$2000 RTX 4090 external watercooled GPU dock has finally been tested — an 850W desktop video card that can run on almost any laptop with a Thunderbolt 3 port is what creatives should aspire to
Gigabyte’s latest plug-in Nvidia-powered GPU dock is a must-have for creative professionals running high-intensity graphics workloads like video editing or AI-based tasks, but it will pack quite a punch.
The Gigabyte Aorus GV-N4090IXEB-24GD, as the full name is, is a GPU dock with a built-in Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090 GPU – one of the best graphics cards available today. It is also supported with 24 GB GDDR6X RAM.
What’s surprising about this device is how compact it is, despite weighing around 1.5kg and requiring a built-in 850W power supply, with dimensions of 189 x 302 x 172mm – making it a perfect desk companion.
Unpacking the Gigabyte Aorus GV-N4090IXEB-24GD
Outside of the gaming market, Gigabyte is aiming the $2,000 device directly at creatives involved in video editing, 3D animation, photography, graphic design and architectural visualization, as well as broadcasting.
The GPU box contains a plethora of peripherals including Thunderbolt 3 supportmeaning it is definitely compatible with most of the best business laptopsand can give your device a serious graphics boost.
In addition to the Thunderbolt USB-C port, the GPU box has a USB-C 3.2 Gen 1 port and two USB-A 3.2 Gen 1 ports, in addition to three DisplayPorts and one HDMI 2.1a port. This translates to an output of up to four screens simultaneously, with a maximum resolution of 8K
It also stays cool by taking advantage of the built-in cooling system, called WATERFORCE, which the manufacturer describes as an all-round cooling system that takes care of all the major components. It not only cools the GPU, but also the VRAM and MOSFET are covered. This is to ensure stable overclocking and longer lifespan.
Testing by PC watch, meanwhile, shows that it’s slightly faster than comparable GPUs on graphics workloads, but it’s clear that users will need to use a PCIe x 16 connection to get the full benefit. The site tested a GPU box equipped with the RTX4070Ti And RTX3090 GPUs. It found that there’s barely any difference between the two, although the RTX 4090 outperforms them both in different ways. That said, at $2,000 it may be a bit more expensive than many are willing to pay.