Jump to content

Can I use an E-gpu with my laptop?

Hi all,

 

I have a Lenovo Ideapad with 8gb DDR4 and a 10th gen i5. Pretty decent stuff for gaming. Problem is, it only has Intel HD graphics. I have a beautiful rig with a 2070 Super at home, but it's a pain taking my PC setup with me to college.

 

For some reason, I have seen back and forth information on what kinds of laptops can actually be compatible with an e-GPU. My laptop has a USB-C port, so is that good enough? Does it have to be a certain kind of port? If so, what kind of port do I need to be able to use an external GPU? 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to post
Share on other sites

Generally it's not worth getting an eGPU anyway. Especially right now where you couldn't get a GPU for a decent price.

When you're in college the chances of you having time to even notice you're missing out on gaming is slim. Unless you're slacking.

CPU: Ryzen 9 5900 Cooler: EVGA CLC280 Motherboard: Gigabyte B550i Pro AX RAM: Kingston Hyper X 32GB 3200mhz

Storage: WD 750 SE 500GB, WD 730 SE 1TB GPU: EVGA RTX 3070 Ti PSU: Corsair SF750 Case: Streacom DA2

Monitor: LG 27GL83B Mouse: Razer Basilisk V2 Keyboard: G.Skill KM780 Cherry MX Red Speakers: Mackie CR5BT

 

MiniPC - Sold for $100 Profit

Spoiler

CPU: Intel i3 4160 Cooler: Integrated Motherboard: Integrated

RAM: G.Skill RipJaws 16GB DDR3 Storage: Transcend MSA370 128GB GPU: Intel 4400 Graphics

PSU: Integrated Case: Shuttle XPC Slim

Monitor: LG 29WK500 Mouse: G.Skill MX780 Keyboard: G.Skill KM780 Cherry MX Red

 

Budget Rig 1 - Sold For $750 Profit

Spoiler

CPU: Intel i5 7600k Cooler: CryOrig H7 Motherboard: MSI Z270 M5

RAM: Crucial LPX 16GB DDR4 Storage: Intel S3510 800GB GPU: Nvidia GTX 980

PSU: Corsair CX650M Case: EVGA DG73

Monitor: LG 29WK500 Mouse: G.Skill MX780 Keyboard: G.Skill KM780 Cherry MX Red

 

OG Gaming Rig - Gone

Spoiler

 

CPU: Intel i5 4690k Cooler: Corsair H100i V2 Motherboard: MSI Z97i AC ITX

RAM: Crucial Ballistix 16GB DDR3 Storage: Kingston Fury 240GB GPU: Asus Strix GTX 970

PSU: Thermaltake TR2 Case: Phanteks Enthoo Evolv ITX

Monitor: Dell P2214H x2 Mouse: Logitech MX Master Keyboard: G.Skill KM780 Cherry MX Red

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to post
Share on other sites

8 hours ago, jaslion said:

It doesn't have thunderbolt so no egpu.

Not necessarily what I was asking. I see ℹ️ saying USB-C works with it. And if you have an external thunderbolt doc that can work as well. So what's the deal 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to post
Share on other sites

8 hours ago, dizmo said:

Generally it's not worth getting an eGPU anyway. Especially right now where you couldn't get a GPU for a decent price.

When you're in college the chances of you having time to even notice you're missing out on gaming is slim. Unless you're slacking.

My post says I already have a 2070 super at home. Not to mention students can get all there stuff done and still have time to relax sometimes! Just depends on the person workload and college. Still though not necessarily what I was asking. I just want to know if it will work with my laptop.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to post
Share on other sites

You’d be better off picking up a laptop with a discrete GPU already in it like a 1050 Ti or something. 
Your laptop doesn’t seem to have a thunderbolt connection so you can’t connect to a eGPU anyway. 

CPU i7 14700K | CPU Cooler Noctua NH-U12A | Motherboard MSI Pro Z690-A | GPU Zotac Airo RTX 4080 | RAM 32 GB GSkill Ripjaws V 4400
Mhz |
 Monitor Alienware AW2721D / Gigabyte M28U | PSU ASUS ROG Strix 850G

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to post
Share on other sites

9 hours ago, Bobbysixjp said:

You’d be better off picking up a laptop with a discrete GPU already in it like a 1050 Ti or something. 
Your laptop doesn’t seem to have a thunderbolt connection so you can’t connect to a eGPU anyway. 

I've heard thunderbolt 3 and usb 3.1 (C) are interchangeable. Would that work? Or is there an external thunderbolt dock I can use?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to post
Share on other sites

11 hours ago, sirbonneville said:

Not necessarily what I was asking. I see ℹ️ saying USB-C works with it. And if you have an external thunderbolt doc that can work as well. So what's the deal 

That is not at all how it works.

 

You need thunderbolt for an egpu to work. Usb c is a connector thunderbolt is a technology. Thunderbolt is direct acces to pcie lanes which you need for a gpu to work and usb c is the connector it uses. However since your laptop lacks thunderbolt it doesnt have a pcie connection over usb c so it cannot do egpu.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to post
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, jaslion said:

That is not at all how it works.

 

You need thunderbolt for an egpu to work. Usb c is a connector thunderbolt is a technology. Thunderbolt is direct acces to pcie lanes which you need for a gpu to work and usb c is the connector it uses. However since your laptop lacks thunderbolt it doesnt have a pcie connection over usb c so it cannot do egpu.

Is there any kind of dock or adapter that allows for that connection?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to post
Share on other sites

3 hours ago, sirbonneville said:

Is there any kind of dock or adapter that allows for that connection?

No. Your computer either has it or not. In your case it does not have it. You cannot add it on in any way. It is a chip that has to be on the motherboard it cannot be added on afterwards.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to post
Share on other sites

  • 1 year later...
On 4/10/2021 at 12:34 PM, sirbonneville said:

Not necessarily what I was asking. I see ℹ️ saying USB-C works with it. And if you have an external thunderbolt doc that can work as well. So what's the deal 

ommm can i ask you something that can u give me a picture of the external thunderbolt doc pls  

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to post
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now

×