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Is there a lot of advantage in the ultra compact form factor when a GPU is in play? I feel like you'd end up with all the same nuisances as trying to game on a

Is there a lot of advantage in the ultra compact form factor when a GPU is in play? I feel like you'd end up with all the same nuisances as trying to game on a laptop— especially thermal problems, lack of upgradability, and lower-powered "mobile" CPU and GPU options. Quite apart from that, the NUCs are not exactly cheap. Gaming-ready ones can be $1000+, for which you can build a very decently specced MiniITX rig around a real desktop graphics card.

bitL 7y ago
One of my recent MacBooks with i7-8569U is quite capable of gaming in 1280x800 (it looks good as it matches retina downscaling) in the usual Feral/Aspyr ports of games (on Mojave ofc, Catalina killed them off). AMD APUs should be even better, likely allowing 1080p gaming in mid-to-high details which could be good enough for many casual gamers.
- mikepurvis 7y ago
  Oh yeah, it's certainly possible. I'm on a Dell XPS 9570 with a discrete GPU and I can play most stuff I've tried at the native 1080p. That's mostly indies and EGS freebies, but some of them definitely still give the GPU a workout, and in those cases I absolutely experience screaming fans, frame drops, etc, even when giving lots of clearance to the fan inlets. I get the impression that the GPU in this computer is much more intended for CAD, video processing, light AI work, etc than the kind of 100% duty cycle loading that running a game demands.
chrisseaton 7y ago
> Is there a lot of advantage in the ultra compact form factor when a GPU is in play? Yes - most people don't have a lot of space for gadgets and things. Look at the advertising for Google's Stadia - it's partly that you don't need a console taking up space in your living room. Most people never upgrade so don't care about that.
- WhatIsDukkha 7y ago
  What do you even mean by this? A slightly larger box that can fit a discrete gpu is suddenly "gadgets"? The core reality is that if you don't have much space you don't have space for a barely functioning lump of a machine that only does excel spreadsheets and plays games only slightly better then a smartphone? (oh but the useless computer does instagram nice in a staged apartment/suburban mcmansion) Most people should probably start with something that might grow with them a little better so that every time they try something new it isn't a stuttery (thermal throttling, no gpu) awful experience. I think the upside down thinking you are displaying here is how Apple has managed to completely hollow out their gaming and technical workstation sales...
  - chrisseaton 7y ago
    > What do you even mean by this? They asked why people prefer smaller boxes. People prefer smaller boxes because they don't have much room in their houses. This is reality supported by for example Google's advertising approaches, which I guess is supported by data. > (oh but the useless computer does instagram nice in a staged apartment/suburban mcmansion) I don't know why you need to be snarky like this about what other people value. > upside down thinking you are displaying here You're just being nasty now.
    - WhatIsDukkha 7y ago
      I think you are just flat wrong about the physical reality of just about everyone. If you and I teleported into the homes of large numbers of people all over the globe (with a tape measure in hand) we'd would find they had the extra space that a discrete gpu requires (roughly a paperbook book) exists for just about everyone. I believe you don't fully believe what you are saying but instead are repeating the "corporate design" logic that allows companies to provide 5 year old laptop cpus in "nice" cases and get 80% margins out of the sales. Not actual practical design at all, just corporate self serving nonsense.
      - bitL 7y ago

bitL 7y ago

One of my recent MacBooks with i7-8569U is quite capable of gaming in 1280x800 (it looks good as it matches retina downscaling) in the usual Feral/Aspyr ports of games (on Mojave ofc, Catalina killed them off). AMD APUs should be even better, likely allowing 1080p gaming in mid-to-high details which could be good enough for many casual gamers.

mikepurvis 7y ago
Oh yeah, it's certainly possible. I'm on a Dell XPS 9570 with a discrete GPU and I can play most stuff I've tried at the native 1080p. That's mostly indies and EGS freebies, but some of them definitely still give the GPU a workout, and in those cases I absolutely experience screaming fans, frame drops, etc, even when giving lots of clearance to the fan inlets. I get the impression that the GPU in this computer is much more intended for CAD, video processing, light AI work, etc than the kind of 100% duty cycle loading that running a game demands.

chrisseaton 7y ago

> Is there a lot of advantage in the ultra compact form factor when a GPU is in play? Yes - most people don't have a lot of space for gadgets and things. Look at the advertising for Google's Stadia - it's partly that you don't need a console taking up space in your living room. Most people never upgrade so don't care about that.

WhatIsDukkha 7y ago
What do you even mean by this? A slightly larger box that can fit a discrete gpu is suddenly "gadgets"? The core reality is that if you don't have much space you don't have space for a barely functioning lump of a machine that only does excel spreadsheets and plays games only slightly better then a smartphone? (oh but the useless computer does instagram nice in a staged apartment/suburban mcmansion) Most people should probably start with something that might grow with them a little better so that every time they try something new it isn't a stuttery (thermal throttling, no gpu) awful experience. I think the upside down thinking you are displaying here is how Apple has managed to completely hollow out their gaming and technical workstation sales...
- chrisseaton 7y ago
  > What do you even mean by this? They asked why people prefer smaller boxes. People prefer smaller boxes because they don't have much room in their houses. This is reality supported by for example Google's advertising approaches, which I guess is supported by data. > (oh but the useless computer does instagram nice in a staged apartment/suburban mcmansion) I don't know why you need to be snarky like this about what other people value. > upside down thinking you are displaying here You're just being nasty now.
  - WhatIsDukkha 7y ago
    I think you are just flat wrong about the physical reality of just about everyone. If you and I teleported into the homes of large numbers of people all over the globe (with a tape measure in hand) we'd would find they had the extra space that a discrete gpu requires (roughly a paperbook book) exists for just about everyone. I believe you don't fully believe what you are saying but instead are repeating the "corporate design" logic that allows companies to provide 5 year old laptop cpus in "nice" cases and get 80% margins out of the sales. Not actual practical design at all, just corporate self serving nonsense.
    - bitL 7y ago