Brad Linder<p><strong>PELADN Link S-2 is an OCuLink graphics dock for under $100</strong></p><p>Last year mini PC maker PELADN launched an external graphics dock called the <a href="https://fave.co/40OAuUl" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">PELADN Link S1</a> that allowed you to add a desktop graphics card to any PC with a Thunderbolt 3, Thunderbolt 4, or compatible USB4 port. Now the company has launched a new model with an OCuLink connector for higher-speed connections to a PC.</p><p>The new <a href="https://fave.co/3UUtdyF" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">PELADN Link S-2 is available now</a> from the SZBox store at AliExpress for $87.</p><p></p><p>The dock measures 253 x 162 x 41mm (10″ x 6.4″ x 1.6″) and has an open-air design: it’s not a case that houses a graphics card, it’s more of a base that holds a GPU in place and provides everything you need to connect it to a PC… assuming you’ve got a PC with an OCuLink port.</p><p>The SZBOX/PELADN Link S-2 has a PCIe x16 interface, a 24-pin ATX connector for power supply, and the dock comes with an OCuLink connector and graphics card bracket. And that’s about it.</p><p>Unlike some other external GPU solutions, this is <em>not</em> a USB hub, external storage device, or wireless amplifier. This is a device that’s meant for one thing and one thing only: adding a discrete GPU to a computer that might not otherwise have one, while using a high-speed OCuLink connector.</p><p>OCuLink is basically an external cabling solution for PCIe, capable of data transfer speeds up to 64 Gbps. That makes it a better fit for external GPUs than Thunderbolt 4 or earlier, which have theoretical top speeds of 40 Gbps, but <a href="https://liliputing.com/minisforum-um890-pro-review-a-versatile-high-performance-and-nearly-silent-mini-pc/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">real-world speeds that are often substantially lower</a> than that. In other words, the cables aren’t fast enough to let you get all the performance you’d expect from some high-end graphics cards.</p><p>Unfortunately OCuLink isn’t as widely adopted in the commercial PC space as USB4/Thunderbolt, which means that this dock will only work with the relatively small number of <a href="https://liliputing.com/tag/oculink/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">mini PCs, laptops, and handhelds that have compatible ports</a>. And since the Link S-2 graphics dock doesn’t have a USB4/Thunderbolt port, it can <em>only</em> be used with computers that support OCuLink. If you need something with wider compatibility, you may have to look elsewhere.</p><p>Oh, and if the design of this device looks familiar, that may be because it not only looks a lot like the original PELADN Link S1, but also like the <a href="https://liliputing.com/minisforum-deg1-barebones-egpu-dock-with-oculink-now-available-for-99/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">recently released MINISFORUM DEG1</a>, which is <em>also</em> a barebones eGPU dock with an OCuLink connector. The DEG1 costs a little more though: it’s currently <a href="https://fave.co/3KZ5kjW" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">available for $99 from the MINISFORUM website</a>.</p> <a href="https://liliputing.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/link-s-2_03.jpg" class="" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"></a> <a href="https://liliputing.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/link-s-2_02.jpg" class="" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"></a> <a href="https://liliputing.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/link-s-2_01.jpg" class="" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"></a> <p> </p><p><a rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://liliputing.com/tag/egpu/" target="_blank">#egpu</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://liliputing.com/tag/graphics-dock/" target="_blank">#graphicsDock</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://liliputing.com/tag/link-s-2/" target="_blank">#linkS2</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://liliputing.com/tag/oculink/" target="_blank">#oculink</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://liliputing.com/tag/peladn/" target="_blank">#peladn</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://liliputing.com/tag/peladn-link-s-2/" target="_blank">#peladnLinkS2</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://liliputing.com/tag/szbox/" target="_blank">#szbox</a></p>