This site may earn affiliate commissions from the links on this page. Terms of use.

Asus-XG-Station-Feature

Always since AMD teamed upwards with Razer and Intel to create the XConnect concept, nosotros've seen more companies tiptoeing into the external graphics market. The basic thought is simple: Slap an external GPU into a chassis, hook it to a laptop (or even a modest desktop, with proper Thunderbolt 3 support), and you've got a high-stop game station that weighs 2-3 pounds when discrete, just plays similar a vi-10-pound desktop replacement when hooked upwards. Asus is the latest company to launch a new external GPU enclosure, this ane built in partnership with the Taiwanese case manufacturer, In Win.

The new XG Station Pro packs into a svelte 4.3-by-14.8-inch class factor. In that location's an included (external) 330W PSU for the GPU, enough space for a two.v-slot PCI Express GPU (this should support any aftermarket cards, either today or in the foreseeable future), and a pair of 120mm fans (shown below) to continue the GPU cool. In that location's also a unmarried USB-C accuse port on the chassis, with enough provided power (15W) to charge mobile devices, though probably not plenty to charge or power anything larger. The fan speeds are automatically handled by in-chassis temperature sensors, there's an choice to tune the colors and LEDs of the in-chassis hardware (assuming you accept an Asus GPU with uniform LED lighting), and Asus is challenge the enclosure is optimized for silent operation. GPUs up to and including the GTX 1080 Ti or RX Vega 64 are supported.

xgstationpro-inside

That said, it's not the best-featured chassis of its type. The Mantiz Venus MZ-02 that nosotros've written about earlier was more than expensive, at $399 compared with the XG Station's $329, but also featured an SSD attach indicate, gigabit Ethernet, 550W power supply, and multiple USB 3.0 ports. Asus is, however, challenge that it intends to build its time to come GPUs to be compatible with the XG Station, implying we may run into better back up than might otherwise be the example for a third-party manufacturer. Then again, robust power supplies and adequate internal clearance take typically been the but requirements needed to provide future-proof compatibility.

It'due south likewise not clear if Asus' support for PC and Mac is a meaningful point, mostly considering it isn't clear if UEFI-specific enhancements are required for cross-platform back up. Equally far as we're currently aware, any eGPU chassis with Thunderbolt 3 volition work with any Thunderbolt 3-equipped system, regardless of manufacturer. Nosotros'll update you if that changes.

xgstationpro-standing

Every bit more companies push button into this market nosotros'll undoubtedly encounter a range of hardware and hardware prices. Hopefully consumer uptake will justify the experimentation — while these chassis may not work for everyone, they're a potential compromise between the ultrabook thin-and-light systems that are increasingly popular and consumers who don't desire to merchandise weight for horsepower.

The $329 XG Station Pro will launch later this calendar month.