Sonnet Technologies Introduces Thunderbolt 5 eGPU

Sonnet Technologies has announced the Breakaway™ Box 850 T5 Thunderbolt™ 5 external graphics processing unit (eGPU), designed to bring desktop-class graphics performance to Windows® 11 computers equipped with Thunderbolt 5 or 4 ports, as well as USB4® ports with external graphics support.

The PCIe® card expansion system supports the latest NVIDIA® and AMD GPU cards and features a temperature-controlled fan designed to provide efficient, ultra-quiet cooling for the installed card.

The Breakaway Box 850 T5 also incorporates an 80 Gbps Thunderbolt 5 dock, providing a Thunderbolt/USB peripheral port, three 10 Gbps USB-A ports and a 5 Gigabit Ethernet port.

The new eGPU connects a desktop or workstation GPU card, sold separately, to a compatible computer through a single Thunderbolt 5 connection. This allows users to bypass the computer’s integrated or discrete GPU and access the additional processing power of a desktop-class graphics card.

Sonnet Technologies says the system is aimed at professionals using GPU-intensive applications on eGPU-compatible laptops and small-form-factor computers, with an emphasis on cooling, quiet operation and reliability.

The integrated dock also allows users to connect peripherals and wired Ethernet to the Breakaway Box, with the connected computer accessing those devices through the same Thunderbolt 5 cable.

Mobile GPUs used in laptops can face power, thermal and memory limitations compared with desktop-class graphics cards. Desktop and workstation GPUs can offer higher sustained clock speeds, more VRAM and greater memory bandwidth, making them suited to demanding workloads including video editing, 3D rendering, colour grading, animation and visual effects.

The additional graphics processing power can also be used for local AI applications, including image, audio and text generation and Large Language Models.

With the Breakaway Box 850 T5, users can connect the latest GPU cards to compatible computers through a single Thunderbolt cable, allowing them to use the graphics card’s processing capabilities for demanding applications.

A key feature of the Breakaway Box 850 T5 is its high-wattage power supply, which Sonnet says is the highest-wattage power supply currently available in an eGPU.

Some eGPUs currently available do not include a power supply, requiring users to source a compatible unit separately. The Breakaway Box’s integrated power supply is designed to provide sufficient power for current-generation GPU cards, as well as supporting power-hungry cards expected in future generations.

The combination of the high-wattage power supply and integrated Thunderbolt 5 dock is also intended to simplify desktop setups. For many users, the Breakaway Box’s 5 Gigabit Ethernet and peripheral connectivity could allow frequently used accessories to remain connected to the eGPU, with a single Thunderbolt 5 cable linking the system to a laptop.

www.sonnettech.com