Laptops have lengthy rivaled desktops by way of energy. However these slim and moveable machines lack one thing their tower-shaped cousins are inclined to have in abundance: ports. Docking stations allow you to plug in displays, mice, keyboards, storage units and extra utilizing only a single port in your laptop computer. And if you happen to’re somebody who relocates with your laptop computer typically, a docking station makes it simpler to get all of your equipment linked once more while you’re again at your desk. We examined out greater than 15 extremely rated docking stations and regarded monitor assist, quantity and sort of ports, design and worth that will help you decide which one is the perfect docking station to your dwelling or workplace setup.
Desk of contents
Greatest docking stations
Photograph by Amy Skorheim / Engadget
Host connection: 2 x USB-C | Energy supply to host: 75W (USB-C) | USB-C: 1 x USB 3.0, 1 x 3.1 | USB-A: 2 | Monitor: 2 x HDMI 2.0, 1 x DisplayPort 1.4 | Aux 3.5mm: No | SD Card: No
The Satechi Twin Dock Stand is totally different from all the opposite docks we examined in two respects: it doesn’t require an influence supply and it goes beneath your MacBook as an alternative of beside it. You could possibly nearly classify it as a hub, however I feel the excessive variety of ports earns it docking-station standing.
It plugs into the 2 USB-C ports together with a Mac, which permits MacBooks with M1, M2 or M3 Professional or Max chips to function twin displays in prolonged mode. Sadly, MacBooks with customary M1 or M2 chips, can natively solely energy a second exterior show in mirrored mode. The brand new MacBook Air with the M3 chip can solely energy two shows in prolonged mode with the laptop computer lid closed. When you’ve got a Mac with a typical chip and wish two displays, you may want a docking station that helps DisplayLink {hardware} and software program, such because the Kensington SD4780P, which is our prime choose for Chromebooks.
Because the Twin Dock works with out energy, it’s quite a bit simpler to arrange than different docks with transformer bins and DC cables. I discovered it made essentially the most sense to only use the MagSafe connector on the laptop computer, however you may also provide energy to the dock utilizing the non-data USB-C port and it’ll cross 75 watts to your machine.
Each the 4K and HD displays I examined appeared nice and labored nicely in prolonged mode. There are two USB-Cs for a webcam and mic, plus two USB-As which could possibly be used for a dongle mouse and a streaming gentle — that’s seemingly sufficient ports for conferencing or perhaps a primary video creator setup. The dock is in the end restricted by the truth that not one of the USB-C connections are Thunderbolt and there are solely two USB-A sockets to work with. But it surely’s an excellent alternative for extending productiveness in a means that tucks beneath a MacBook, neatly shifting the cords to the again of the machine and out of the way in which. It even has an SSD enclosure beneath it.
- Distinctive design enhances MacBooks
- Can energy two displays on Macs with M1 Professional or M2 Professional chips
- Good number of ports
- Simply two USB-A ports
- No Thunderbolt ports
Photograph by Amy Skorheim / Engadget
Host connection: Thunderbolt 4 | Energy supply to host: 96W (DC) | USB-C: 3 x TB4 | USB-A: 2 | Monitor: 2 x HDMI 2.0 | Aux 3.5mm: Sure | SD Card: Sure
It’s as if Satechi referred to as me up and requested for the design of my superb docking station. They didn’t, to be clear, however the Thunderbolt 4 Multi-Show manages to get proper what so many docks nearly do. First off, there are sufficient downstream USB4 ports to deal with quite a lot of setups, whether or not you want a Mr. Universe-style monitor array or simply need to run a USB-C keyboard concurrently your webcam and nonetheless have a port left over. You additionally get twin HDMI 2.0 connections, an Ethernet jack, two USB-A ports, an SD card slot and a headphone jack.
That’s solely a complete of 10 downstream ports however for most individuals they’re those that supply essentially the most versatility. The trio of Thunderbolt 4 ports can assist as much as 8K displays at 60Hz and 40 Gbps information transfers. They’ll even ship 15 watts of energy if you happen to simply have to cost your telephone whilst you work.
