware reported that he did not identify the constrained component. Neither statement specifies which consumer GPU models would be affected or how much stock would reach any particular retailer. Tom’s Hardware’s report on Huang’s comments provides that context.
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What the tariff evidence does—and does not—establish
NVIDIA’s July 2026 SEC filing describes a 25% tariff on certain H200 shipments imported into the United States under a licensing arrangement. The company said it could not pass that tariff on to customers. The filing also disclosed $279 billion in supply and capacity commitments as of July 26, 2026; that is NVIDIA’s corporate disclosure, not an independent estimate of the PC GPU market. NVIDIA’s SEC filing does not establish that the H200 tariff applied to consumer GeForce cards, nor does it show that tariffs caused a particular retail price increase.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What this means if you are shopping for a graphics card
The 2025 out-of-stock reports and the later supply warnings are reasons to check current listings, not proof that a particular card is unavailable now. Availability and price depend on the model, seller and date. Check live inventory and the final checkout price before deciding; do not infer current conditions from the 2025 shortage report or from shipment totals alone.
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