From gaming to crypto: How high-performance hardware found a new calling

Are you a gamer? Having a powerful gaming rig is indeed cool! But, had someone said to you that you could repurpose your machine to mine digital currencies even 10 years back, you would have laughed at them! The advanced graphics cards or GPUs in gaming back in those days were used to render stunning visuals and smooth frame rates in games. Today, they are workhorses, allowing you to mine cryptocurrencies efficiently. Let’s understand how gaming hardware can ensure higher profits by mining cryptocurrencies in this blog presented here.

Why is gaming hardware perfect for mining?

How does mining work? To understand the value of gaming hardware in mining, we need to answer the question here. With heavy reliance on complex mathematical calculations to validate transactions and protect networks, immense computational power is a major need in mining activities of any kind.

Regular CPUs are capable of mining cryptocurrency, but what about power? These machines lack the kind of power that is required to complete the proof-of-work (PoW) process that is generally carried out using GPUs. Thousands of parallel computations are appropriately handled by GPUs, which contain specialized chips to do so. Mining demands repetitive number crunching and with GPUs, you can easily do the same!

The great GPU exodus

A constant battle between gamers and miners for the same hardware has been noted with the rise of crypto mining. Initially, this overlap between gamers and miners was no big deal, as only a few miners existed. The demand for GPUs was less, until mining started gaining traction with the sudden rise in popularity of the same. This resulted in shortages of hardware, which led to a constant struggle for hardware.

Gamers started facing hardware shortages, as miners started bulk-buying affordable cards. Being the primary target audience of the GPU manufacturers, gamers started complaining about this bizarre situation. Even performance restrictions placed by GPU manufacturers could not change the situation, as miners started finding quick turnarounds and kept purchasing these hardware components!

Creative repurposing

Older GPUs retire after a new gaming hardware hits the market. But the good news is, these GPUs instead of gathering dust are finding a new purpose and life in mining rigs in the current times. Sounds great, right? Long after their prime gaming days are done, these GPUs are finding a new purpose and life in those large mining farms, who are bulk-buying these for mining operations.

Individual miners are not far behind too! Have you ever seen anyone who repurposes their gaming machine to serve the purpose of a miner? There are plenty of individual miners, who are repurposing their gaming PCs to mine coins for added incomes. You can cover electricity costs and even ensure higher profits by mining with your gaming PC. All you need to do is repurpose it and your machine will mint coins, even when you are sleeping at home! Isn’t it amazing?

The rise of dedicated mining rigs

Specialized hardware for mining has taken over, with ASICs or Application-Specific Integrated Circuits hitting the markets. Even though your gaming PC can fetch you good profits with mining activities, ASICs, which are specially designed for mining activities outperform gaming PCs by significant margins in mining. However, a clear drawback is ASICs can do nothing apart from mining, which means once obsolete, you can use it for nothing else.

Gaming GPUs, on the other hand, allow a higher level of flexibility, which is their advantage even today. GPUs give you the option of reselling and repurposing, which is a critical requirement even today. You can use a retired gaming PC for other tasks like AI development or using it as your server. Even today, gaming PCs play an important role in mining, thanks to the flexibility they offer!

The environmental and ethical dilemma

There is a major downside of repurposing gaming hardware for crypto mining – high energy consumption. It might be a clever way of extending the usefulness of the machine, but electricity needs and consumption is exponentially high in crypto mining, which makes it highly unsustainable. The environmental impact of such high levels of energy consumption is extremely high, which is a key issue here.

The carbon footprint of these machines is extremely high, as higher electricity consumption means a greater carbon footprint. There are countries that have already cracked down mining operations due to the highly unsustainable nature. Others are looking for alternative energy sources, especially, renewable energy sources. Even though gaming GPUs are still in use and will be in use as long as mining activities exist, there is still adverse environmental implications associated with the same.

What’s next?

So, what do you think about using gaming PCs in mining? Is it here to stay or is it just a passing trend? Well, the answer is, ‘it depends!’ The demand for mining GPUs is on a fall as more and more crypto coins are shifting away from the PoW model. Nevertheless, with new coins coming up daily and blockchain applications being created in a matter of no time, there is always a chance of another massive boom here!

There is a state of uneasy coexistence between gamers and miners, and it is likely to stay. The industry is constantly evolving and a big shift is on the cards with the high levels of innovation taking place. Mining manufacturers are constantly innovating to ensure new hardware and software are launched in the markets. There can be a massive change in the coming years!

Final thoughts

Gaming hardware is actively being used in mining activities, a massive shift from its actual purpose! They have become an integral part of the mining revolution, even though, they were designed for a superior and immersive gaming experience. These essential pieces of technology have found an undisputed place in the world of cryptocurrency and continue to dominate in major aspects even today. The intersection of gaming and mining isn’t going away anytime soon, as GPUs are set to play an important role in both mining and gaming in the years to come as well!