Tiny eGPU appears on Kickstarter with up to RTX 5070 and OCuLink 5.0
We have an interesting new external GPU solution that recently appeared on a crowdfunding platform. As you know, we never encourage anyone to back crowdfunding projects. There are far too many scams out there, especially in the eGPU space. Still, unlike some other projects, this one appears to have been sent out for review, which is at least a good sign.
It’s name is “eGryphon” and it appeared as a compact external GPU that pairs desktop GeForce RTX 5070 or RTX 5060 Ti graphics with both OCuLink 5.0 (yes, that’s 5) and Thunderbolt 5 support. The campaign page lists a 1.86-liter enclosure, a built-in 400 W PSU , and backward compatibility, with the RTX 5060 Ti version advertised with 16 GB of memory and the RTX 5070 model with 12 GB. On paper, it looks promising.
Source: eGryphon
OCuLink is the default connection, while Thunderbolt 5 requires a separate adapter. Notebookcheck also notes that the adapter can double as an SSD enclosure, and that the unit is meant for laptops, mini PCs, and handhelds rather than desktops.
The specifications look solid, but it is the price that raises eyebrows. It is reportedly listed at super early bird pricing of roughly HK$3,420 for the RTX 5060 Ti model and HK$3,899 for the RTX 5070 version, or about $438 and $500 after conversion. That is a surprisingly low price for a GPU of this class with a built-in PSU and enclosure.
Source: Tech Guy Beau
According to reviewer Tech Guy Beau, the system is compact, premium, and far smaller than a typical dock-plus-GPU setup. He also said thermals, noise, and stability were all good during several days of testing. He described performance over OCuLink as strong, with Thunderbolt slower but still ahead of USB4 and far beyond integrated graphics, making it suitable for mini PCs, laptops, and handhelds.
Source: eGryphon
The eGPU market is quite stagnant right now. Most OCuLink-based solutions still rely on AMD RDNA 3 hardware, with barely anything from NVIDIA. At the same time, the arrival of Thunderbolt 5 has pushed ASUS and Gigabyte to launch their own solutions, both based on NVIDIA graphics.
The eGPU is now fully funded, and it should enter mass production in May. Fingers crossed that all backers receive their unit and it will work just as well as in the review.
Source: NotebookCheck , Reddit , Kickstarter
