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Those of you with a finger on the pulse of global supply chains are likely unsurprised to hear of the production woes of tech companies. Doubly so if you’re one of the many clamoring for a new graphics card, console, or other such tech products. Sadly, these supply problems are likely to continue into 2022, almost certainly so if you’re after a Nvidia graphics card.
During an interview with Yahoo Finance, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has announced a concern for the company’s ability to meet the expected demand for products in the coming year. The given reason was a chip shortage, something that has impacted this year’s supply of everything from Nvidia’s graphics cards to everyday appliances. This supply shortage is something you’ve no doubt been impacted by, with the newest 3000 series graphics cards being exceedingly difficult to obtain, even a year down the line of its initial release. The chip supply shortage is largely down to production changes and difficulties that began at the start of the pandemic, alongside logistical problems worldwide. As the pandemic continues to impact the supply chain, it’s highly unlikely these issues will be solved anytime soon.
But supply isn’t the only problem. Consumer demand has risen sharply and is expected to continue trending upwards well into next year. With more people spending more time at home, with many deciding to work from home rather than commute to an office, the demand for tech products has risen just as sharply. Plenty of people have used the pandemic as an excuse to execute those much-needed upgrades, or build an entirely new PC to help with work from home. Companies also have considerable demand issues, with Nintendo being the poster child of the shortage’s effects. Production of the Switch has dropped by an astonishing 20%, leading to six million units being scrapped from the production queue.
Considering the effect the chip shortage had on this year’s availability, a prolonged shortage into 2022, and possibly even beyond as other industry giants have speculated, will certainly have a profound effect on what you can source next year. With Black Friday and Cyber Monday upcoming, it may be a good idea to stop putting off those upgrades and replacements. I know I’ll be snapping up a few components.
