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Anyone Using an External GPU? (self.linux)
submitted 5 months ago by to c/linux@lemmy.world
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I have a Thinkpad T490s and would like to use an external GPU so I can power multiple monitors in High Def.

Specifically, I'm looking at the TH3P4G3 with a 5070 Ti.

From the reading I've done it seems like getting these configured and working is non-trivial. For example there's some reports of people not being able to deliver power to the laptop while docked. Also some crashes on connect / disconnect.

I'm not necessarily looking for specific "how to" advice, just a general impression. Is this worth while or is it going to be a huge muck around that never really works reliably.

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[–] 2 points 5 months ago (3 children)

I've got one for my latitude. It works well, but did require some tinkering. There is a good utility for switching automatically between igpu and external. Never had issues taking a charge from it. And yes, the enclosure is stupid expensive for all it is. You can but the internal components for less, but ended up buying an actual egpu enclosure to avoid the diy hassle

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  • [–] [S] 0 points 5 months ago (2 children)

    Yeah fair enough.

    I think the "actual gpu enclosure" your talking about is a product from a more reputable brand. The DIY stuff is weird chinese brands that might only produce the thunderbolt / gpu card and sell it on aliexpress, then someone else sells a box for it and so on.

    I guess a reputable brand gives you more likelihood of success (perhaps), but they're a lot more expensive, and honestly it seems like there were some available in the mid 2010s but not much in the most recent 5 years.

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  • [–] 2 points 5 months ago (1 child)

    Check third party markets, used goods. Got mine from eBay, a Razer core something other. All that's in there is a pcie to thunderbolt bridge adapter and an atx psu. Can easily bench an egpu for a fraction of the cost using allie or similarly sourced parts, but portability and durability is the trade off. DM me if you do end up buying one, I'll share any specific config I use.

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  • [–] [S] 1 point 5 months ago

    Yeah ok I did look for a few brands but not the razer.

    Looking at that now there's a half dozen second hand ones here in Australia.

    Price is about the same as one of the Chinese no-names + box + PSU.

    Im more confident about the razer though.

    Thanks very much for this.

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