The verdict

Local AI
Nvidia RTX 5070 has more VRAM (12GB vs 10GB) - up to ~13B (Q4).

Which wins for each job

Job Nvidia RTX 3080 Nvidia RTX 5070
Plex transcode ~12 streams ~12 streams
Frigate NVR ~25 cameras ~25 cameras
Local LLM 10GB VRAM 12GB VRAM win
Fits a mini-PC full-size PCIe, DIY build full-size PCIe, DIY build

Approximate - capacity estimates from curated specs, the same logic as the recommender. Verify against your exact setup. Prices move; check the retailer.

Full specs

Spec Nvidia RTX 3080 Nvidia RTX 5070
Price (list) $500 $549
Type gpu gpu
Interface pcie pcie
Transcode H.264/HEVC (NVENC Ampere) H.264/HEVC/AV1 (NVENC Blackwell 4:2:2)
Frigate detector TensorRT TensorRT
TOPS - -
VRAM (GB) 10 12
Low profile no no
GPU sharing - -
Power (W) 320 250