Tuesday, May 27th 2008

ASUS Launches ROG XG VGA and Multimedia Docking Station

ASUS, leading provider of high-performance graphics solutions, today launched the world's first VGA and multimedia docking station - the ASUS ROG (Republic of Gamer) XG Station. With extremely detailed and impeccable design, the XG Station has attained the honorific of being conferred with the red dot design award honourable mention 2008. The XG Station is also bundled with the EN8600GT/HTDP/256M graphics card, and equipped with an Express Card interface - seamlessly integrating notebook computing with powerful PC graphical power. It also incorporates 4 USB 2.0 ports and Dolby Technology - doubling as a USB hub that delivers true AV enjoyment.

Reddot Design Award Honourable Mention
With more than 7,000 submissions from 60 countries, the international reddot Design Award ranks among the largest and most renowned design competitions in the world. In the first time in the history of these prestigious awards, the jury of design experts have honoured 137 products that have stood out from the others through especially refined and detailed solutions. The ASUS ROG XG Station is certified to be one such honourable mention, and is recognized as a product that sets itself apart from the competition with its successful design solution for providing a unique user experience.

Engage Mobility with Powerful Graphics Processing
With the explosion of popularity of high-performance, powerful laptops in recent years, there is an ever-increasing desire for computing users to utilize the same laptop computer at home, in the office, and also on the road. However, in order to conserve space, weight, and functionality, many of these sophisticated laptops have made sacrifices in terms of graphics, audio or processing power. By providing the power of a dedicated 3D graphics engine, users simply have to connect the XG Station to any LCD monitor, connect to the notebook via an Express Card connector, and then they are ready to game in with enhanced graphics. This setup easily provides users with a complete mobile notebook computing solution while retaining the advantages of high powered 3D gaming and multimedia experiences.

Sensational A/V Enjoyment
The XG Station also features enhanced audio and video functions with incorporated Dolby Technology - which encompasses Dolby Headphone, Dolby Virtual speaker, Dolby Digital Live, and Dolby Pro LogicIIx. This allows dynamic true-to-life quality audio to be achieved during PC gameplay, music or video playback. The Dolby Headphone enables 5.1 surround sound through any pair of headphones, while the Dolby Virtual speaker lets users experience 5.1-channel surround sound from just two speakers. Dolby Digital Live enables users to enjoy audio from the PC or game consoles through their home theater setups, and Dolby Pro LogicIIx transforms any stereo or 5.1 channel source into 6.1 or 7.1 channel surround sounds. Furthermore, with the XG Station, real-time overclocking can be easily controlled with the ergonomic knob design for simple GPU clock speed adjustments - providing the best audio and video experiences.

Large Information Display and Easy Controls
With the adoption of a large LED screen, the XG Station is designed with ease of use in mind. This easy-to-read screen provides clear displays of critical system status statistics that include:
  • System master volume
  • GPU clock speed
  • Current GPU temperature
  • Dolby Headphone feature status
  • Current actual Frames Per Second (FPS)
  • GPU fan speed indicator
The XG Station also utilizes a dedicated control panel to let users control the settings through a GUI based interface; and can also easily switch modes between the notebook screen and the external LCD monitor.


Fast and Upgradeable Graphics Power
The XG Station is the world's first docking station to provide a standard PCI Express slot for additional graphics computing power for notebook computers to deliver VISTA Premium graphical performances. It also conveniently accommodates future graphic upgrade possibilities for technologies such as HDCP. Lab experiments made on a notebook based on Intel 945GM and 965GM graphics connected to the XG station with an ASUS EN8600GT graphics card showed an astounding 12 and 6.7 times faster graphics
Source: ASUS
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21 Comments on ASUS Launches ROG XG VGA and Multimedia Docking Station

#1
PVTCaboose1337
Graphical Hacker
Very neat... That would look pretty good...
Posted on Reply
#2
Megasty
Sweet but I thought they was going to go for the 3870 & 8800gt...
Posted on Reply
#3
PVTCaboose1337
Graphical Hacker
MegastySweet but I thought they was going to go for the 3870 & 8800gt...
Likewise, the 8600gt seems a little wimpy.
Posted on Reply
#4
Unregistered
It's connected via expressport what is a PCI Express x1 Lane so a 8600GT is enough no need for a better card when you can't pump it! And a 8600GT is enough power boost for a regular laptop with intel GMA950 or so!
Posted on Edit | Reply
#5
FreedomEclipse
~Technological Technocrat~
all i can say is.......





















ABOUT FLIPPIN' TIME

I agree with the 8600 but its way better then my X1600MR. just in case you folks forgot - i think you can swap out the graphics card inside yourself so long as it fits.

so my 8600 would turn into a X1800XT 512mb.

so cut the crap - where is it going to be sold? when? & for how much?
Posted on Reply
#6
Megasty
FreedomEclipseI agree with the 8600 but its way better then my X1600MR. just in case you folks forgot - i think you can swap out the graphics card inside yourself so long as it fits.

so my 8600 would turn into a X1800XT 512mb.

so cut the crap - where is it going to be sold? when? & for how much?
Which means...I'm about to rip that thing apart & get a 3870X2 in there. Then my old dell xps m140 mini will pwn the earth :toast:
Posted on Reply
#7
Lozza
Quite funny, I was reading about these the other day, thinking it had been forgotten about.
Posted on Reply
#8
JoJoe
MegastyWhich means...I'm about to rip that thing apart & get a 3870X2 in there. Then my old dell xps m140 mini will pwn the earth :toast:
That'd be a waste of money. Express card uses PCIe x1. Not nearly enough bandwidth to make full use of a 3870 X2.

