AMD/ATI developing external R600 and Crossfire cards

[Sandman]

Codenamed lasso, AMD's external graphics solution will use the external PCI-e connection announced last week. This solution is targeted at both desktops and laptops, but obviously will make the biggest difference in the latter. Laptops are not known for their high powered graphical solutions, but with an external unit, you may be able to enjoy high quality, portable graphics without sacrificing battery life when on the go. A crossfire implementation is also said to be in the works. It is not yet known whether these devices will utilize a seperate power supply, but I'd say it's a safe bet.

View at TechPowerUp Main Site

 

[L|NK|N]

I remember seeing some concepts of this a while back.....i just hope it doesnt look like I am hooking up a console to my PC.

 

[Completely Bonkers]

Ultimately, where is this going? Separation of GPU from the PC?

Will the PC of the future be a two box affair? Plug and play... core and GPU?

 

[Chewy]

I think this will be great (ofc) for gamers/laptop user, people who work and need a laptop but enjoy thier games while traveling.. even though they do have good laptops for that, this will help save batt life while not gamming and keep the inside of your laptop cooler.
I dont see it doing anything for the desktop area, unless your limited in internal space, like using a mico case.

 

[WarEagleAU]

This is good for laptop gamers who cant get two cards in their chassis.

However, my concept of future pcs were smaller and more powerful, like you would see in a futuristic movie where your kb is in the air and you type on it and stuff...definately not going the way I thought they would.

 

[NamesDontMatter]

HAHA on all of you who have 600watt+ PSU's This may be a good alternative for those who don't want to upgrade PSU's

 

[ktr]

now the question is would it be able to use the ext. gcard on the built-in lcd screen...

This sounds expensive...just buy a gaming laptop when dx10 comes to them...alienware or dell xps...etc..

 

[Wile E]

This could be really fun for overclockers. Takes a major source of heat out of the case and be able to independently cool the vid card.

 

[chame]

This sounds expensive...just buy a gaming laptop when dx10 comes to them...alienware or dell xps...etc..

Yeah, you need the box that will be expensive plus lcd for gaming plus mouse+keyboard and the total system will be slower than the standard PC..., basically you change the PC case by a laptop...

 

[sefu]

AMD&ATI are going in the wrong direction that is DOWN, by doing large stuf, external 4x4 cpu, and all this expensive power hungry and lazy cards are usless,i dont want one even they will be free