You may also hook up your screens by way of HDMI. MacBook customers might want to set up the DisplayLink driver to work round Apple’s prolonged monitor limitations. With the software program, even M1 and M2 MacBooks can hook up two exterior displays in prolonged mode. Home windows laptops and M2/M3 Professional and Max chips can have as much as 4 prolonged displays linked — two by way of the Thunderbolt ports and two by way of the HDMI connections (once more utilizing DisplayLink tech).
Along with the goldilocks multiport choice, the association of these ports is sort of logical. From this slim and glossy slab, a bunch connection lives on one facet, permitting for one neat line to your pc. Connections which are prone to keep put (displays, DC energy, Ethernet and Thunderbolts) are throughout again, whereas the jacks you’ll in all probability swap up extra typically, such because the USB-A for thumb drives, the three.5mm jack for headphones and the SD card reader, are within the entrance. Proper subsequent to these is a helpful on-off swap, so you’ll be able to simply flip off all of your peripherals at evening to cut back your energy draw.
The dock delivers on the promise of its intelligent port choice and association. My twin prolonged displays appeared nice and achieved the marketed refresh charges and resolutions, the info transfers had been smoking fast and I used to be in a position to (lastly) totally join my very primary setup with out compromise: Two displays, a webcam, streaming gentle, microphone, keyboard and mouse. I did discover my 4K monitor had the slightest lag when the second monitor was plugged in, but it surely was minor and solely noticeable when displaying the webcam video.
One minor criticism is the DisplayLink and Thunderbolt branding throughout the entrance and prime. They distract from the in any other case elegant look of the high-end aluminum exterior. One not-so-minor concern is how heat the unit received as I used it over the course of a pair days. At occasions, it was practically too scorching to carry my hand on comfortably. I by no means seen any adversarial efficiency results consequently, but it surely’s attainable that might turn into a problem in the long run. As for worth, it’s listed at $300; that’s not the costliest dock we’ve examined, but it surely’s definitely not the most cost effective. However for the efficiency and considerate design, it’s a Thunderbolt dock that could possibly be value it for lots of people.
- Wonderful array of ports
- Ports cleverly organized
- Can assist as much as 4 exterior displays
- DisplayLink driver permits for twin prolonged displays on standard-chip MacBooks
- Lay-flat design can take up a whole lot of desk house with out a mount
- Unit runs extremely popular
Photograph by Amy Skorheim / Engadget
Host connection: Thunderbolt 4 | Energy supply to host: 98W (DC) | USB-C: 2 x TB4, 3 x 3.2 | USB-A: 5 | Monitor: 1 x DisplayPort 1.4 | Aux 3.5mm: 1 x audio combo, 1 x audio in, 1 x audio out | SD Card: SD and microSD
There’s quite a bit to understand about CalDigit’s TS4 docking station: It has a sturdy, upright design with a bunch connection on the rear and a whopping 5 downstream USB-C ports, two of that are Thunderbolt 4, the opposite two are USB 3.2, which might assist transfers of as much as 10 Gbps.
Up entrance, you get an SD and a microSD card slot together with a headphone jack, two USB-C and a USB-A connector. In again, there’s room for 4 extra USB-A units and two 3.5mm jacks, one for audio in and one for audio out. One space the place the dock could really feel missing is in show inputs. It solely has one DisplayPort 1.4, but it surely has loads of TB4 ports, which you’ll simply use to outfit a full command heart (if you happen to don’t have a USB-C monitor, there are many adapters).
The multi-gig Ethernet jack can deal with as much as 2.5Gbps, so if you happen to’re paying for a screaming-fast web plan, this dock may also help you benefit from it. The TS4 can ship as much as 98W of energy to your laptop computer, although like several docking station, the wattage goes down when different gadgets are additionally drawing energy.
The TS4 labored equally nicely with my MacBook Professional and the Dell XPS13 Plus and was even suitable with a Chromebook. I examined learn/write speeds on a Samsung T7 SSD by way of a Thunderbolt port and received 734 MB/s learn and 655 MB/s write speeds on the Mac and 1048/994 on the Dell. In comparison with the opposite docks, that was within the lower-middle vary for the Mac and the quickest general for the PC. On PC, it additionally dealt with a 1GB folder switch to a flash drive quicker than another dock and delivered the quickest connection speeds over the Ethernet. It’s the one unit that allow me plug in each single peripheral I had available directly. In the event you’ve received numerous tech you need to use concurrently (and cash isn’t a priority), that is the one to get.
