Sonnet’s Breakaway Box 850 T5 Thunderbolt 5 external graphics processing unit (eGPU) for Windows 11 computers with Thunderbolt 5 or 4 ports, or USB4 ports with external graphics support, is a PCIe card expansion system that supports the latest NVIDIA and AMD GPU cards.
It utilizes a temperature-controlled fan to provide efficient and ultra-quiet cooling for the installed card. Additionally, Sonnet has added an 80 Gbps Thunderbolt 5 dock, incorporating a Thunderbolt/USB peripheral port, three 10 Gbps USB-A ports, and a 5 Gigabit Ethernet port. It supports Thunderbolt-compatible GPUs, including triple-wide NVIDIA GeForce RTX 50, 40, or 30 series, or AMD Radeon RX 9000, 7000, or 6000 series GPU cards
Key features2 x Thunderbolt 5 PortsPCIe 4.0 x 16 Slot3-Slot GPU Support3 x USB-A 3.2 Gen 2 Ports1 x 5G RJ45 Ethernet PortUp to 80 Gb/s ThroughputUp to 100W Power Delivery850W Power SupplyCooling FanWindows 11 or Later
Sonnet’s Breakaway Box 850 T5 was designed to boost a computer’s performance by connecting a powerful desktop or workstation GPU card (sold separately) via a single Thunderbolt 5 connection, bypassing the computer’s onboard integrated or discrete GPU to deliver improved to greatly-enhanced performance, depending on the computer and task. The new Breakaway Box is designed for professionals who need to run GPU-intensive applications on their eGPU-compatible laptop or small-form-factor computers. The built-in dock supports the connection of peripherals plus wired Ethernet and enables the connected computer to access those ports through the same Thunderbolt 5 cable.
The mobile GPUs incorporated in laptops are often constrained by power, thermal, and memory limitations when compared to desktop-class graphics cards. Desktop and workstation GPUs typically provide higher sustained clock speeds, more VRAM, and higher memory bandwidth, which provide advantages for demanding workloads such as video editing, 3D rendering, color grading, animation, and visual effects; as well as running local AI applications including image, audio, and text generation, and Large Language Models. The Breakaway Box 850 T5 enables users to connect the latest GPU cards to their computers via a single Thunderbolt cable and exploit their high-performance processing power.
The Breakaway Box 850 T5 is equipped with the highest-wattage power supply available in an eGPU today. The Breakaway Box power supply provides more than enough power for current-generation GPU cards, and enough to support more power-hungry cards that are expected in the future.
Pricing & Availability
The Sonnet Breakaway Box 850 T5 Thunderbolt 5 eGPU is now available for $599.99 USD.
Matthew Allard is a multi-award-winning, ACS accredited freelance Director of Photography with over 36 years’ of experience working in more than 50 countries around the world.
He is the Editor of Newsshooter.com and has been writing on the site since 2010.
Matthew has won 51 ACS Awards, including six prestigious Golden Tripods. In 2016 he won the Award for Best Cinematography at the 21st Asian Television Awards.
Matthew is available to hire as a DP in Japan or for work anywhere else in the world.