Thursday, March 10th 2016
AMD Announces the XConnect External Graphics Technology with Razer and Intel
AMD today announced AMD XConnect technology, making it easier than ever to pair a powerful external Radeon graphics card with a compatible notebook or 2-in-1 using Thunderbolt 3. AMD XConnect technology is a groundbreaking new feature of Radeon Software Crimson Edition 16.3. Traditionally, PC gamers have been faced with the problem of choosing between gaming notebooks, sacrificing portability for gaming performance, or ultrathin notebooks, sacrificing gaming performance for portability.
A lightweight notebook or 2-in-1 with Thunderbolt 3 that is compatible with AMD XConnect technology brings the best of both worlds to life -- conveniently lightweight on its own, but as needed, can easily tap into serious framerates and image quality of a gaming notebook with a powerful external GPU. The connection between the external GPU enclosure configured with Radeon R9 300 Series graphics is made possible over Intel's Thunderbolt 3, and can be connected or disconnected at any time, a first for external GPUs.
"AMD XConnect technology is representative of the Radeon Technologies Group's on-going commitment to gamers. With the introduction of our user-friendly plug-and-play external GPU solution, gamers no longer need to sacrifice portability for powerful performance in notebook gaming," said Raja Koduri, Senior Vice President and Chief Architect, Radeon Technologies Group, AMD. "As innovators paving the way with an ingenious external GPU solution for notebooks, we look forward to creating a thriving ecosystem of notebooks enabled with AMD XConnect technology in collaboration with leading manufacturers."
AMD is also pleased to reveal that there is a notebook available today that can unlock the potential of AMD XConnect technology, brought to you in a collaboration with Intel's Thunderbolt group and Razer: The Razer Blade Stealth, a brand new ultrathin notebook compatible with AMD XConnect technology, and the Razer Core, an external GPU enclosure that connects to the Razer Blade Stealth notebook via Thunderbolt 3. When the Razer Core is equipped with a Radeon R9 300 Series GPU, gamers can experience desktop-like gaming performance in a convenient plug-and-play solution on a Stealth running an AMD XConnect compatible driver. Configuring the Razer Core with a Radeon R9 300 Series GPUs even allows gamers to play on the Blade Stealth's high-resolution IGZO screen, or connect to an external AMD FreeSync-enabled monitor for a breathtakingly smooth gaming experience.
"The Razer Blade Stealth was developed as the ultimate Ultrabook for work on-the-go, additionally capable of transforming into a desktop gaming environment when connected to Razer Core, thanks in part to remarkable contributions from AMD and Intel," says Min-Liang Tan, Razer CEO and cofounder. "The collaboration and development between Razer and AMD for users with Radeon R9 300 Series graphics in the Razer Core helped us realize the world's first Thunderbolt 3 plug-and-play external graphics solution. A single Thunderbolt 3 connection now provides power and data between the Blade Stealth and Core, and other peripherals can connect to the Razer Core's USB ports to provide a desktop-class gaming experience."
"Thunderbolt 3 brings Thunderbolt to USB-C at speeds up to 40Gb/s, creating one compact port that does it all," said Jason Ziller, Director of Thunderbolt Marketing, Intel. "Thanks to technical collaboration with the Radeon Technologies group at AMD, desktop Radeon graphics cards are now validated for use with Thunderbolt 3. AMD's new XConnect technology brings effortless plug-and-play support and a convenient management interface to notebooks and 2-in-1s with the Thunderbolt 3 external graphics solution configured with a powerful Radeon R9 300 Series GPU."
AMD plans to expand the list of Radeon GPUs that can support AMD XConnect technology, which will enable gamers to upgrade their enclosures beyond the Radeon R9 300 Series.
For a list of compatible GPUs, visit this page.
