Emanuel Posted June 10 Share Posted June 10 From such an obscure vendor : D like this Beelink manufacturer... https://www.bee-link.com/ https://www.techradar.com/pro/this-ultra-powerful-mini-pc-with-an-external-gpu-docking-station-may-convince-creatives-to-move-away-from-big-boxes-beelink-gti-ultra-looks-very-promising-and-weve-asked-for-a-sample Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eatstoomuchjam Posted June 10 Share Posted June 10 Why do you want a mini PC with an external GPU? It'll cost more than a normal desktop PC and most people who want/need something portable just go with a laptop. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IronFilm Posted June 10 Share Posted June 10 Beelink isn't super obscure? Or at least, I've already heard of them before. They've been in the miniPC space for a little while how. 39 minutes ago, eatstoomuchjam said: Why do you want a mini PC with an external GPU? It'll cost more than a normal desktop PC and most people who want/need something portable just go with a laptop. Yeah unless you're building a DIT Cart or a cart for a QTake Playback Op, or similar, then I don't see the reason here for a powerful miniPC. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emanuel Posted June 11 Author Share Posted June 11 2 hours ago, eatstoomuchjam said: Why do you want a mini PC with an external GPU? It'll cost more than a normal desktop PC and most people who want/need something portable just go with a laptop. In the laptop realm you'll never have the power of a RTX 4090 24GB VRAM to begin with... Let alone the processor : ) Reminds me the discussion when ASUS ROG XG Mobile popped up a few years ago... ;- ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emanuel Posted June 11 Author Share Posted June 11 1 hour ago, IronFilm said: Beelink isn't super obscure? Or at least, I've already heard of them before. They've been in the miniPC space for a little while how. Me too, but this has been a game changer with almost unknown third parties raising the bar when the traditional players are too slow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eatstoomuchjam Posted June 11 Share Posted June 11 2 hours ago, Emanuel said: In the laptop realm you'll never have the power of a RTX 4090 24GB VRAM to begin with... Let alone the processor : ) You can attach an eGPU with an RTX 4090 to just about any PC laptop with either a Thunderbolt or USB 4 port. I'm not sure if there are any Oculink laptops yet, but if there aren't, it's only a matter of time. As for the processor, nearly every one of those mini PC's uses a laptop processor so... a decent laptop will have a similar processor. And still, if you're going with a desktop, you should probably just save the money by going with a normal-size one with a GPU in the case. IronFilm 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emanuel Posted June 11 Author Share Posted June 11 3 hours ago, eatstoomuchjam said: You can attach an eGPU with an RTX 4090 to just about any PC laptop with either a Thunderbolt or USB 4 port. I'm not sure if there are any Oculink laptops yet, but if there aren't, it's only a matter of time. As for the processor, nearly every one of those mini PC's uses a laptop processor so... a decent laptop will have a similar processor. And still, if you're going with a desktop, you should probably just save the money by going with a normal-size one with a GPU in the case. OCuLink access is already a reality today. As for the processor, yup, desktop ; ) that's the ticket now, not exactly this one yet but close: On the price target, it depends. Their offer is usually much affordable so I expect it will match the normal-size one instead. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emanuel Posted June 11 Author Share Posted June 11 Here's another one, similar form factor *: * And here's a bit larger but not that much, the Lian Li above-mentioned where the game is being played these days... ;- ) Not exactly a Mini PC but a solid fact is there, it's neither a RTX 4090 VRAM 16GB nor a mobile version of a CPU we're talking about, yes, desktop stuff at the portable side... To those who are in the move, this makes a whole difference anyway, once thermals may happen to be under control... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emanuel Posted June 11 Author Share Posted June 11 This last one would be where I would couple a i9-4900K desktop processor absolutely allergic to low profile CPU coolers, hence my wondering on Beelink pushing the boundaries; so just curious to see where they're going but it's definitely a last pristine forest to be explored nowadays, no doubts on it :- ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil A Posted June 11 Share Posted June 11 14 hours ago, Emanuel said: From such an obscure vendor : D like this Beelink manufacturer... https://www.bee-link.com/ https://www.techradar.com/pro/this-ultra-powerful-mini-pc-with-an-external-gpu-docking-station-may-convince-creatives-to-move-away-from-big-boxes-beelink-gti-ultra-looks-very-promising-and-weve-asked-for-a-sample That thing looks like it will not even remotely cool the CPU under sustained load and will thermal throttle the performance into Nirvana. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emanuel Posted June 11 Author Share Posted June 11 19 minutes ago, Phil A said: That thing looks like it will not even remotely cool the CPU under sustained load and will thermal throttle the performance into Nirvana. I guess so, exactly the same wondering here, hence I think the obscure label perfectly fits there... LOL However, there are two interesting variables they dare to add... One of them is why Intel rather than AMD and their respective low profile cooling, like what they have to offer instead? The other one is the external eGPU which will obviously alleviate the overheating pressure inside the main box. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emanuel Posted June 11 Author Share Posted June 11 Yet on the use of mobile vs desktop hardware, I wonder how might some hybrid combo work out? One thing is for sure, there's no more than 16GB VRAM for the use of GPU nor unified memory as happens with Apple going along a Windows laptop. So, how would a 13900HS actually fit a RXT 4090 24GB VRAM match? If the 13th or 14th generation of a desktop processor can be something to avoid 'cause of thermal throttling issues, what about a balance between the best of both worlds? I think this is what Mini PCs are bringing to the equation... But again, what do we know? : D https://www.pcworld.com/article/2216181/intel-14th-gen-mobile-core-hx-no-need-to-upgrade-and-thats-great.