ASUS Unveils External Graphics Card

[chrestomanci]

The reason this is possible is because the express card interface is a PCIe interface with a differenty shaped conenctor, but it is the same electricaly and to the OS and software. This means that all the ASUS box need to do is provide an enlosure, power and cooling. There is no need for any complex bridging chips because all the electrical protocols are the same.

Also. this technology opens up opportunities for truly lightweight *gaming* laptops, where on default the lappy has everything powerful other than a gamers card, so if anyone wants to just surf, do something non-gaming, they can do it with longer battery life.

I can imagine Alienware selling a Core 2 Duo lappy, with everything super fast, but on an Intel X3000 graphics. But the package comes with this little device.. where when you decide to game, youll just plug it in.. et voila..

Personaly I think alienware stuff is to expensive for what you get, and your envisaged alienware laptop would probably come out quite large and heavy anyway once they had included a fast CPU with a massive heatsink and a pair of RAID 0 discs. This would be much better as an upgrade for any laptop.

Hopefully theyll be able to loop the signal back to the lappys own LCD, thats going to make it alot more practical...

That would mean extra fat on your ultra portable laptop for a 17" display and the large battery needed to drive it. I would say it would be better to stick with a small 12" display, and have the option to hook up to an external 24" or larger dispay when necessary.

In any case, it would not be possible useing a standard express card connector, and the big selling point of this idea is that both the laptop and the graphics card are completely standard retail kit at commodity prices.

[lodore]

it is a good idea.
before it was the choice off powerful laptops but really light and no graphics or graphics power horses for the same price but carrying that really fat laptops could make your hands drop off lol.
this way you can play games at home but take the laptop on the bus or train without it weighting you down or draining the battery life.
lodore

[arthurleung]

I'm suddenly finding a use for my Express Card Slot - Want to run a 20" WS TFT but doubt my x1300 would cope with 2x1680x1050 workspace (15.4" inbuilt screen has a native resolution of 1680x1050)

My Radeon 7000 PCI coped with 2x1600x1200 fine for web-browsing, movie is laggy due to slow PCI bus. X1300 will be easy for all tasks except 3d gaming.

[**TOLLI**]

I think it's a cool idea. I just hope it's not ridiculously expensive.

"ASUS's external ExpressCard graphics solution is at CeBIT, with ASUS claiming it's now fully production ready and should be available standalone for around $100 USD."

Source - http://www.beyond3d.com/content/news/134

Looks promising! Especially since a company called Magma have a similar product (ExpressBox) retailing at $700!!!

[Flibb]

Interesting bit of kit.
Do any modern laptop docking stations have a graphics card slot? my ol Toshiba dstion had agp and SCSI onboard, was bloody hudge though.

[Biscuit]

if it really is at around $100 (probs still be £100 when it comes to the uk) my next computer MAY be a laptop. My only confusion with this is that it actually comes with a the graphics card!? i mean surely it must but seems odd that it can cost so little with a graphics card included?

edit: oh i see it says the standalone unit costs $100 sorry

[arbitor]

i for one would be interested in this, then i could actually run games at dells stupid native res on my xps of 1900 1200

and i dont think its ugly tbh, granted you can tell apple didnt make it, but i reckon it compliments the looks of gaming laptops of today, take the asus ones for example, that would look like an add on, being tat colour ect. good idea i just hope its under 200 quid

[mycarsavw]

"ASUS's external ExpressCard graphics solution is at CeBIT, with ASUS claiming it's now fully production ready and should be available standalone for around $100 USD."

Source - http://www.beyond3d.com/content/news/134

Looks promising! Especially since a company called Magma have a similar product (ExpressBox) retailing at $700!!!

i for one would be interested in this, then i could actually run games at dells stupid native res on my xps of 1900 1200

and i dont think its ugly tbh, granted you can tell apple didnt make it, but i reckon it compliments the looks of gaming laptops of today, take the asus ones for example, that would look like an add on, being tat colour ect. good idea i just hope its under 200 quid

$100 is a long way under 200 quid. Leaves you around £150 for a nice card.

[arbitor]

$100 is a long way under 200 quid. Leaves you around £150 for a nice card.

theres no way that its going to be that cheap when it gets here, i have a 7900 gtx planned for it

[Biscuit]

they always seem to round things up quite a bit for the British market anyway

[**TOLLI**]

I also read somewhere that the version with the GFX inc will retail just above the actual pric of the GFX so expect a little higher than 7900GS pricing? Plus rumored next version of the unti will be a full PCIe x16 speed plus loopback to laptop screen - awesome!

[matisamd]

I want one now then i will go get a DX10 card sell my M1710 and get a little thin n light type.

Only thing is can it display on the laptop screen ? it should be able to in thoery but does ?

When are they looking to release it.

This kind of modularity is great i been thinking its how things should be since i had my 486.

I want two and SLI them

[staffsMike]

i think there is a version in development for looping back to the laptops screen. Might be wrong though

[badass]

I also read somewhere that the version with the GFX inc will retail just above the actual pric of the GFX so expect a little higher than 7900GS pricing? Plus rumored next version of the unti will be a full PCIe x16 speed plus loopback to laptop screen - awesome!

Please explain how that would be physically possible since the interface it uses to connect to the laptop uses a PCIe x1 connector

[notsobig]

I have a feeling that this external graphic cards thingy will become future standard. It's kind of nice to have PCI-E extension lead + external icybox kinda GC casing with built in PSU. Or is it just me? I don't want to buy a new case and a PSU everytime I upgrade my graphic card that's for sure...

[Lucio]

This technology has some real potential for combined gadgets. For example, imagine a monitor with one of those built into it? You could upgrade your Gfx card as required and simply plug your laptop in via two cables and you'd be set. Add in a folding keyboard stashed down the side and a mouse and you've got an instant conversion from a simple work laptop to games machine.

Or if games weren't your thing, it could also have use in the graphics industry allowing people to design with the power of an inbuilt graphics card at work, then take the laptop with all the designs on it and run the sequences to show to clients.