The Evolution of Computing: Why Laptops Have Become Sufficient for Most Needs
Full-sized desktops are great for playing the latest AAA games at high framerate, or if you need the extra muscle for video editing, 3D rendering, or computer system design. However, for most people, a thin and light basic laptop is more than enough these days, coming with the benefits of portability and convenience that simply don't get with desktops.
The Real Bummer: The Need for Both Desktops and Laptops
While laptops are sufficient for most needs, the real bummer is when you end up having to buy both a desktop for your gaming or heavy work, and a laptop for when you're out and about. I mean, why bother having two full CPUs installed on two motherboards when you can only really use one at a time? If only there was a solution where just by plugging one cable into that laptop you already own, you could extend it with a full-sized desktop, all the peripherals and expansion you could want, and even a powerful graphics card.
The Solution: Wireless Charging and a Full-Sized Desktop
What if wireless charging simply built right into our desks? Wait, it is, and we did all of that stuff. We're going to show you exactly how it works after this message from our sponsor, Origin. Origin PC builds custom desktops, like this one over here that we're actually using for the video earlier, and laptops with 24/7 lifetime tech support and high-quality components, such as Samsung 970 EVO M.2 SSD.
The First Step: Choosing a Compatible Laptop
Step zero for making your very own cable desk-top thing is having a compatible laptop. You don't get dual 4K monitors, 10 gig file transfers, and 85 watts of charging to a regular old micro USB port and cable. Now, for this to work, we need a laptop with at least one Thunderbolt free port. We would strongly recommend finding one that has a 4x PCIe lane interface, so Thunderbolt 3 looks like a normal USB Type C port except for the little lighting bolt emblem.
A Suitable Desktop
Our finished desktop is completely custom-made, and even though it's got an integrated wireless charging system and a freaking graphics card, you can't see either of those things when you're sitting on the desk. That is only possible because of the planning that we did back in Step 1. We limited our options to runs with enough cabinet space and thickness to contain all of our devices and cables with obvious cable management runs for bonus points.
Planning Your Layout
For Step 1, plan your layout at a minimum, your desktop is going to need a Thunderbolt 3 hub for everything to run through. Luckily for us, Caldigit was kind enough to send us their flagship Ts3 Plus, which can provide 85 watts of power that's enough to charge my MacBook Pro and has enough ports for your peripherals, wired internet, and a 10-gigabit external drive. Now you could just get the device like this and call it a day with no other parts necessary.
Adding an External Graphics Card Enclosure
To make our setup really special, we want it to add an external graphics card enclosure so that our desktop not only makes our laptop easier to use with monitors, peripherals, and all that but also substantially more powerful. However, this made things a bit complicated for us to start with. While Thunderbolt 3 does support daisy chaining up to six devices off of a single port, you can't just plug your graphics card into your dock unless your eGPU is the first device in the chain.
The eGPU Solution
You'll get often latency at desk and at worst, random crashes or total malfunctionality. Okay, so we just switch the order then, right? Laptop to eGPU, eGPU to dock, ooh so at the time we're writing, the odds of your eGPU having two ports on it for daisy chaining are pretty low. The only option we're aware of is a Blackmagic eGPU's only works with MaxAKitio Node Duo which is designed to hold two cards but at only half the benefit each.
The Solution: eGPU and Thunderbolt 3 Hub
The Akinio Node Pro, which is exactly what we ended up using solves our problems. However, it has an even though our Ts3 Plus hub can deliver 85 watts of power your laptop only receives power from the device that it's directly connected to. On our case, that the the Node Pro with the Thermo and the Ts3 Plus together they form a great combination.
The Importance of Cable Management
For bonus points we made sure to include obvious cable management runs for better cable organization and aesthetics.
The Future of Computing: Wireless Charging and Desktops
In conclusion, the evolution of computing has come full circle. We have laptops that can do everything a desktop could do and then some. With wireless charging on the rise, the need for both desktops and laptops may soon become a thing of the past. The future of computing looks bright and exciting with advancements in technology like eGPUs and Thunderbolt 3 hubs making it possible to build custom gaming PCs that fit any space or budget.