Owners of the RTX 5090 may find their graphics card nearly unusable due to severe driver issues. Multiple reports indicate that both the RTX 5090 and RTX 5090D are experiencing critical driver-related problems. A seller on Goofish even claimed that all RTX 5090D units sold in China are at risk of crashing due to driver failures.
The seller also warned that a small number of RTX 5090D cards might suffer from burned IC circuits.
Severe Driver Issues with RTX 5090 and RTX 5090D
Wccftech has compiled various user reports from Chinese forums such as Chiphell, Baidu, and Weibo, revealing that the factory drivers for RTX 5090D models from brands like Colorful, Gigabyte, and Manli are severely flawed, preventing the system from recognizing the GPU.
One Baidu user reported that their RTX 5090D became “bricked” after a driver update, rendering the hardware undetectable. Another case on Chiphell described a similar issue, where the screen went black and the graphics card was no longer recognized. Even switching from DisplayPort (DP) to HDMI did not resolve the problem.
Notably, this driver issue is not exclusive to the RTX 5090D, which is a China-exclusive variant. A user on the r/ASUS subreddit reported that their RTX 5090 was not detected by Windows Device Manager, did not appear in the Nvidia Control Panel, and was even missing from the BIOS. Strangely, the card still showed signs of activity, with its LED lights on and fans spinning. The user has since sent the RTX 5090 back to Nvidia for further inspection.
If you own an RTX 5090 but haven’t installed it yet, it is advisable to research this issue thoroughly before using it.
RTX 4090 Also Faced Issues at Launch
It is not uncommon for GPUs to experience launch issues. The RTX 4090 also had its share of problems, including driver-related game crashes and system instability. However, the most serious issue with the RTX 4090 was the melting/breaking of the 12VHPWR power connector.
The RTX 4090 used a 12VHPWR power connector to replace traditional 6-pin and 8-pin connectors. However, due to overheating and melting problems, Nvidia introduced the new “12V-2×6” connector on the RTX 5090 and RTX 5080 to address the issue.
Despite these recurring launch problems, it is difficult to assess the full severity of the RTX 5090’s current driver issues due to limited supply. Users should stay updated with Nvidia’s official statements before drawing conclusions.
