Top RTX 40-Series GPU on Steam: Found in Gaming Laptops, Not Desktops
June’s Steam hardware survey shows ever more RTX 4060 laptop gamers.
The latest Steam hardware survey has been released, revealing some intriguing shifts. The standout change is the rising popularity of RTX 4060 laptops among gamers, with a noticeable increase in usage from May to June 2024.
Specifically, the survey indicates a 0.74% uptick in RTX 4060 laptop GPUs among respondents, climbing from 2.84% in May to 3.58% in June. While this might seem like a modest gain, it’s significant compared to the next largest increase: a 0.2% rise for the desktop RTX 4060. This makes the laptop version of the RTX 4060 the most popular 40-series GPU on Steam.
The Steam hardware survey gathers hardware data from a subset of Steam’s users who opt to participate, providing a reliable snapshot of PC gaming trends.
The June data also highlights a decline in older GPU models, such as the RTX 3060, GTX 1060, GTX 1650, and RTX 2060. This decline suggests that gamers are upgrading to newer, more powerful GPUs. The trend for this month shows an overall increase in the adoption of current-gen GPUs.
Interestingly, the trend of upgrading to Nvidia GPUs over AMD continues, as observed back in April. This is notable despite AMD’s strong presence in the handheld market, including its processors in Valve’s Steam Deck and Steam Deck OLED.
The timing of these upgrades makes sense. As we approach the end of the Ada Lovelace GPU generation and anticipate Nvidia’s next-generation architecture, likely named Blackwell, gamers are seizing the opportunity to upgrade, especially with recent price drops due to Super variants.
Most importantly, the past couple of months have seen a surge of affordable gaming laptop deals. A significant number of these budget-friendly options, priced under $1,000, come equipped with the RTX 4060. This makes it an opportune time to consider snagging one of these cost-effective gaming laptops.
The mobile RTX 4060 doesn’t feature the fully-fledged AD107 chip found in the desktop version. However, with a TDP of 115W—if you’re lucky and the manufacturer is generous—it’s powerful enough to deliver playable frame rates in modern games. For instance, Dave found that the slightly power-restricted RTX 4060 in the HP Omen Transcend 14 provides excellent 1080p frame rates and can even handle 1440p reasonably well.
It’s no wonder that the mobile RTX 4060 GPUs are becoming more popular.
Another key takeaway from the hardware survey is the steady increase in Steam users upgrading to Windows 11, coupled with a decline in Windows 10 users. We first observed this trend back in February.
While Windows 11 still represents less than half of Steam users on Windows, it accounts for 46.63%, and the number is rising. This isn’t surprising, considering the anticipated release of Windows 12 later this year. Additionally, with Microsoft ending support for Windows 10 next year and AMD’s upcoming mobile chips not supporting Windows 10, the shift makes sense.
In summary, June’s Steam hardware survey highlights the continuous march of technological progress, one user at a time.
