Need to find the right GPU for an eGPU setup! Please help!

[Furzaonsteam]

Hi guys! So I recently heard about this little beauty - https://www.banggood.com/Mini-PCI-E-Version-V8_0-EXP-GDC-Beast-Laptop-External-Independent-Video-Card-Dock-p-1011222.html

Basically its an eGPU that connects via the mini PCIe slot inside your laptop (this is usually taken up by the wifi card from what I've heard) and it allows you to connect a desktop gpu to your laptop so you can play games at a higher framerate, obviously.

Now, onto the real question, I have a pretty bad laptop that I bought in 2015, this thing struggles with most games as its integrated gpu is terrible. Its one of the Toshiba L-50
laptops I believe, not quite sure.

Specs -
Pentium N3700 (Quad Core) 1.6 ghz stock 2.4ghz turbo
8 gb ddr3 ram
1tb HDD
1366-768 resolution
Windows 10

I was wondering first of all, is would it work with my laptop and second, what desktop gpu should I get that won't be bottlenecked by the cpu but will give a decent framerate, preferably a cheaper card, nothing too much? Oh and if it helps you out in finding a gpu, the games I intend to play are Overwatch, maybe Arma 3 (considering leaving that for my desktop as it has a better cpu), Rocket League, some racing games, TF2 etc etc mainly esport titles.

Oh and btw, I am building a budget desktop pc (i5 3570, GTX 560ti 2GB GDDR5, 8 gb ddr3 etc) so this external gpu thing is only for fun, a cool little project to get my laptop to actually play some games at a decent framerate, so its not really a main priority, it just would be really cool if it worked. If this little project works, I will make my own eGPU box out of wood so its a little bit transportable, and then when I go to friends houses, I can bring my laptop and the egpu and play some games.

EDIT- Its worth noting that I currently have a GTX 285 laying around that is unused after I replaced it with a hd 7770 in my other desktop pc, I don't think it will work with the eGPU as it needs 2 6pin power connectors and the egpu station only has one. (those old gpus are power hungry) But worth noting as if it does work and I don't have any money to get another gpu, ill just use it instead

 

[MrN1ce9uy]

I would try a GT 1030

 

[hang-the-9]

You will be bringing the laptop, the external card, the connection and a power supply with you to run the card when you travel, not just the external card. Instead of spending money on that, get better parts for your desktop.

 

[cryoburner]

It's an interesting-looking little device, though I'm not actually familiar with how well they might work.

The CPU will likely limit performance though, since it's a low-power system-on-a-chip processor with a 6W TDP. Being quad-core could help, but its per-core performance is probably about half of what you might expect from a typical laptop processor. That could be an issue in some of the more CPU-limited games.

You will be bringing the laptop, the external card, the connection and a power supply with you to run the card when you travel, not just the external card. Instead of spending money on that, get better parts for your desktop.

He mentioned making a little case for it, and presumably everything could be installed in the case, while still remaining relatively portable, maybe with a carry handle. As a "cool little project" to re-purpose a low-power laptop into a portable system capable of running some games, it might be interesting, particularly if he already has a spare graphics card and PSU. I do kind agree that if he's building a "budget gaming system" at the same time though, that putting the extra $50 into a better graphics card or something for that might be a better use of funds.

 

[PetarV]

So if you want a GPU that is relatively small, portable, powerful but not too powerful I think AMD RX 550 will be the best solution. Its small beast, which I think won't be bottlenecked by the adapter and its cheap. Its good enough to play these games you mentioned at a decent fps with relatively high graphics.
https://www.amazon.com/Gigabyte-Radeon-Graphic-Cards-GV-RX550D5-2GD/dp/B06Y43NJ3D/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1496048510&sr=1-1&keywords=rx+550
By the way you will need a Power Supply for the eGPU setup. The laptop's one won't be enough.
https://www.amazon.com/EVGA-Warranty-Power-Supply-100-N1-0400-L1/dp/B00LV8TZAG
Don't forget about the PCIe to PCIe mini adapter though.
https://www.banggood.com/Mini-PCI-E-Version-V8_0-EXP-GDC-Beast-Laptop-External-Independent-Video-Card-Dock-p-1011222.html
This will cost you 160$.
If you think its not worth the money better buy better parts for your desktop PC.
The i5 3570 is a very good CPU which I think you won't need. If you don't get the eGPU setup and save the extra 160$ you an get a i5-2320 and a RX 570.( don't get a 560 ti, its old and expensive)

 

[Corwin65]

My 2 cents. Save that money and build a better budget desktop.