Laptops have become more powerful, but at the same time, they’ve become thinner and lighter, and because of this they lack in the performance arena. The Wolfe is a desktop GPU that can plug into your laptop via Thunderbolt 1, 2, or 3 to improve performance. The Wolfe contains a NVIDIA GTX 950 GPU, and the Wolfe Pro runs on a NVIDIA GTX 970 GPU.
The improved graphics cards allow laptops like the Dell XPS 13 to run a VR headset like the Oculus Rift or HTC Vive. It will also boost the performance of the Macbook Pro or other Thunderbolt-enabled laptops. There is an external GPU from Razor called the Razor Core, but the graphics card is sold separately. This makes the Core expensive from the onset but gives you the flexibility to buy whichever graphics card you want. The Wolfe starts at $449 and the Wolfe Pro is $599, making the housing fairly inexpensive and the bulk of the cost going towards the graphics cards.
The campaign has raised $281, 608 already with 746 backers, and 22 day to go. The upgrade will make any laptop go from struggling to editing videos, playing games, and handling VR without missing a beat. This means I can buy a mid grade laptop and save on having an integrated graphics in favor of a stationary device where I sit down to either play VR games or edit videos.
Tell us in the comments below what you think about the Wolfe, and which one you want to pick up. I know the issues you’ll run into with the GPU is your laptop doesn’t have a thunderbolt port, which means you cannot use the external GPU. Also, don’t forget to tell the guys that we sent you there way!
I think the issue with laptops these days is that aesthetics are overpowering function. Ultrabooks are so amazingly thin, yet sometimes not powerful enough for demanding tasks like gaming or HD video editing. There just isn’t the space, yet any bulkier laptops look ugly and old-fashioned.
I think this does fall to price though, as people may think you could just buy a more expensive, higher-specced laptop in the first place. I guess if The Wolfe manages to outperform equivalent gaming laptops, this could be a game-changer (excuse the pun).
It seems pretty exciting being able to upgrade your laptop, with simple plug and play. It’s a shame it’s Thunderbolt only. I don’t personally have a Thunderbolt port on my laptop, so I’m not sure how much different laptops this could benefit.
I have pick laptops based on how thin they are, but I also value some performance like you’ll get from the Macbook Air or Dell XPS 13. The bigger more powerful laptops are uglier, but that’s because of the power consumption means they need more cooling and fans. The Wolfe is external so cooling the device will be easier and faster than something that’s emitting heat from all areas in a small enclosed space.
Thunderbolt ports are normally reserved for higher end laptops, but my understand (which may be limited) is USB-C will work with Thunderbolt ports. It’s the same connection just different names and technology from Intel. Either way, it’s interesting to see a simple plug and play technology could make a simple laptop into something much more!
It’s difficult because mobile CPU’s run cooler and are more efficent, but can’t meet the speed of laptop CPU’s that need lots of cooling and use more battery life. With the iPad Pro trying to bridge the gap between tablet PC’s and laptops, mobile processors are catching up and the Intel Core M looks interesting.
The Wolfe definitely makes cooling easier being separated from the laptop’s CPU. I’m guessing it has to be plugged in to a power outlet unless it has a large battery or something.
USB 3.0 is now reaching cheaper laptops, so I’m sure it won’t take some before most laptops will have USB-C, especially ultrabooks. I guess progress is slow due to people wanting to connect their existing devices, although adapters are often available.
Apple killed this project because they didn’t want people buying $900 MacBook Airs and upgrading the GPU. No no no, you need to buy this $2600 MacBook Pro for that.