You'll have to plan on an additional cost of between $300 and $900 depending on the card you need –which can make a complete external GPU solution an expensive proposition. In general, an eGPU enclosure is going to cost between $250 and $700, and that usually won't include whichever PCIe video card you plan to use with it. Breaking out of the mobile form factor by turning to an eGPU will save money over an integrated or discrete laptop graphics solution, but it's still not without significant cost. The same is true for laptop GPUs, except that for the most part, laptop GPUs offer reduced performance when compared to their desktop counterparts.

Of course, that is especially true when the PC is expected to run the latest graphics-intensive software and games. It's a general rule of thumb that a GPU is one of the most costly parts of any PC. Here's a rundown on what to consider when you're thinking about an eGPU purchase. Still, they're not a perfect solution for every use case, so some forethought will be required to get the most bang for your buck. By making use of modern ports like Thunderbolt 3 over USB-C, laptop owners can now opt to purchase high-end graphics hardware as an add-on to a standard laptop, avoiding the high costs and limitations of internal graphics hardware. In recent years, however, advances in peripheral port architectures have started to make external graphics processing units (eGPUs) a tantalizing option for gaming on the go. It is a constraint that almost guaranteed high prices and disappointing results. The reason that's been the case is the fact that manufacturers had to compromise on GPU performance to stay within the needed form factor and power limitations of a portable, battery-powered system. However, as any gamer can tell you, even the best laptop GPU won't match a similarly-equipped desktop PC, and will still command an exorbitant price. Over the last decade, laptop manufacturers have started to add high-end graphics capabilities to their repertoires as a means of securing a slice of the booming gaming PC market.

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