NVIDIA's new 12-pin power connector for RTX 3000 cards is spotted in the wild

NVIDIA is now linked to a number of design and engineering tweaks for its RTX 3000 reference cards. They include a new type of power connector, which steps up to a pin count of 12 rather than the standard 8. This may confer a number of advantages, as illustrated in the latest leak concerning this aspect of the upcoming cutting-edge GPUs.

It indirectly confirms the nature and size of this new component, by way of live images of a cable allegedly made to fit it. These photos, posted by HardwareLuxx.de and Andreas Schilling on Twitter, show it alone and compared to an 8-pin PCIe connector. They may demonstrate that the connector - apparently called a Molex Micro-Fit 3.0 - does indeed have 12 pins, yet manages to nearly fit into its predecessor's footprint, seeming to measure under 20 centimeters (cm) across as it does.

Therefore, it may indeed be capable of supporting a greater volume of charge while taking up more or less the same amount of space on a card. Furthermore, the newer connector is allegedy rated to draw about 400 watts (W), exceeding that of even a dual 8-pin set-up. The cable, described as one of a range of new modular products made by Seasonic, is reportedly made of the materials that will allow it to deliver up to 600W.

This may be an intriguing prospect, particularly if it comes to a stage at which scaling up to dual or triple 12-pins becomes feasible. However, there is an onion in this apple-cart: the new connector is rumored to be exclusive to the Ampere series of Founders Edition cards on their release.

Buy Gigabyte GeForce RTX 2080 Super Gaming OC now on Amazon