It’s expensive and unlikely to over appear on handhelds and laptops
But perhaps, someone will develop a minimized HighPoint’s CopprLink connection at some point in the future.
© PCWorld A new PCWorld video has taken a look at HighPoint’s RocketStor 8631D, an external GPU enclosure that does not rely on Thunderbolt or standard OCuLink. Instead, it uses PCI-SIG’s CopprLink cabling and a dedicated host adapter, which places it closer to workstation and server expansion hardware than the consumer eGPU docks most users know.
Basically the footprint and price put it outside any consumer use at this time; however, it’s extremely interesting to see on a modern consumer hardware thanks to PCWorld test. However, this isn’t an alternative to Thunderbolt or OCuLink.
Source: PCWorld
HighPoint says the Rocket 7634D host card delivers a PCIe Gen5 x16 connection with up to 64 GB/s of bi-directional throughput, while the RocketStor 8631D enclosure adds a 1300 W power supply and support for full-height, 2-slot and 3-slot cards.
Only 2% performance loss, and that should even be lower
In the test shown in the video, PCWorld used the setup with a desktop GeForce RTX 5090 and reported results that came very close to the same GPU installed directly in a motherboard slot. Across the seven charts, the average performance drop is about 2.29% , using the percentage difference between RocketStor 8631D and the direct-slot test bench for each benchmark, then averaging those seven percentages.
This is still far from a mainstream eGPU product. HighPoint’s own material pitches CopprLink at servers, storage, networking and accelerator workloads, not gaming handhelds or laptops. Pricing also puts it well outside the consumer segment, with HighPoint listing the RocketStor 8631D at $1,299, the Rocket 7634D adapter at $999, and a bundle at $2,198.
Source: High Point
So while this is not the external RTX 5090 setup most gamers will buy, it is still one of the more interesting eGPU tests in recent memory. That is, until we see Thunderbolt 5 becoming a standard in gaming handhelds.
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