- An abundance of ports
- Compact, upright design
- 2.5Gbps Ethernet port
Photograph by Amy Skorheim / Engadget
Host connection: USB-C | Energy supply to host: 100W (DC) | USB-C: 1 x 3.1 | USB-A: 5 | Monitor: 2 x HDMI 2.0, 2 x DisplayPort 1.2 | Aux 3.5mm: 1 x audio combo | SD Card: No
The Kensington SD4780P Twin 4K sometimes requires a DisplayLink driver, however any Chromebook made after 2017 helps the connection from the leap. Discovering a docking station that works with ChromeOS is hard; of the 12 items I examined, solely 4 linked in any respect with the Acer Chromebook Spin 514, and a kind of 4 couldn’t run two displays. The SD4780P makes use of a USB-C host connection, by way of which it provides a most energy supply of 100W and was in a position to run each the 4K and HD screens cleanly.
It permits for a variety of USB-A peripherals by way of 5 such ports, however there’s solely a single downstream USB-C, so I wasn’t in a position to make use of each a webcam and mic on the similar time. Meaning you’ll want to make use of your Chromebook’s built-in ports if you would like greater than a kind of kinds of units arrange. The plastic construct makes it look somewhat low-cost and I’m not loopy in regards to the lay-flat design, however the host port is within the again, which can make your setup neater. If all you’re on the lookout for is a strategy to get just a few additional displays and use your wired USB equipment, this can be a good choose for Chromebooks.
- Works nicely with Chromebooks
- 5 USB-A ports
- Requires a driver for non Chromebooks
- Only one downstream USB-C
What to search for in a docking station
At the start, take into account what you could plug in. It will seemingly be the deciding issue while you go to really purchase a docking station. Do you want three screens for an expanded work view? A fast strategy to add pictures from an SD card? Are you seeking to plug in a webcam, mic and streaming gentle, whereas concurrently making the most of quicker Ethernet connections? Are you hooking up a gaming laptop computer to a number of shows and peripherals? When you’ve settled on the kind of ports you want, you may additionally need to take into account the era of these ports as nicely; even ports with the identical form can have totally different capabilities. Right here’s a short overview of the connectivity totally different docking stations supply.
Monitor ports
Exterior displays sometimes want one in all three ports to hook up with a PC: HDMI, DisplayPort or USB-C. HDMI connections are extra frequent than DisplayPort and the cables and units that use them are generally extra reasonably priced. The most well-liked model of the DisplayPort interface (v1.4) can deal with larger resolutions and refresh charges than the most typical HDMI model (2.0). The entire show docking stations with HDMI ports that we suggest right here use model 2.0, which might deal with 4K decision at 60Hz or 1080p as much as 240Hz. The DisplayPort-enabled docks assist both model 1.2, which permits for 4K decision at 60Hz, or model 1.4, which might deal with 8K at 60Hz or 4K at 120Hz.
You may also use your dock’s downstream (non-host) Thunderbolt ports to hook up your displays. In case your exterior show has a USB-C socket, you’ll be able to join instantly. When you’ve got an HDMI show or DisplayPort-only monitor, you need to use an adapter or a conversion cable.
In fact, the variety of displays you’ll be able to join and the resolutions/charges they’ll obtain depend upon each your pc’s GPU and your displays — and the extra displays you plug in can convey down these numbers as nicely. Be sure you additionally use cables that assist the bandwidth you’re hoping for. MacOS customers ought to take into account that MacBooks with the usual M1 or M2 chips assist only one exterior monitor natively and require DisplayLink {hardware} and software program to assist two exterior shows. MacBooks with M1 Professional, M2 Professional or M2 Max chips can run a number of displays from a single port.