I wonder how much this thing will cost. If it's fairly cheap, it might be worth it to to have something even a little faster than what my laptop has.
Posted on Reply
#9
Haytch
That is one sexy unit. Would love to own one when they start producing them with more modern & higher end technology options.

Doesnt a 3870x2 only run at PCIe 1.0 x16 ? A 3870x2 sounds about perfect for this unit.
Posted on Reply
#10
Megasty
HaytchThat is one sexy unit. Would love to own one when they start producing them with more modern & higher end technology options.

Doesnt a 3870x2 only run at PCIe 1.0 x16 ? A 3870x2 sounds about perfect for this unit.
The unit itself only runs at x1 since it functions through the expresscard slot. It sucks but I just want to experiment :toast:
Posted on Reply
#11
MilkyWay
this is meant for pcs with bear min grpahics like those pesky intel crap

if you had a good dual core and at least 2gb of decent timing ram it could turn out to be a good thing

prolly gonna cost a bunch

this is for those who have a not bad laptop and want to use it for other things than internet ect

id recommend getting a lappy with a good card in it already tho but those cost a lot
Posted on Reply
#12
FreedomEclipse
~Technological Technocrat~
MilkyWaythis is meant for pcs with bear min grpahics like those pesky intel crap
no its just for laptops.

& theres nothing wrong for with wantin to use a laptop for my then just net browsing.

honestly since i bought my lappy in 2006/07 there hasnt been anything useful sitting inside my mini PCI-E slot asside from the media center remote thing which i dont even use.

there are some great laptops with killer spec that are let down by shitty buildt in graphics - this way we can minumise the cost of buying a laptop with 2x 8800GTX's in & grab 1 of these Asus units to plug in instead.

Id sure has hell buy one of these
Posted on Reply
#13
InnocentCriminal
Resident Grammar Amender
I've been waiting for this to be released for a while now. Shame it's a 8600 but that would really help out a 11" Ultra Portable if that's all you've got to game on.

My friend will be jazzed that this is finally being released.

It's been a long time coming, let's hope it's of some use. They should have a 3850/70 model. ^^
Posted on Reply
#14
FreedomEclipse
~Technological Technocrat~
I still wish they coulda worked a little harder with the sound but i suppose doing that would degrade the performance of the graphics card due to the already bottleneck with the mini PCI-E interface....still I hope its better then the built in sound - not that would make it a lot more worth while buying
Posted on Reply
#15
GSG-9
YESSSS.

When can I ACTUALLY get one! :D
JoJoeThat'd be a waste of money. Express card uses PCIe x1. Not nearly enough bandwidth to make full use of a 3870 X2.

I wonder how much this thing will cost. If it's fairly cheap, it might be worth it to to have something even a little faster than what my laptop has.
Not a complete waste, It may not be 100% as efficient as a desktop, but its much more efficient than onboard, and a 3870 X2 will perform better than a 3870, just not as well as a 3870 X2 on a desktop
Posted on Reply
#16
Cold Storm
Battosai
Not bad for a start! I just can't wait to see how these things work with some of us on TPU. See a Laptop Pwn because of the plug n play video card!
Posted on Reply
#18
GSG-9
JoJoewww.tomshardware.com/reviews/vidock-expresscard-graphics,1933.html

Not the XG. But same principles.
Thank you so much I had not seen either of those.
I wish the Expressbox was not $900, I would get one. Hopefully competition will drive the price down.
The ViDock did not look to offer a modular video card design and is no doubt quite expensive as well.
Im psyched though, I dont want to pay $300 for it but I think Im willing to pay up to $450, I hope its not much more..
Posted on Reply
#20
sethk
Can this device display video on the laptops built in display or is this for external monitors only? I'm guessing the latter, but thought I'd ask. If it's only the latter, then I'd rather just use my desktop computer at home. If its the former, this could be a cool travelling / mobile gaming solution.
Posted on Reply
#21
GSG-9
sethkCan this device display video on the laptops built in display or is this for external monitors only? I'm guessing the latter, but thought I'd ask. If it's only the latter, then I'd rather just use my desktop computer at home. If its the former, this could be a cool travelling / mobile gaming solution.
Its my understanding it can display on your internal monitor. But it requires a bit of power so the mobile gaming has to be in a stationary or at least powered location.

Edit:
The XG Station also utilizes a dedicated control panel to let users control the settings through a GUI based interface; and can also easily switch modes between the notebook screen and the external LCD monitor.
It does not say switch between internal and external graphics, so I assume it is talking about monitors only.
Posted on Reply
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