External GPU's for Dell xps13?

[amarulagold]

So pretty soon I'm going to have to swap my current tower PC for something more portable, but I still want to keep playing my library of games. I've settled on either of the new Dell XPS laptops, and while the 15 would give me a dedicated graphics card and an easy solution I'd prefer to take the smaller XPS13 for its portability. Thus I'm considering an external GPU solution, such as the Razer Core or ASUS ROG XG Station 2, running out of the thunderbolt 3 port on the laptop. However after reading various forum posts it seems like the Dell laptops won't play nicely with either of those two options:

https://insider.razerzone.com/index.php?threads/anyone-got-the-razer-core-working-with-the-dell-xps-13-9350.15177/

https://egpu.io/forums/pc-setup/dell-xps-15-9560-asus-rog-xg-station-2-a-tragic-love-story/

 

Can anybody confirm this and tell me why? Would it be possible to use another option (such as perhaps the AkiTio Node?) that doesnt seem to be locked to only for its manufacturer's laptops? Or are these problems now fixed with

the new generation of XPS's?

 

Many thanks for any help..

[The Sloth]

just get 2 computers, external GPUs are vary inefficient.   

 

[Damascus]

If you are going with the EGPU thing go with an node, IMO you could buy a dancase or ncase m1, plop a r5 1600 in and pair it with a rx 480/rx 580/gtx 1060/gtx 1070  then get a 17" or so USB portable monitor

[Pendragon]

Apples macbook pro 15in is the best laptop right now for eGPU. The lanes are all routed directly to the CPU. Whereas others split it. 

[dizmo]

I'd never even consider it. The costs are way too high, and the results not that great.

Honestly you can build a very capable secondary system for the same price. I'd just do that.

12 minutes ago, Damascus said:

If you are going with the EGPU thing go with an node, IMO you could buy a dancase or ncase m1, plop a r5 1600 in and pair it with a rx 480/rx 580/gtx 1060/gtx 1070  then get a 17" or so USB portable monitor

Haha, while I get where you're coming from, that's a horrible solution...

[crzyces]

25 minutes ago, amarulagold said:

-snip-

 

Can anybody confirm this and tell me why? Would it be possible to use another option (such as perhaps the AkiTio Node?) that doesnt seem to be locked to only for its manufacturer's laptops? Or are these problems now fixed with

the new generation of XPS's?

 

Many thanks for any help..

You can get any of them to "Play Nice", the problem is the speed transfer. TB is just too slow, so you are looking at roughly a 33% speed reduction on a 1060 or 480, and it just gets worse the higher you go. Something like a 460 or 1050 might only bottleneck a little, but is that enough for your gaming?

 

Jayz2cents did a vid comparing a Dell XPS with a 1060... (forget the model) and then benchmarked with an external through a TB port, and they just can't compete with PCIe transfer speeds. There are custom laptop kits you can buy. Essentially a barebones laptop, with front and side i/o's, a screen, speakers, keyboard, touchpad, battery bay, and the rest is up to you. More expensive than a NUC with a portable screen, but the battery bay is already there along with the wiring which goes a long way if you want to truly stay portable. You could do it with an NUC too if you're good with wiring, and it would definately be less expensive.

 

Too bad good gaming laptops cost as much as a 6 year old compact American car.

[amarulagold]

Cheers for all the input... I will continue to have a browse for cheap mitx builds (or z97 mitx motherboards) but looks like i'll porbaly just get the xps15... most of the game I play don't need a huge amout of horsepower so the 1060 in it will probably suffice.