USB ports
Most docking stations supply just a few USB Kind-A ports, that are nice for peripherals like wired mice and keyboards, bus-powered ring lights and flash drives. For quicker information switch speeds to your flash drive, go for USB-A sockets labeled 3.1 or 3.2 — or higher but, use a USB-C Thunderbolt port.
Kind-C USB ports are available in many various flavors. The Thunderbolt 3, 4 and USB4 protocols are newer, extra succesful specs that assist energy supply of as much as 100W, a number of 4K shows and information switch speeds of as much as 40Gbps. Different USB-C ports are available in a spread of variations, with some supporting video, information and energy and a few solely in a position to handle information and energy. Switch charges and wattages can differ from port to port, however most docks record the wattage or GB/s on both the dock itself or on the product web page. And once more, reaching the quickest speeds will depend upon elements just like the cables you utilize and the units you’re transferring information to.
Practically each dock obtainable right this moment is a USB-C docking station, connecting to a pc by way of USB-C, typically Thunderbolt, and people host ports are practically all the time labeled with a laptop computer icon. Additionally they enable energy supply to your laptop computer: obtainable wattage varies, however most docks are rated between 85 and 100 watts. That ought to be sufficient to maintain most computer systems powered — and it additionally means you gained’t should take up an additional laptop computer connector for charging.
Different ports
None of our presently beneficial laptops embrace an Ethernet jack; a docking station is an effective way to get that connection again. Everyone knows objectively that wired web is quicker than Wi-Fi, but it surely may take operating a primary velocity comparability take a look at to actually get it on a intestine stage. For reference, on Wi-Fi I get a couple of 45 megabit-per-second obtain velocity. Over Ethernet, it’s 925 Mbps. In the event you pay for a high-speed plan, however solely ever join wirelessly, you’re in all probability leaving a whole lot of bandwidth on the desk. Each docking station I examined contains an Ethernet port, and it could possibly be the connector you find yourself getting essentially the most use out of.
Simply two of our favourite laptops have SD card readers, and if you happen to want a fast strategy to add recordsdata from cameras or audio recorders, it’s possible you’ll need to get a dock with a kind of slots. Of the docks we examined, about half had SD readers. For now, most (however not all) laptops nonetheless embrace a 3.5mm audio jack, however if you happen to desire wired headphones and desire a extra accessible place to plug them in, many docking stations will present.
While you’re counting up the ports to your new dock, do not forget that most corporations embrace the host port (the one which connects to your pc) within the complete quantity. So if you happen to’re on the lookout for a dock with three Thunderbolt connections, make sure to examine whether or not one in all them will probably be used to plug in your laptop computer.
Design
Most docking stations have both a lay-flat or upright design. Most docks put the extra “everlasting” connections in again — comparable to Ethernet, DC energy, monitor connections and some USBs. Up-front USB ports can be utilized for flash drive transfers, and even performing as a charger to your telephone (simply make certain the port can ship the ability you want). USBs within the rear are greatest for keyboards, mice, webcams and different stuff you’re prone to all the time use. Some docks place the host port up entrance, which could make it simpler to plug in your laptop computer while you return to your desk, however a bunch port in again could look neater general.
How we examined docking stations
We began out by taking a look at on-line critiques, spec sheets from varied manufacturers and docking stations that our fellow tech websites have coated. We thought of manufacturers we’ve examined earlier than and have preferred, and weeded out something that didn’t have what we take into account a contemporary suite of connections (comparable to a dock with no downstream USB-C ports). We narrowed it right down to 12 contenders and I examined every dock in a house workplace, utilizing an M1 MacBook Professional, a Dell XPS 13 Plus and an Acer Chromebook Spin 514.
I plugged in and evaluated the standard of the connections for 12 totally different peripherals together with a 4K and an HD monitor, a 4K and an HD webcam, plus USB units like a mouse, keyboard, streaming gentle and mic. I plugged in wired earbuds, and transferred information to a USB-C flash drive and an exterior SSD. I ran primary velocity checks on the Ethernet connections in addition to the file transfers. I judged how simple the docks had been to make use of in addition to the varied design elements I described earlier. I made spreadsheets and had sufficient wires snaking round my work space that my cat stayed off my desk for 3 weeks (a brand new document).
