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GIGABYTE AORUS RTX 2080 Ti Gaming Box vs OWC Mercury Helios 3: Comparison

GIGABYTE AORUS RTX 2080 Ti Gaming Box and OWC Mercury Helios 3 separate most on psu wattage: GIGABYTE AORUS RTX 2080 Ti Gaming Box at 2080, OWC Mercury Helios 3 at 400, 81% in favour of GIGABYTE AORUS RTX 2080 Ti Gaming Box. Host Power Delivery splits them by another 15%, again favouring GIGABYTE AORUS RTX 2080 Ti Gaming Box.

GIGABYTE AORUS RTX 2080 Ti Gaming Box (GV-N208TIXEB-11GC) (Pre-Installed GeForce RTX 2080 Ti 11GB / World's First Water-Cooled eGPU / Thunderbolt 3)

GIGABYTEGIGABYTE AORUS RTX 2080 Ti Gaming Box

OWC Mercury Helios 3 (Thunderbolt 3 eGPU Enclosure / 400W PSU / Bus-Powered Charging / Predecessor to Helios FX)

OWCOWC Mercury Helios 3

Specs

Show Only Differences

Specification	GIGABYTE AORUS RTX 2080 Ti Gaming Box	OWC Mercury Helios 3
Connection Standard	Thunderbolt 3	Thunderbolt 3
Brand	GIGABYTE / AORUS	OWC
Extra Ports	USB 3.0 ports, Gigabit Ethernet	None onboard beyond the GPU's own outputs
PSU Wattage	2080	400-81%
Host Power Delivery	100	85-15%
Cooling Type	All-in-one liquid cooling (AIO) with internal radiator/pump — first water-cooled eGPU on the market	Active Fan
Model	GV-N208TIXEB-11GC	Mercury Helios 3
Price	Launched around $1,099.99 (CES 2020)	Launched around $299 (2018)

Price comparison

Retailer	GIGABYTE AORUS RTX 2080 Ti Gaming Box	OWC Mercury Helios 3
Amazon		View on Amazon

Disclaimer: The price and specification of the given product may differ from the actual product. Please confirm on the retailer's website before buying.

Verdict

GIGABYTE AORUS RTX 2080 Ti Gaming Box

7.5 / 10 Expert Rating

A genuinely novel liquid-cooled eGPU that delivered flagship 2019-era performance quietly, at a steep fixed-GPU price.

OWC Mercury Helios 3

6 / 10 Expert Rating

Solid basic Mac eGPU box, superseded by the Helios FX which OWC still actively sells.

Specs

Price comparison

Verdict

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