Thursday, January 10th 2019
PowerColor Shows Off New Thunderbolt 3 eGPU Enclosures at CES 2019
While at CES 2019 we had the opportunity to visit with PowerColor who were showing off their latest external GPU enclosures including the TBX-180/240FU, and the TBX-750FA. Starting with the TBX-750FA this external GPU enclosure uses a Thunderbolt 3 (40Gbps) connection and has a 750-watt internal power supply. Due to the size of not only the enclosure but the power supply as well, graphics cards measuring up to 335 x 170 x 58 mm (13.18 x 6.69 x 2.28 inches). When you factor in maximum GPU power is rated at 500-watts pretty much any GPU on the market should work with this enclosure like a cat with a box if it fits it sits. Connectivity options consist of the 1x Thunderbolt 3 port for connection to the host system, 1x Gigabit Ethernet, 5x USB 3.0 (3 up front, 2 in back), 1x SD 4.0, and finally 1x SATA. Overall the enclosure measures in at 359 x 179 x 198 mm and supports Windows 10 and MacOS 10.13.4 or later.Looking at the TBX-180F and TBX-240FU or the Mini and Mini Pro as they have been named, share similar designs but come in a few different configurations. The TBX-240FU or Mini Pro version will come with a Radeon RX 570 8 GB and has an extra fan for improved cooling. It also offers up 1x Gigabit ethernet, 2x USB 3.0, and of course a Thunderbolt 3 port for connecting to the host system. Concerning power delivery the system supplies 75-watts via the PCIe slot and has a Max GPU power limit of 150-watts. Rather than using a traditional power supply, these eGPU enclosures make use of an external adapter. The TBX-180F or Mini is very similar, but it sacrifices a few features and downgrades the GPU to a Radeon RX 560 4 GB. Gone are the USB 3.0 ports and extra fan while the ethernet connection is no longer a Gigabit offering. However, it also comes with a much more affordable price. The Mini Pro with RX 570 is expected to cost $499, while the regular Mini is listed for $359. Later on, a standalone enclosure with no GPU will be released for $199. As for GPU support at this time, PowerColor had a short list that consisted of various GTX 1060, GTX1070, and RX 570 cards, however, all of them were Mini or ITX versions since any graphics cards larger than 175 x 131 x 38 mm (6.88 x 5.15 x 1.49 inches) in size will not fit. The same goes for any graphics card that has a TDP higher than 150-watts.
5 Comments on PowerColor Shows Off New Thunderbolt 3 eGPU Enclosures at CES 2019
Heck, you can even make cheap render station from a NUC. i5 NUC, slap some memory and storage and daisy-chain like 5 of these boxes for behemoth of a render machine. No need to worry about slot clearance or case size. TB3 is great standard, USB can choke it.
I could buy a $5 PCI-E slot and add a video card to any computer, but why when i can pay $199. Stupid me..........