External Graphics Cards are never worth it - ONEXGPU Review

We literally just need someone to finally come out with an affordable diy eGPU case (or at least just a pcie>usb4/thunderbolt board), so that way "if" you want to use your handheld as your main desktop and dock it you can.

I use a handheld with eGPU. Use it as a desktop when hooked up, or bring it with me as a handheld when i head out, or just relax on the couch. No regret selling my old desktop to do so.

The only valid point for eGPU is docked Ultrabooks for work IMO. That way a company IT can buy everyone the same laptop ( ultrabook with a rather powerful CPU) + dock so administration will be easy. But if someone needs to do GPU-heavy work (e.g. CAD / 3D-modelling) he can get a better monitor and the eGPU dock. clean setup and the docks can be upgraded separately from the laptops.

You mentioned it at the beginning of the video - there are people who want to use their handheld as their main gaming system. I would say they want it as their only system, and in that case, an eGPU makes sense. If you're not looking for a bulky* gaming laptop with it's (generally) keyboard and trackpad, limited number of ports and the need to add a bulky controller for a decent gaming experience, but want a more powerful setup when you're at home, an eGPU dock combo is a good option. Though this one is overpriced. *When I say bulky, I mean needs a bag/sleeve vs fits in your pocket scale. People want to use it like they use their Switch, totally portable, but dock it for a bigger better experience when battery life isn't a factor. Also, if you're a road warrior, one of these could conceivably be your only computer, and the eGPU and peripherals would be all you need to turn a hotel TV into a gaming monitor. They other big problem with a gaming laptop is that you're stuck with whatever GPU it's got unless you get a Frameworks model. An eGPU (specifically a DIY or user upgradeable model) can update with the GPU market until the CPU of the handheld is truly a bottleneck.

Great stuff as always. Little off topic but What would you suggest if the server in the garage is 500 ft+ away from 3 gamers ? either net amplifiers of some sort ?

the first gen Gigabyte Aorus Gaming Box (1070, 1080) can be found for under €/$100 without a GPU in your local classifieds. I bought two for around 75€ each. It has a 280W PSU and can house a dual slot ITX sized card. It's not that big either, and comes with a nicely padded carrying case. I use one with a RTX A4000 modded with a 3060 cooler (quite a common mod, google it. Runs cooler and quieter), and the 2nd with a Sandisk/Fusion-IO IoMemory 3200GB card (BTW Jeff, I think you should take a look at those IoMemory cards, quite nifty). Another option that's much less portable is the 2nd gen Gigabyte Aorus Gaming Box with a RTX 2080Ti or RTX 3080. The 3080 version sells regularly for under €/$500 in local classifieds or ebay. It's much bigger and heavier than the 1st gen, but it's not loud (thanks to being water-cooled), has some nice features like gigabit ethernet port and a couple of USB 3.0 ports, and still comes with a padded carrying case.

Maybe follow up video that compares this eGPU with any Aliexpress TB3/4 enclosure and some GPUs?

Does this carry over for laptop + external gpu for 3d work in stuff like unreal engine / C4d etc?

6:18 to 7:06 Literally what I was just drafting a comment to say, except with the addition that barebones Oculink enclosures are dirt cheap and performs better. Even if you had to have the thunderbolt interface, it still makes more sense to buy a thunderbolt enclosure and RX 7600 separately instead, so you have something more serviceable, upgradable, and reliable than a rectangle of proprietary components.

Thank you so much for this I appreciate all the time you took you answered all my questions. My favorite part of this video was watching the beer in your glass dissappear throughout the video.

Can you use it without docking? Like can i play using the main screen of the legion go with the egpu plugged in? I dont have a monitor or a pc, just a legion go so it would work for me to boost performance.

I have a lenovo legion go and next to my couch is a Razer core with a 3080 in it. I use it all the time and its an amazing combo for couch gaming.

If you already have a GPU it makes way more sense to grab a thunderbolt enclosure and put that card in, an enclosure can handle whatever GPU you wanna put in and costs a little over $200, and, if you are purchasing a new handheld with the external GPU options look for one that can do Oculink, that gives you the equivalent to a PCIe slot, not sure what speed but not full 16x, still definitely faster than thunderbolt.

Hey Jeff in your Opinion what would be the Best X99 Xeon for a Gaming System? I recently got a good deal on some Hunanzhi X99 Motherboards so am shopping around for some good options & I trust your judgement in this area since you have built so many of them. (Edit I did leave this comment on a 3 month old video but just in case you don't see that I figured I'd ask on a recent Video)

Meanwhile I’ve been wondering about adding an egpu to the MS-01 and passing it to a vm rather than upgrading my existing system - not completely sure about this yet though

About the only reason I can think of for one of these is if you only have one machine and it must be a super thin ultra book but you want to game with it occasionally. The battery life argument for the ultra book over a gaming laptop and extra CPU performance for the laptop over a second machine.

what abut video editing on the eGPU? :D

I was lucky, got a Gigabyte GPU enclosure (that originally had a 1070 in it), with an RTX 3060Ti for 300€. Sold the GPU for around the same price so the enclosure was technically free. it's got a 450W gold flex PSU in it so it can pretty much run most of the GPUs, tho size wise it's quite limiting, but if you disassemble it, it's fine in the end.

Oh yea you are basically paying a premium for a "portable" egpu. The only use case is traveling, where you want a handheld or thin and light laptop as well as gaming in the hotel. My experience with my zenbook flip and the GPD G1 is good, though there a couple of points to make: Thunderbolt has its limits, so higher resolutions or generating lots more information like cars can saturate this. Oculink is better than Thunderbolt for the eGPU, so if you wan to do this get a device with Oculink Noise, esp if you choose to go at 120w. I find 100w is fine and there is little gain going to 120w. The GPD G1 sounds like airflow rather than a spinning fan, so while audible it is not annoying. Lossless Scaling (on steam) works well adding scaling and frame gen to games that don't have it. Also using it to get double framegen on Starfield works quite well to make it playable.

That price...Jesus. I would only consider an eGPU if I'm slimming down my office nook by using a mini pc but still wanted gaming power so I don't have to crank up my main system to use a full onboard GPU. They got a ways to go on that pricing. Overall good review.