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emanuel Posted June 12 Author Share Posted June 12 Looks like I was not much wrong LOL ; ) when last Monday told you about the arrival of desktop-class processors rather than the usual mobile hardware to run on mini form factor instead... This one is from Yesterday: https://www.notebookcheck.net/Upgradeable-ASRock-DeskMate-X600-mini-PC-brings-better-eGPU-solution-than-OCuLink.846231.0.html https://www.tomshardware.com/desktops/mini-pcs/you-can-use-a-full-sized-gpu-with-asrocks-new-mini-pc-deskmate-x600-only-for-china-priced-at-roughly-dollar193-usd Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emanuel Posted June 12 Author Share Posted June 12 Even though, other than the GPU and respective VRAM, the CPU differences are not that much: https://cpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Intel-Core-i9-14900K-vs-Intel-Core-i9-14900HX/4151vsm2269186 Hence the bless of the eGPU route IMHO, the way they're looking for nowadays and coming soon... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IronFilm Posted June 13 Share Posted June 13 A mini PC will still need a monitor, what is your use case here that can't be met by a beefy gaming laptop / workstation ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emanuel Posted June 13 Author Share Posted June 13 We're not here discussing use cases the same way we don't discuss why people choose some umpteenth alternative to those ones people see it as their own bubble's mainstream. The same way... What can't be met by a powerful Mini PC attached to an external portable eGPU to replace an equal powerful workstation? I can answer you. Definitely not an affordable powerful laptop with the graphics power of a non-mobile version of RTX 4090, as of June 2024, coupled to 24GB VRAM as minimum requirements for certain tasks tailored to the needs of a portable powerful editing/grading workstation to only say a few. People used to fly every single week spread all over distinct countries and studios/offices without budget to have a personal workstation for each and not interested to rent/use someone else's gear, as myself included, would tell you why ;- ) A fair display doing the trick is enough and easier to find. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IronFilm Posted June 13 Share Posted June 13 1 hour ago, Emanuel said: I can answer you. Definitely not an affordable powerful laptop with the graphics power of a non-mobile version of RTX 4090, as of June 2024, coupled to 24GB VRAM as minimum requirements for certain tasks tailored to the needs of a portable powerful editing/grading workstation to only say a few. People used to fly every single week spread all over distinct countries and studios/offices without budget to have a personal workstation for each and not interested to rent/use someone else's gear, as myself included, would tell you why ;- ) Yeah, but you could just do also that with a laptop and a eGPU, and it would be an even more convenient setup to be traveling with than one without a monitor like this Beelink On 6/11/2024 at 2:48 PM, eatstoomuchjam said: You can attach an eGPU with an RTX 4090 to just about any PC laptop with either a Thunderbolt or USB 4 port. Exactly, I could get a dirt cheap but still high performance laptop such as a Thinkpad P71 for just US$550 then pair it with a beefy eGPU. Oodles of power! https://www.ebay.com/itm/116213947999 eatstoomuchjam 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emanuel Posted June 13 Author Share Posted June 13 20 minutes ago, IronFilm said: Yeah, but you could just do also that with a laptop and a eGPU, and it would be an even more convenient setup to be traveling with than one without a monitor like this Beelink Monitor is not even the deal when people are used to already travel with more than a single monitor (so inexpensive these days) in the luggage ; ) eGPU, yes, it's the deal if not with a beefy price request. 20 minutes ago, IronFilm said: Yeah, but you could just do also that with a laptop and a eGPU, and it would be an even more convenient setup to be traveling with than one without a monitor like this Beelink Exactly, I could get a dirt cheap but still high performance laptop such as a Thinkpad P71 for just US$550 then pair it with a beefy eGPU. Oodles of power! https://www.ebay.com/itm/116213947999 From past : ) https://technical.city/en/cpu/Xeon-E3-1535M-v6-vs-Core-i9-14900HX And we don't even need to bring a desktop-class processor to the equation... it's a bargain with decent RAM anyway :- ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eatstoomuchjam Posted June 13 Share Posted June 13 As I said before, Oculink is soon to come on laptops. GPD already have it on some of their mini laptops. Now the big vendors are getting into it too. https://videocardz.com/newz/lenovo-thinkbook-14-2024-laptop-to-feature-intel-core-ultra-cpu-and-oculink-connector You're not using the computer without a monitor, keyboard, and mouse/trackpad. For portable computing, a laptop is generally very much superior to a mini PC. For sitting in the house, a desktop will be much cheaper than a mini PC with external GPU (and usually perform better). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emanuel Posted June 13 Author Share Posted June 13 OCuLink is welcome but it is just more one way to operate. Monitor, mouse and not rarely keyboard too (I left mine for a touchscreen keyboard instead with my PC tablet as daily computer) are already personal accessories usually customised as add-ons inside the backpack. Nothing against laptops, on the opposite, but this insistence to ignore Mini PCs as something really useful makes little to no sense at all. Listen, this is not a competition to infer who has the bigger dick as self-esteem booster. Your links and contribution to the discussion are always rather pleasing anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.