Finally an external graphics card for virtual reality on Mac

Summary

• A Blackmagic external graphics card to boost video on Mac

Until now, unless you were an excellent handyman, it was impossible to connect an Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, or Windows Mixed Reality type virtual reality headset to a Macintosh computer. For this, Apple has partnered with the company Blackmagic. The card, which comes in the form of a fairly massive external box, can greatly speed up graphics calculations on MacBook.

A Blackmagic external graphics card to boost video on Mac

The Blackmagic eGPU card is a real graphics accelerator based on a Radeon Pro 850 and which uses Thunderbolt 3 technology. This external graphics card provides excellent results for 3D video games, very demanding professional software such as the DaVinci Resolve for example. and of course virtual reality. The connection to the MacBook is made via Thunderbolt 3 which allows, in a single cable, to pass 40Gb / s. The case has been designed to be very quiet, practical and elegant with its anodized aluminum case.

Concretely, with the Blackmagic eGPU external graphics card, it is now possible to take advantage of all the potential offered by virtual reality on a MacBook. The computing power is more than sufficient for VR headsets as demanding as an HTC Vive Pro, Vive classic or Oculus Rift. The external box also offers different ports. A second Thunderbolt 3 port is available for a second screen but also an HDMI K port and 4 USB 3.1 ports. All the connections for VR headsets are in one place. The Blackmagic eGPU card retails for $ 699.