I don't know much about the availability of ITX-sized GPUs but I'm at Newegg and there are only 2 GPUs that are 200mm or less and are at least a GTX 1070.
I guess it's still better than nothing but I guess, for me, I'd rather have something a little less limiting is all.
I have two of them and they work very well. I don't see them as limiting at all. They're still clocked higher than standard / stock cards. They aren't far off of a card like the SuperClocked ACX models. The software isn't bad since it'll tune the card for your purposes at the click of a button.
Jayz2cents did a video on this comparing performance on the Razer unit i think it was vs performance on a card installed in a system and there is a significant drop in frames with these.
Really depends on how its implemented on the laptop/motherboard and enclosure side, along with what drivers you are using. It's not a bandwidth issue at all.
Windows, quite frankly, does NOT like the hotplugged eGPUs, and it seems the workarounds and drivers to make it at least play semi-nice with GPU switching are a big part of what is slowing down the eGPU boxes. Should be noted that loopback mode (ie not using an external display) does have a 15% hit as well, but the use case for the eGPUs seems mostly to be a thin and light laptop plugged into a full home pc gaming setup of accessories at home (monitor, mouse, keyboard,e tc)
It really looks like you could change the card for any other ITX graphics card with a similar TDP, which is pretty good news. This is one Thunderbolt 3 GPU chassis I could get behind.
We’ve updated our terms. By continuing to use the site and/or by logging into your account, you agree to the Site’s updated Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
12 Comments
Back to Article
IdBuRnS - Thursday, June 1, 2017 - link
It might be $100 cheaper but the upgrade path is severely limited with the smaller size.I'll gladly pay $100 more if it means I can swap whatever future card in that I want.
dave_the_nerd - Thursday, June 1, 2017 - link
It looks like it just uses one of those stubby "ITX" cards. There's a few of those every generation.I like it. Add in a couple of 2.5" SATA bays and it's the laptop dock I always wanted.
HomeworldFound - Thursday, June 1, 2017 - link
The card is the Gigabyte GTX 1070 Mini ITX OCIdBuRnS - Thursday, June 1, 2017 - link
I don't know much about the availability of ITX-sized GPUs but I'm at Newegg and there are only 2 GPUs that are 200mm or less and are at least a GTX 1070.I guess it's still better than nothing but I guess, for me, I'd rather have something a little less limiting is all.
HomeworldFound - Thursday, June 1, 2017 - link
I have two of them and they work very well. I don't see them as limiting at all. They're still clocked higher than standard / stock cards. They aren't far off of a card like the SuperClocked ACX models. The software isn't bad since it'll tune the card for your purposes at the click of a button.dave_the_nerd - Friday, June 2, 2017 - link
http://www.anandtech.com/show/11501/zotac-showcase...Chrishnaw - Thursday, June 8, 2017 - link
The 1070 doesn't look soldered on, so in the future you can probably swap it for a more recent mini card, perhaps an RX Vega Nano or GTX 1170 mini.Hxx - Thursday, June 1, 2017 - link
Jayz2cents did a video on this comparing performance on the Razer unit i think it was vs performance on a card installed in a system and there is a significant drop in frames with these.Cygni - Thursday, June 1, 2017 - link
Really depends on how its implemented on the laptop/motherboard and enclosure side, along with what drivers you are using. It's not a bandwidth issue at all.Windows, quite frankly, does NOT like the hotplugged eGPUs, and it seems the workarounds and drivers to make it at least play semi-nice with GPU switching are a big part of what is slowing down the eGPU boxes. Should be noted that loopback mode (ie not using an external display) does have a 15% hit as well, but the use case for the eGPUs seems mostly to be a thin and light laptop plugged into a full home pc gaming setup of accessories at home (monitor, mouse, keyboard,e tc)
ToTTenTranz - Friday, June 2, 2017 - link
It really looks like you could change the card for any other ITX graphics card with a similar TDP, which is pretty good news.This is one Thunderbolt 3 GPU chassis I could get behind.