Unfortunately, we also found limitations and software support inconsistencies that prevent the Mac eGPU dream from being fully realized at this time. We tested an eGPU enclosure with a Thunderbolt 3-equipped MacBook Pro, and found that, in most applications, performance didn't disappoint. With the new official support in macOS 10.13.4, Apple is finally helping consumers try eGPUs out. That's a big improvement over the previous interface, and it's arguably finally fast enough to finally make eGPUs viable without dramatic performance disadvantages compared to traditional PCI-e interfaces.Īll that is to say that the time is ripe for eGPUs to come to the Mac. There's pent-up demand for better graphics performance on Macs, and eGPUs offer some hope.Īnd Apple and Intel's Thunderbolt 3 interface (found in the highest-end Macs from 20, so far) offers theoretical speeds of up to 40Gbps. Mac gamers have long dealt with GPUs that don't keep the pace with demands from the latest PC games, so eGPU enthusiast communities have popped up around the Web in places like the MacRumors forums and eGPU.io. Survios only supports the iMac Pro's built-in GPU. When we talked with Survios, a studio that has developed VR software for the Mac platform, we learned that slow progress in the MacBook Pro and standard iMac integrated and discrete GPUs is holding back most Macs from supporting VR. That could solve many of the frustrations some users have with the Mac platform, like the lack of an upgrade path for professional-use machines that depend on graphics power and lackluster gaming performance in the latest games.Īt Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) last year (and when the company unveiled the iMac Pro in December), it claimed that eGPUs would be a good way to add multiple GPUs for demanding work for which just one is not sufficient or to upgrade performance as the iMac Pro's included GPU ages. Further Reading The external graphics dream is real: Sonnet eGFX Breakaway Box reviewed

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