does anyone have details of the new external pci express graphics card tech?

hi,

first post here

does anyone have details of the new external pci express graphics card tech?

I saw an article a while back about an external pci express gfxz card case/psu built in that could attach via a pci express slot.

anyonegot any detailed info on this, also does anyone know if this tech is likely to be released by sept 07 (im going over to korea or japan then so need to take a lappy with me.)

cheers

sam

 

Well Asus with there XG (External Graphics) Station is ready for production according to what I've heard and the enclosure itself could be sold for around $100 without a graphics card, and could be sold in bundles with graphics cards as well. I'd really like to get an Asus XG, and then put either a new mid-range ATi R600 or Nvidia GeForce 8600 in that thing!

Now when it comes to the PCI-E x16 cabling solution, I haven't heard much, but it is a better idea as the Asus XG loses alot of communication bandwidth as compared to normal graphics cards in desktops or on motherboards, but the new external PCI-E x16 cable idea doesn't have this same problem, however, it's not very close to completion and it's not clear whether this idea can advantage of the hardware we already got or if a new port (the mostly likely case) will be needed to be built into laptops.

Either way, it's an exciting time for notebook gaming, as it's finally getting the recognition it deserves.

 

I am also very interested in the XG station, and will most likely be picking it up myself... is there any information on the release date? I've heard beginning of Q2, but a date would be even nicer. Any word?

-Josh

 

First, from what I have heared , XG Station is expensive , like $500~$600.But it has also other problems :
1 - It's not "new".IBM has release something like that.
2 - It's interface is 1X while the GPU's connector is 16X, it does not mean the performance is devided by 16 but rather it means that GPU's power will be divided by 16 but rather multiplied by 2/3.(The benchmarks done by IBM's indicate this)
3 - The chip it works with is DTR (Desktop replacement).
I think that's it for now.

 

Doesnt the XG station not even work off you laptop Screen?? You have to use your laptop with an external monitor!...

 

Yup. You'll also need either external speakers or headphones I think too.

I already have an extra USB keyboard lying around if I need that too, but I do have a monitor already for when I get the Asus XG. As far as the price, the estimates of $500 + U.S. I think were grossly overdone, as Asus would be charging way too much money for something like this, especially if it needed an outside monitor. Besides, I already told myself, if the Asus XG "bundle" with the device itself and a GeForce 7900GS was under $400, I'd get it. Hell, like I said previously, I hope I can pick up the XG for around $100, and a GeForce 8600GT for about $300, and I'll be all set for Crysis, and future stuff, not to mention games that already bring my laptop to it's knees like FEAR and Call of Duty 2.

 

wont be getting one of those then.

they really need a 16 x solution, i always wondered about the viability of an external 1x solution.

 

It's graphics offboarding... why would you need external speakers or headphones? Everything else is fine, it'll just use the external graphics chip, and an external display. It has NOTHING to do with the audio path.

And the $500+ US is for the device plus the video card... which means that it's not horribly overpriced when you check the prices of PC video cards.

 

I highly doubt you'll see more than a 5-15% drop in FPS with the difference between PCIx1 and PCIx16. Especially with a lot of games being CPU and Memory intensive as of late. As long as you're not running incredibly high resolutions, this external option may be the best thing to happen to laptops since... well... wireless internet. Besides, let's say you drop 15% on a 100fps game, 85fps is VERY playable, and for $400 to play current games, that's fantastic! Too each their own, I think the price is more of a problem for people than the performance degredation of PCIx1.

-Josh