Radeon HD 3800 Availability

Maybe I was right and everyone just woke up late today? Starting around 1PM EST Gary started noticing that some online vendors started showing stock of the new 3800 cards. Here are some of his thoughts and findings:

NewEgg - In stock and at MSRP

ClubIT - none in stock, SKU information not setup yet, estimated stock on or before 11/27 in notes section.

ZipZoomFLy - none in stock, SKU information not available, ETA not available.

AllStarShop - none in stock, SKU info not available, ETA not available.

BestBuy - SKU information for VisionTek on one card, ETA 12/7

CompUSA - none in stock, SKU info not available, no ETA given

Frys (Outpost.com) - none in stock, SKU info not available, no ETA given

TigerDirect - 100 Diamond cards in stock, $249.99 (note, these are selling for above MSRP)

Diamond - Online store, have 3850 and 3870 in stock

I've also gotten some information about new 8800 GTs making their way into the channel. Thus far it looks like around 1500 8800 GTs are incoming to a major distributor between now and 12/31. Obviously that's not many cards and they won't even be enough to cover pre-orders, so get in the queue now if you want one and you find a vendor selling it at the price you're looking for. The good news is that I'm seeing 8800 GT prices in the $230 - $250 range, but that's before any vendor markup. It looks like once these things get into your hands you'll be paying at least $250 for them.

The numbers I'm seeing confidentially are showing AMD with more product coming into the channel now, which should help keep its pricing reasonable. If the 8800 GTs do indeed stay above $250, the new Radeon HD 3800 cards look like they may indeed have a place in the market.