question about e-gpu on Toshiba laptop

Hi.

I know there are several threads about e-gpus but i am a bit confused by so much informations and need answers about my setup before buying anything.

So i have a Toshiba Qosmio X500 laptop with Core i7 720QM Clarksfield and an Intel PM55 chipset. There is no Intel IGP but i have an internal NVidia GTS 250M. I also have 16 GB of RAM, SSD, etc, which makes this computer from early 2010 still a good horse for what i am doing. Gamewise, i mainly play Skyrim but i have some other games to try soon such as the two latest Batman.
This computer has always impressed me on games since i have it, but the GTS 250M is no more top of the range.

The GTS250M is the only weak part in my setup in my opinion. There are better i7 now, but it remains an impressive CPU.

I would like to upgrade it with an external GPU, either a clean solution such as VillageTronic, or something like EXP GDC. I have an Expresscard slot.

However, i am unsure if it would be any good.

I have no Intel IGP and i have read that it would be necessary to hack Optimus and output to the laptop screen (i have a second screen anyway).
I don't now if the Expresscard slot is better than 1.x and i have read that might be slow.

Could you please enlighten me about this particular setup and point me a GPU card that would at least double the performance (don't know if is is worth at less than that)?

Thanks.

 

No such hardware exist and it wouldn't work in your laptop. Those expansion are for docking station and other non GPU powered requirements doing so will fry your port and board as it isn't made to generate that much power. If you want to HD gaming you going to have to bit the bullet and pay above 2,000US to have a Power HD gaming laptop to handle what you want. They don't come cheap but will do the job.

 

Are you sure we are talking about the same thing?
http://forum.notebookreview.com/threads/diy-egpu-experiences.418851/
DIY eGPU appears to be widely discussed for a couple of years, but it is a bit technical to set up.

 

That's all vaporware there is currently no hardware manufacture supporting it that I know of that will even say they are. And you quote couple of years ago...that should say all there is about eGPU....

 

The eGPU scene is still alive but you're better off discussing it at TechInferno where most of the latest information and advice is available for these particular setups. It was particularly useful when I was running eGPU on my ThinkPad T420 (with Intel GPU) not long ago.

​

Though I think the biggest bottleneck would be your Expresscard bandwidth to make it worthwhile but you could try asking the folks at TI to see its feasible with the specs you have.

 

Xanxi, no Intel GPU means no compression over Expresscard and results in too low bandwidth. And you have Expresscard1, which makes things even worse. Getting a newer machine with either fast dGPU, or Expresscard2 and Intel iGPU, seems a much better idea to me. Thunderbolt is an option too, but no compression results in same performance as Expresscard2 with Optimus.

 

To be honest, external GPUs are kind of a waste of time and money.

You're going to spend $100's on the external enclosure, plus the cost of the GPU. It's going to take a lot of effort to get everything recognized and working. And then you need to deal with loading drivers. And even when drivers get loaded, you won't be running the GPU at full speed, because you'll be running your external GPU over ExpressCard. And even if you get all of that working, you're out-of-luck once something goes wrong, because running an eGPU over ExpressCard is unsupported, and you'll be stuck on your own trying to troubleshoot whatever may go wrong in the future.

And even if ALL of that works, you'll be stuck using the eGPU on a desk, connected to an external monitor. And at that point, you might as well just buy yourself an inexpensive gaming desktop for the amount of time and money you put into trying to get an eGPU working.

So unless you really know what you're doing (which I'm guessing that you're relatively new to eGPUs), or unless you have a lot of money to burn on an experimental project that may or may not fail, I'd say just skip the eGPU idea. It's nowhere near ready for consumer use yet.

 

Indeed kent1146, that seems to be a very wise comment.

I'm going to rethink about that and maybe save money for a small gaming PC with proper graphics.

I'm reluctant to decommission that good Qosmio X500, because i never part from a computer which serves me well until it burns itself to death

 

kent1146, actually the idea of eGPU is rather appealing if you have an ultrabook and use it mostly for work, while gaming only occasionally.

 

Yes, I get that. People have ultrabooks for work, and they like PC gaming when they're not working. But how is an eGPU better than an inexpensive gaming desktop computer?

Even if you get your eGPU configuration working (and that's a big *IF*), then you're going to be left with a system that can run games on an external monitor, that has cost you several $100's in parts, and several hours in configuration, testing, and setup. And again, that's a huge *IF* on getting the eGPU to work in the first place, let alone trying to keep it working for the next 2-3 years.

Or, you can build an inexpensive desktop computer. That will also run games on an external monitor, cost you several $100's in parts, and several hours of configuration, testing, and setup. But you'll end up with a system that is almost guaranteed to work the day you assemble it, as well as for the next 2-3 years you own it.

 

kent1146, I'd say if you follow guidelines instead of reinventing the bicycle, you more or less realise what is going to work and what is not. Anyway, you are absolutely right that full-blown desktop pc is a better solution for the most.

 

On another note... instead of eGPU (which is a desktop-based gaming setup), would it make more sense to use local streaming through nVidia Game Stream or Steam Streaming?

This is assuming that you have a desktop computer with enough horsepower to run a high-end game, but also want to do gaming on a laptop with an underpowered GPU.

 

Actually, this Toshiba laptop (desktop remplacement) is my more powerful PC and is already streaming thourgh Steam to a NUC PC on my TV.

I'm starting to check parts for a miniITX gaming PC but that's not really cheaper than a good laptop. I have not owed a desktop PC since 2003, i'm a bit outdated on this market.

 

That's a understatement it doesn't compare...at all...those hardware as so basic compared to a Laptop hardware and what it has to do and function with many task.

No one is outdated because they have a laptop-it's because they don't have a need for desktop hardware or need more portability on the go when required. But getting a Gaming laptop does make one think twice about portability when your screen is 17" and weight to match.