3 Best Laptops for eGPU in 2024
From this article, you will know what are, in our opinion, the best laptops for eGPU you can buy and use in 2024.
An external GPU, or an eGPU in short, is a portable device containing a GPU that you can connect to your computer device anytime you want. Many people use it to be able to do graphic-intensive activities such as playing AAA games or rendering 3D models on a computer device that doesn’t have a powerful GPU in it.
As for the computer device that we connect our eGPU with, it is usually a laptop. That is because the main purpose of using an eGPU is so we can have a powerful GPU on the go and the high portability of a laptop fits that theme well. Moreover, a laptop can have specification quality that optimizes what an eGPU can offer to us in terms of graphic processing capabilities.
If you want to use your eGPU with a laptop but don’t have a laptop yet for that purpose, you might be interested in buying a new laptop. However, it can be confusing to pick the right laptop to use with an eGPU from many laptop models and specification choices out there. This is why Compute Expert has tried to compile a list of the best laptops for eGPU that you can make as your laptop-buying reference.
Want to learn more about the laptops we recommend? Let’s start digging into the list right away.
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Image | View on Amazon | Product |
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Asus Zenbook Pro 14 OLED | ||
LG Gram Style 16 | ||
Lenovo Slim Pro 9 |
Table of Contents:
What are the Best Laptops for eGPU?
Now, let’s take a deeper look at the laptops we recommend to use with an eGPU. Using one of these laptops should give you the laptop support you need to play games or do other things that usually need an eGPU more optimally.1. Asus Zenbook Pro 14 OLED
Asus Zenbook Pro 14 OLED is a laptop that can be very suitable for your activity needs that use an eGPU. It is a laptop that has a good-looking design and performance level that should be able to complement your eGPU capabilities well.
To back up that performance, this laptop uses a 13th Gen Intel Core i9 processor that has 14 cores and a speed up to 5.4 GHz. With the power that this processor has, running the demanding software you want to use with your eGPU should be smooth. The RAM capacity, 32GB, should give plenty of memory space to support your activities and you can upgrade it up to 48GB later when you feel you need more.
For connectivity with your eGPU, there is a Thunderbolt 4 port you can use on this laptop. This should ensure you can utilize the graphic processing of your eGPU more optimally as a Thunderbolt 4 port supports a fast data transfer. As for the display quality of this laptop to show the result of your eGPU work, it should be excellent as this laptop’s display is supported by 2.8K resolution, a 100% DCI-P3 color gamut, 120Hz refresh rate, and an OLED screen.
Additionally, there is an Asus DialPad that can give you an easier time when you adjust the parameters of the things you want to create with the help of your eGPU. All in all, this Asus Zenbook Pro 14 OLED can be just the laptop you need to support you in your activities that need to use an eGPU.
Key Features
- Screen Size, Resolution: 14.5 inches, 2880 x 1800 pixels
- Processor: 13th Gen Intel Core i9 with 14 cores and speed in the range of 2.6-5.4 GHz
- RAM Capacity: 32GB
- Refresh Rate: 120Hz
- Storage: 1TB PCIe NVMe SSD
- Battery Life (Estimation): up to 10 hours of usage capacity
Pros
- Excellent specifications to support activities that use an eGPU
- Solid build
- USB-A, Thunderbolt 4 USB-C, and HDMI ports
- High-quality display
- Comfortable keyboard to type on
Cons
- No SD card reader slots
2. LG Gram Style 16
LG Gram Style 16 is another laptop we think can be excellent for external GPU usage. It is a sleek and lightweight laptop from LG that seems to bode well with what is required to support the graphic-intensive software you run.
The main performance specifications of this laptop are a 13th Gen Intel Core i7 processor and 32GB RAM capacity. These are high-quality specifications to have for a laptop and should handle tasks related to your activities without much problem. To help you connect to your eGPU easily, this laptop has two Thunderbolt 4 ports available to use anytime.
This laptop has a sleek and lightweight design so it is easy to bring it around in your bag along with your eGPU. When you need to use its battery, it should be able to last a full day on a single charge so you don’t have to depend on a power outlet too much.
