Laptop for gaming with external GPU

[yasho2249]

I am a student n would like to hav a light weight laptop to carry with me n when am home I can plug an eGPU and play those graphically intense games on my laptop or TV. Soo I was looking at those eGPU setups and the thunderbolt 3 looks the best one of all bt the docking stations for thunderbolt are too expensive for me right now(they r really expensive in my country)....soo I am thinking of using the mpcie slot(generally where the wifi card goes) to connect the Gpu with exp gdc. It costs abt $50 n while Ik the bandwidth is limiting I found people saying that something like a 960 will be ok with this bandwidth and such Gpus are good for 1080p gaming which is what I am exactly looking for. Soo I want a laptop with 1080p display a good CPU (with integrated graphics as it will reduce the cost) and light weight.....The last one (and the difficult is one) thing is I would love to hav a thunderbolt port in laptop for future use. Budget is $700 for the laptop. Can't be flexible with the budget though Is there any laptop with these features in $700 range??

[bluerubydragon]

probably not. but i hope you find it =D

 

[bluerubydragon]

the xps 13 is $800 and it has thunder bolt 3, 1080p, and im pretty sure its light 

LINK:   http://www.dell.com/us/business/p/xps-13-9350-laptop/pd?p=xps-13-9350-laptop&oc=cax13w10s5154&st=pla&dgc=ST&cid=298720&lid=5704669&acd=12309152537461010&ven1=CAX13W10S5154:101950809789:901pdb6671:c&ven2=:&isredir=true

EDIT: you are talking about US dollars right.

[yasho2249]

32 minutes ago, bluerubydragon said:

the xps 13 is $800 and it has thunder bolt 3, 1080p, and im pretty sure its light 

LINK:   http://www.dell.com/us/business/p/xps-13-9350-laptop/pd?p=xps-13-9350-laptop&oc=cax13w10s5154&st=pla&dgc=ST&cid=298720&lid=5704669&acd=12309152537461010&ven1=CAX13W10S5154:101950809789:901pdb6671:c&ven2=:&isredir=true

EDIT: you are talking about US dollars right.

Yup USD

[riklaunim]

I asked local Dell support about external GPU support over TB3 in their latest Dell Precision laptop (based on XPS 15) and they say no, it won't be implemented. IMHO GPU over Thunderbolt 3 is way to much vendor-locked plus Intel has to certify stuff which prevents cheap third-party solutions (like for ExpressCard eGPU solutions).

 

If XPS 13 has a M.2 slot then you can likely do eGPU via that slot at the expense of no M.2 SSD If you pick more office/workstation laptop with ExpressCard then it gets easier... but the holy grail would be to get a cheap MSI GS30 or Alienware 13 R2. First one has PCIe x16 3.0 connector, while the other x4 to their own eGPU solutions. Even the x4 3.0 (the same for TB3) is enough for high end eGPU (somewhat).

[Hamako]

T430s with i7 has a 35W CPU that will rival or surpass modern ULV CPU's and also features Thunderbolt 3. In addition to 3 mPCIe slots, it also has ExpressCard, so you can use that to connect your eGPU far more easily than via mPCIe.

[Biased Opinion]

xx20 and xx30 thinkpads work with eGPU solutions over expresscard. T4xx/T5xx also have socketed cpus which means you could put a quad core in there if you wanted.

[reptileexperts]

Wait for a used Alienware 13 refresh to hit your market with the proprietary external graphics amplifier. I have the 17r2 and ran it as my main rig with a 980m for on the go and the graphics amplifier with a 970 to run to my external

monitor and keyboard / mouse. 

 

While it seems like there is little difference. Fire strike runs around 9200 with a 980m and 11000 with a 970. For my needs it worked well and I ultimately repurposed the 970 for a full sli build. . . I digress. . . You should be able to get a 960m version of the Alienware 13 with a nice 1080p screen for your budget used since the new skylake models are out. But depending on your country, it will be another 200 for the amplifier and 300 or more for a 970 or 200 for a 960 if that's yor end game.