A lightweight notebook or 2-in-1 with Thunderbolt 3 that is compatible with AMD XConnect technology brings the best of both worlds to life -- conveniently lightweight on its own, but as needed, can easily tap into serious framerates and image quality of a gaming notebook with a powerful external GPU. The connection between the external GPU enclosure configured with Radeon R9 300 Series graphics is made possible over Intel's Thunderbolt 3, and can be connected or disconnected at any time, a first for external GPUs.
AMD is also pleased to reveal that there is a notebook available today that can unlock the potential of AMD XConnect technology, brought to you in a collaboration with Intel's Thunderbolt group and Razer: The Razer Blade Stealth, a brand new ultrathin notebook compatible with AMD XConnect technology, and the Razer Core, an external GPU enclosure that connects to the Razer Blade Stealth notebook via Thunderbolt 3. When the Razer Core is equipped with a Radeon R9 300 Series GPU, gamers can experience desktop-like gaming performance in a convenient plug-and-play solution on a Stealth running an AMD XConnect compatible driver. Configuring the Razer Core with a Radeon R9 300 Series GPUs even allows gamers to play on the Blade Stealth's high-resolution IGZO screen, or connect to an external AMD FreeSync-enabled monitor for a breathtakingly smooth gaming experience.
"The Razer Blade Stealth was developed as the ultimate Ultrabook for work on-the-go, additionally capable of transforming into a desktop gaming environment when connected to Razer Core, thanks in part to remarkable contributions from AMD and Intel," says Min-Liang Tan, Razer CEO and cofounder. "The collaboration and development between Razer and AMD for users with Radeon R9 300 Series graphics in the Razer Core helped us realize the world's first Thunderbolt 3 plug-and-play external graphics solution. A single Thunderbolt 3 connection now provides power and data between the Blade Stealth and Core, and other peripherals can connect to the Razer Core's USB ports to provide a desktop-class gaming experience."
"Thunderbolt 3 brings Thunderbolt to USB-C at speeds up to 40Gb/s, creating one compact port that does it all," said Jason Ziller, Director of Thunderbolt Marketing, Intel. "Thanks to technical collaboration with the Radeon Technologies group at AMD, desktop Radeon graphics cards are now validated for use with Thunderbolt 3. AMD's new XConnect technology brings effortless plug-and-play support and a convenient management interface to notebooks and 2-in-1s with the Thunderbolt 3 external graphics solution configured with a powerful Radeon R9 300 Series GPU."
AMD plans to expand the list of Radeon GPUs that can support AMD XConnect technology, which will enable gamers to upgrade their enclosures beyond the Radeon R9 300 Series.
For a list of compatible GPUs, visit this page.
38 Comments on AMD Announces the XConnect External Graphics Technology with Razer and Intel
Apple will have this, and Intel don't want to lose their Apple contract(s) yet. There is zero chance of Apple going back to NVIDIA, so Intel have to work with AMD here. They'll probably lose iMacs and laptops in '17 to AMD's APUs anyway, but they can hope.
as for limitations at full res it works fine haha
It could still be smaller than a regular GPU.
MXM 970M - $690 (GBP>USD)
MSI GTX970 - $415 (GBP>USD) - average retail price for a 970
(Desktop equivalent to a 970M is a 960 or something inbetween a 760 & 770 - Even worse if you think that a 960 retails here for $244 - thats a huge difference in price)
MXM 980M - $795 (GBP>USD)
MSI GTX 980 - $617 (GBP>USD) - average retail price for a 980
(Desktop equivalent to a 980M is said to be about a GTX770 which retails for $374 - thats a huge difference in price)
What i would class as 'not that expensive...' is a difference between $5-10 - $15 at a stretch even. But as you can see here 'not that expensive....' is actually in excess of $150. When youre paying close to if not over $200 compared to their desktop counterparts Its bloody expensive.
And even if they were you currently cant get MXM cards off some of the bigger retailers out there. The only place where i could really find them was on ebay but I have heard of people calling up some of the big boutique laptop makers out there and asking if they would sell them just the MXM card for an upgrade instead of an entire laptop, And they are under no obligation to grant your request.