The display of this laptop is splendid as well with a 120Hz refresh rate, 3.2K resolution, and an OLED screen to maximize the visual aspects of the games you play and other types of software you use with this laptop. Overall, this LG Gram Style 16 seems to be a good laptop choice for you to use your eGPU with, looking at its model and specification quality.
Key Features
- Screen Size, Resolution: 16 inches, 3200 x 2000 pixels
- Processor: 13th Gen Intel Core i7 with 12 cores and speed in the range of 2.2-5 GHz
- RAM Capacity: 32GB
- Refresh Rate: 120Hz
- Storage: 1TB PCIe NVMe SSD
- Battery Life (Estimation): up to 10 hours of usage capacity
Pros
- Excellent specifications to support activities that use an eGPU
- Sleek and lightweight
- USB-A and Thunderbolt 4 ports
- High-quality display
- Comfortable keyboard to type on
Cons
- No HDMI ports
- Touchpad quality can be improved
3. Lenovo Slim Pro 9
Lenovo Slim Pro 9 is the last laptop we have on this list. Considering the specifications that it has, this laptop should perform adequately to optimize the eGPU utilization in the software you use.
To run its operations, this laptop uses a 13th Gen Intel Core i9 processor and 32GB RAM capacity. With these specifications in place, this laptop should be able to run games and other types of graphic-intensive software well. When you need to store files internally on this laptop, there is 1TB SSD storage space ready for you to use.
In terms of connectivity, this laptop is excellent as it has a full range of ports with one Thunderbolt 4 port on its sides. Thanks to this, connecting to the eGPU and other external devices you need to use should be simple. As for its display, it has nice quality with a 165Hz refresh rate to give you a more enjoyable gaming experience when you use your eGPU to play games with this laptop.
Want a capable laptop that can make your eGPU utilization more optimum? You may want to consider buying and using this Lenovo Slim Pro 9 laptop too.
Key Features
- Screen Size, Resolution: 16 inches, 3200 x 2000 pixels
- Processor: 13th Gen Intel Core i9 with 14 cores and speed in the range of 2.6-5.4 GHz
- RAM Capacity: 32GB
- Refresh Rate: 165Hz
- Storage: 1TB PCIe NVMe SSD
- Battery Life (Estimation): up to 6 hours of usage capacity
Pros
- Excellent specifications to support activities that use an eGPU
- Solid build
- Quite portable design
- A full range of ports with one Thunderbolt 4 port
- Excellent display and sound quality
- 165Hz refresh rate
Cons
- Average battery life
What are the Things We Should Consider When We Want to Buy a Laptop to Use with an eGPU?
Here are the things we think you should consider when you want to buy a laptop to support your software usage with eGPU utilization.- Processor. The laptop you buy should have an excellent processor as software that needs to use an external GPU is usually demanding for a laptop to run. We recommend a laptop with at least a late-generation i7 or Ryzen 7 processor for this
- RAM capacity. The laptop you buy should also have a large RAM capacity so it can provide the memory space needed for your activities with an eGPU. We recommend a laptop with at least 16GB RAM for this although it will be better if you can buy a laptop with at least 32GB RAM for a much better future-proofing of your eGPU utilization
- Ports. To be able to connect to an eGPU directly and utilize it much more optimally, the laptop you buy should have a Thunderbolt 4 port or a USB 4 port. Thus, we recommend a laptop with the port availability as one of its specifications
- Refresh rate. If you want to play games with your eGPU, then the laptop you buy should have a refresh rate that is quite fast on its screen so you can get consistently good FPS in your games. We recommend a laptop with at least a 120Hz refresh rate on its screen for this
Wrap Up
When you want to buy a laptop, you may want one that can let you use your eGPU optimally with it. However, it can be confusing to pick the right laptop from many laptop choices out there. This is why Compute Expert has compiled a list of the best laptops for eGPU to help you.To summarize, here are three laptops we recommend to use with an eGPU.
We hope our list can help you buy the best laptop to optimize your eGPU utilization in the software/game you run!
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