A brand new leak means that the launch date for the brand new Asus ROG XG Cell exterior GPU (eGPU) is imminent. This transportable gaming GPU will present avid gamers with a plug-in improve to both an Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 or RTX 5070 Ti for his or her gaming laptop computer or handheld gaming PC. Nevertheless, whereas it is going to be a tempting efficiency improve for a lot of avid gamers, its rumored worth may put many off.
Whereas most eGPUs are glorified exterior docks on your present graphics card to plug into, this explicit Asus mannequin is a a lot smaller, all-in-one answer. The brand new ROG XG makes use of the laptop computer equal GPUs of a few of the finest graphics playing cards from Nvidia, with an RTX 5090 mannequin provided for optimum efficiency, whereas the RTX 5070 Ti mannequin is a extra reasonably priced choice.
In keeping with a report by Chinese language web site ITHome, Asus is planning on releasing this new eGPU lineup on February 25. The GPU will see a model new design over the past ROG XG, launched again in 2023, with an 18.5% smaller casing and a weight underneath 1Kg. In keeping with the report and Asus’ personal launched specs web page, the gadget will even be 3dB quieter than the final ROG XG Cell, which was geared up with a cellular RTX 4090, together with a 54% greater cooling floor for improved thermal efficiency.
Extra importantly, this new eGPU will reportedly characteristic an improve to a Thunderbolt 5 connector, delivering as much as 80Gb/s bandwidth. That’s nice for gaming, however Thunderbolt 5 connections nonetheless aren’t frequent, besides in top-spec gaming laptops and PCs. You’ll nonetheless have the ability to use it with a Thunderbolt 4 port, nonetheless, which means you may use this gadget on among the finest handheld gaming PCs such because the Asus ROG Ally X, however the obtainable bandwidth is halved to a most of 40Gb/s, making it a a lot slower (and fewer interesting) choice.
Together with its two Thunderbolt 5 USB-C ports, the brand new ROG XG Cell will ship with ports for DisplayPort 2.1, HDMI 2.1, and 5G Ethernet. Two USB-A ports will even assist develop the connections on any laptop computer or mini gaming PC which might be plugged in to the eGPU. The ROG XG Cell additionally incorporates a 330W energy provide, though the connection through Thunderbolt 5 – for powering your laptop computer – solely helps as much as 140W.
Whereas on paper this could possibly be improve over the built-in GPUs utilized in some laptops or gaming handhelds, the worth goes to make it an choice reserved for under probably the most enthusiastic few. IT Residence stories that the XG Cell with an RTX 5090 is about to value $2,199.99, which is $200 greater than the MSRP for the desktop RTX 5090’s base mannequin.
Which may not sound so unhealthy, however the XG Cell relies on the cellular RTX 5090, which is provided with solely 10,496 CUDA cores in comparison with the desktop model’s 21,760, making it a a lot much less {powerful} GPU. It additionally ships with solely 24GB VRAM, in distinction to the desktop 5090’s 32GB. These specs place it remarkably near the desktop RTX 5080’s specs on paper, with fewer CUDA cores however further VRAM than that card, however for greater than two occasions the desktop RTX 5080’s $999 MSRP.
The RTX 5070 Ti mannequin is a greater choice when it comes to affordability and worth, with it priced at $1,199.99. That’s nonetheless $450 greater than the desktop RTX 5070 Ti’s MSRP, however the efficiency drop between cellular and desktop GPUs right here is far much less steep. The laptop computer 5070 Ti ships with 5,888 CUDA cores and 12GB VRAM, in comparison with 8,960 and 16GB VRAM on the desktop card.
When you’re determined to enhance the gaming efficiency of your gaming laptop computer, handheld, or mini gaming PC, and also you’ve acquired the {dollars} to spare, this Asus ROG XG Cell will definitely do it. Nevertheless, restricted Thunderbolt 5 availability, using less-powerful cellular GPUs than the desktop equivalents, and such excessive pricing imply this eGPU lineup could not show to be a preferred add-on for many transportable gaming rigs.
We’ll see simply how fashionable these new Asus eGPUs are once they go on sale. If it doesn’t attraction, nonetheless, it’s possible you’ll wish to seize your self a desktop card and place it in a regular eGPU enclosure as an alternative. Our the place to purchase 5090 information is up to date each day with the most recent RTX 5090 inventory availability, and we’ll be doing the identical with our the place to purchase 5070 Ti information when that card launches on February 20, too. You may also try our RTX 5090 overview to see how properly the brand new Nvidia flagship performs in the actual world, a minimum of on a PC.
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