As new docking stations come out and we discover fashions worthy of testing, (there are a pair from Ugreen we have now our eye on), we’ll replace this information accordingly.
Different laptop computer docking stations we examined
Plugable TBT4-UDZ
Once I pulled the Plugable TBT4-UDZ Thunderbolt 4 out of the field, I used to be satisfied it might make the lower: It has a sensible upright design, a pretty metallic end, and the host connection is TB4. Whereas there are many USB-A and monitor ports, there’s only one downstream USB-C. A contemporary dock, significantly one which prices $300, ought to allow you to run, say, a USB-C cam and mic on the similar time. In any other case, it’s fairly limiting.
Anker 575 USB-C
At $250 (and extra typically $235), the Anker 575 USB-C may make for a very good funds choose for Home windows. It carried out nicely with the Dell XPS 13 Plus, however had hassle with the third display screen, the 4K webcam and headphone jack when linked to the MacBook Professional. It’s fairly compact, which suggests it could possibly get wobbly when a bunch of cables are plugged in, but it surely has a wide selection of ports and was in a position to deal with my primary setup nicely.
Belkin Join Professional Thunderbolt 4
Belkin’s Join Professional Thunderbolt 4 Dock is a contender for a Thunderbolt 4 different. It has practically the identical ports because the AD2010 (minus the microSD slot) and a pretty rounded design — but it surely’s $90 extra, so I’d solely suggest getting it if you happen to discover it on sale.
Acer USB Kind-C Dock
Acer’s USB Kind-C Dock D501 prices $10 greater than our Kensington choose for Chromebooks, but it surely performs equally and is value a point out. It has practically the identical ports (together with the relatively limiting single downstream USB-C) however each the Ethernet and information switch speeds had been quicker.
Docking station FAQs
Are docking stations value it?
Docking stations are value it when you’ve got extra equipment to plug in than your laptop computer permits. Say you’ve gotten a USB-C digicam and mic, plus a USB-A mouse, keyboard and streaming gentle; only a few trendy laptops have sufficient connections to assist all of that directly. A docking station could make that setup possible whereas additionally supplying you with additional ports like a gigabit Ethernet connection, and supplying energy to your laptop computer. Nevertheless, if you happen to simply want just a few additional USB sockets, you is likely to be higher off going with a hub, as these are typically cheaper.
How a lot does a laptop computer dock price?
Laptop computer docking stations are typically larger and costlier than easy USB-A or USB-C hubs, due to the broader array of connections. You could find them as little as $50 and so they can get as costly as $450. An inexpensive worth for a dock with a wide selection of ports from a good model will common round $200.
How do I arrange my laptop computer dock?
Most docking stations are plug and play. First, join the DC energy cable to the dock and a wall outlet. Then search for the “host” or upstream port on the dock — it’s nearly all the time a USB-C/Thunderbolt port and infrequently branded with an icon of a laptop computer. Use the supplied cable to hook up with your pc. After that, you’ll be able to join your peripherals to the dock and they need to be prepared to make use of along with your laptop computer. A couple of docking stations, significantly those who deal with extra advanced monitor setups, require a driver. The directions that include your dock will level you to an internet site the place you’ll be able to obtain that companion software program.
Does a laptop computer cost on a docking station?
Practically all docking stations can help you cost your laptop computer by way of the host connection (the cable operating from the dock to your pc). That functionality, plus the upper variety of ports is what separates a docking station from a hub. Docks can cross on between 65W and 100W of energy to laptops, and practically all embrace a DC adapter.
Are all docking stations suitable with all laptops?
No, not all docking stations are suitable with each laptop computer. In our checks, the Chromebook had the most important compatibility points, the Dell PC had the least, and the MacBook fell someplace in between. All docks will record which manufacturers and fashions they work with on the net product web page — make sure to additionally examine the era of your laptop computer as some docks can’t assist sure chips.
What are some well-liked docking station manufacturers?
Kensington, Anker, Pluggable and Belkin are respected and well-known manufacturers making docking stations for all laptops. Lenovo, Dell and HP all make docks that can work with their very own computer systems in addition to different manufacturers.