Pocketable RTX 3050 GPU Has Thunderbolt Power

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External GPUs take on a whole new form factor

RTX A500 (RTX 3050-class) ADLink Pocket AI GPU
(Image credit: ADLink)

ADLink has created a unique graphics solution called the Pocket AI portable GPU. This GPU is effectively a GeForce RTX 3050 repackaged into a mobile device the size of your hand. The GPU utilizes Thunderbolt 3 connectivity to bring additional graphics performance to a supported laptop or desktop device.

The GPU inside is an enterprise-class RTX A500 GPU; however, the core specifications are nearly identical to an RTX 3050 laptop GPU. It features NVIDIA's GA107 GPU die with 2,048 CUDA cores, 64 Tensor DCores, 16 RT cores, 4GB of GDDR6 memory, a 64-bit-wide interface, and a 25W TGP. Unsurprisingly the RTX A500 in this configuration has a maximum performance rating of just 6.54 TFLOPs.

The GPU isn't exactly fast by current standards, but the portable GPU will unlock most of NVIDIA's features found in its latest GeForce RTX products, as well as some additional features reserved exclusively for its professional GPUs. For gamers and streamers, adding this pocket GPU to their portfolio can unlock voice-cancellation/video-enhancement features like RTX Broadcast, and high-quality video streaming thanks to the RTX A500's NVENC encoder.

RTX A500 (RTX 3050-class) ADLink Pocket AI GPU

(Image credit: ADLink)

Professional users can also use this GPU for accelerating tasks utilizing Nvidia's CUDA technology and AI-accelerated applications with the integration of Nvidia's Tensor cores. ADLink provided an example of a person walking down a street holding a Pocket RTX A500 GPU running Yolov4 AI object detection.

Of course, the pocket GPU can be used for gaming in a pinch for really underpowered devices. But don't expect great gaming performance from this GPU with its meager 25W TDP. However, it at least has DLSS technology to counter this issue somewhat.

The Pocket AI measures 106mm x 72mm x 25mm and weighs just 250 grams. To run the graphics device, you'll need a Thunderbolt 3.0 connection on your machine and an additional USB Type-C power source that supports USB Power Delivery 3.0+ (like a phone charger). Pricing is unknown, but the product will be available to pre-order in April 2023. Shipping starts in June 2023.

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Aaron Klotz
Aaron Klotz
Contributing Writer

Aaron Klotz is a contributing writer for Tom’s Hardware, covering news related to computer hardware such as CPUs, and graphics cards.

8 Comments Comment from the forums
  • InvalidError
    How many laptops with an adequate TB3/USB4.1 port don't already have something more powerful than a 4GB RTX3050 built-in?

    I hope nobody buys this with the intent of playing games when so many newer games readily fill 8GB of VRAM.
    Reply
  • Chastmaster76
    InvalidError said:
    How many laptops with an adequate TB3/USB4.1 port don't already have something more powerful than a 4GB RTX3050 built-in?

    I hope nobody buys this with the intent of playing games when so many newer games readily fill 8GB of VRAM.
    I did agree, thunderbolt 3 has been around since i7-7700hq and there a lot of laptop with thunderbolt 3 and 1060s and 1070s are out there. This could be a good way to get more life out of a old but capable laptop. Also it could be a good add on to a mini pc, with out spending $300 on a GPU dock and $300 on a GPU. If they can reduce the cost of the device it could be a compelling option and could help reduce e waste.
    Reply
  • InvalidError
    Chastmaster76 said:
    If they can reduce the cost of the device it could be a compelling option and could help reduce e waste.
    Or increase e-Waste since by the time you dial down details in most games to make them fit in 4GB of VRAM, they could play pretty much just as good on any other potato with at least 4GB of VRAM.

    To me, this smells like a jump-start on April 1st.
    Reply
  • bjnmail
    InvalidError said:
    How many laptops with an adequate TB3/USB4.1 port don't already have something more powerful than a 4GB RTX3050 built-in?

    I hope nobody buys this with the intent of playing games when so many newer games readily fill 8GB of VRAM.

    Seems more like it's marketed toward owners of "thin & light" Ultrabooks which do not have a dGPU but may need the power of one at times for professional work, or to be paired with mini PC's like Intel's NUC line (the 4"x4" small ones; not the larger Extreme variants which can take desktop GPUs).

    It doesn't seem to be intended for gaming, though it will still likely play some games at lower settings just fine.

    Definitely a niche product, but a creative one nonetheless, as eGPU enclosures have generally not been small in the past. About the smallest you could get was to stuff a compact pro GPU into a Sonnet TB3 enclosure, and that's still significantly larger than this device. I could definitely find uses for this as I know some of my clients could as well.
    Reply
  • InvalidError
    bjnmail said:
    Seems more like it's marketed toward owners of "thin & light" Ultrabooks which do not have a dGPU but may need the power of one at times for professional work, or to be paired with mini PC's like Intel's NUC line (the 4"x4" small ones; not the larger Extreme variants which can take desktop GPUs).
    If you take the RTX3050 and basically chop it in half with 64bits VRAM and 3.0x4 worth of PCIe bandwidth, you are left with something that probably lands in the neighborhood of AMD"s 680M IGP. it should really be called the RTX3010 at this point, maybe RTX3030 if I make an extra effort to be generous.

    Remember the shellacking the RTX6500 got for its often exceptionally poor performance at 3.0x4? I don't expect reviews to be any kinder to another 4GB GPU irremediably throttled by its own 40Gbps cord.
    Reply
  • bjnmail
    InvalidError said:
    If you take the RTX3050 and basically chop it in half with 64bits VRAM and 3.0x4 worth of PCIe bandwidth, you are left with something that probably lands in the neighborhood of AMD"s 680M IGP. it should really be called the RTX3010 at this point, maybe RTX3030 if I make an extra effort to be generous.

    Remember the shellacking the RTX6500 got for its often exceptionally poor performance at 3.0x4? I don't expect reviews to be any kinder to another 4GB GPU irremediably throttled by its own 40Gbps cord.

    Again, none of that matters when you're using it for it's intended purpose, which is NOT gaming, but professional work.
    Reply
  • RedBear87
    InvalidError said:
    How many laptops with an adequate TB3/USB4.1 port don't already have something more powerful than a 4GB RTX3050 built-in?
    Basically every ultrabook with Intel iGPUs? There are a lot of them out there. Mind you, I wouldn't get this thing in order to play games, but for that matter I wouldn't buy an AMD RDNA2 equipped ultrabook in order to play games at 1080p mediumish settings either.
    Reply
  • ManDaddio
    InvalidError said:
    How many laptops with an adequate TB3/USB4.1 port don't already have something more powerful than a 4GB RTX3050 built-in?

    I hope nobody buys this with the intent of playing games when so many newer games readily fill 8GB of VRAM.
    The article clearly states it's not for gaming.
    Reply