Well you sound like you bought the wrong macbook then, however if you did buy the wrong macbook here's an option. I've never used a usb stick on my macbook and it has 2 ports.
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Review: OWC's 'USB-C Dock' Expands MacBook Connectivity Options With Ten Ports
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Since you can't connect anything other than headphones while the computer is charging I would consider this cost part of the computer.
I'm trying to imagine someone watching a DVD on the couch with a flash drive connected while their computer is charging. What a mess.
I'm trying to imagine someone watching a DVD on the couch with a flash drive connected while their computer is charging. What a mess.
Why would one ever be doing that? I'd transfer the file to the internal disk which takes all of a few seconds. Then I'd watch it off battery power (easy enough to do when an hour of charging gives close to 80% charge).
They make that too. It's called a Macbook Pro.
All of you who are complaining: please stop and realize that the world doesn't revolve around you. Apple makes this product because there are plenty of people out there (obviously not you) who don't need a gazillion ports on their notebook for it to be 'useful' and would gladly sacrifice all those ports for the sake of the absolute lightest computer possible. Just because you wouldn't find it useful, doesn't mean Apple should stop making it for others who do. You don't hear this many people complaining that the iPod Touch shouldn't exist because it lacks iPhone functionality.
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Yes and you didn't have to made it that clear
No, what they need doesn't exist. They need something that is a desktop when at work/home and something that is like the MacBook when on the road. The only way you can accomplish this is by buying the MacBook and a docking station (like the one reviewed here) or a port replicator. That docking station/port replicator is what turns a notebook into a desk setup and it has been common for a couple of decades (since the 90s)!
No, the target market is people who want absolute mobility. The target market for docking stations is anybody who wants mobility AND a proper desk setup. Again, this has been the case for a couple of decades (since the 90s).
Setups like these are heavily used in businesses nowadays. There aren't that many people using a desktop any more. The reason for this is quite simple: mobility and thus flexibility. You can now work anywhere. Businesses also have to follow regulations that state that any employee has to have a proper and safe workplace. That could mean as much as that the use of external display, keyboard and mouse is mandatory. This would rule out every notebook so that's why they invented docking stations and port replicators. That way you have both the advantage of a desktop and a notebook.
No it doesn't. It is about the only port that is an actual universal standard. It has been used for many many years now (this one goes back 30, maybe even 40 years or so) and the technology has still a long road ahead. It is one of the very very few pieces of technology that is able to last for a few more years and probably even decades. It can now do 10Gbps and they are pushing it to 40 and even 100Gbps. And the nicest part: anybody can make a network cable. Try that with USB-C, Thunderbolt and all those others!
Call me crazy, but often when someone comments on an article (and this thread is a comment thread), "you" refers to the author of the article. Since the article wrote a review, I thought it might be useful if that information was included in the review. Crazy talk!
Also, I have gone through at least 3 different USB-C hubs since I got my 12" rMB. Despite what manufacturers say, USB-A charging is very flaky. A hands-on perspective (AKA review) would be useful to get some first-hand testing.
Apple will gladly sell you one as an accessory to replace the one they took away.
LOL!!! Macrumors members will tell us that's the proper way to go.
This is why you just buy the laptop that has the ports you need. I'm pretty sure that for most people, the MacBook sucks. The keyboard on it is also trash, BTW.
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Yeah, I'm sick of my rMBP not having an ethernet port. Gotta carry around this bothersome, unreliable dongle. It's not nearly as bad as the MacBook, but I have been screwed over in the past because I haven't had my dongle with me. I guess this doesn't happen to casual users as much. Unfortunately, there are many reasons why I don't want the 2012 MBP, so I've gotta deal with it. First world problems.
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I don't think this device is really made for carrying around, Imagine leaving this in your office with all the ports plugged to something already, you will go in to work in the morning place your laptop on your desk and just plug one single Usb Type C
[doublepost=1453240459][/doublepost]I don't think this device is really made for carrying around, Imagine leaving this in your office with all the ports plugged to something already, you will go in to work in the morning place your laptop on your desk and just plug one single Usb Type C
[doublepost=1453240459][/doublepost]I don't think this device is really made for carrying around, Imagine leaving this in your office with all the ports plugged to something already, you will go in to work in the morning place your laptop on your desk and just plug one single Usb Type C
If it's not meant to be carried around, then it's a failure of a portable device.
Nowhere does it say this is a "portable" device.
This is a desktop docking station.
I have trouble with the idea that people, who use a docking station in their place of work, would ever have looked at this machine twice.
In fact, has this dock come as a real boon to those people, who hitherto, have been scratching their heads about how to dock their macbook to all of the hardware they have in the office? Or were there other docking solutions that were brought out in conjunction with the Macbook?
This dock really only offers a slightly more convenient form factor (and something that can be more easily hidden away) than using the Apple Digital HDMI adapter and a USB hub. I suppose it also offers a bit more power to the usb ports and the ability to permanently attach a pair of speakers. But many of us have been docking from the beginning using Apple's adapter. Works great.
Thanks - yeah; FYI everyone I looked around and found an email from their tech support (that I missed) from October saying they _believe_ it will operate in clamshell. My wife is not a gamer and is mostly doing word processing so the refresh rate should be fine. However, not having clamshell would be a real deal breaker - small apartment! That rMB is sure super nice looking but sometimes I really miss the non bleeding edge nature of her old Air ... the price for pre-ordering, I guess
Thank you for contacting OWC.
Yes, the USB-C Dock should be capable of clamshell mode so long as you are using an external monitor.
Please reply back to this message if you have any further questions or concerns.
Thank you again for contacting OWC.
Sincerely,
(( person at OWC ))
macbookpro79 - the guy you replied to - was obviously referring to the dock, not the laptop. Why would you think he was saying the Macbook wasn't meant to be carried around?
macbookpro79 - the guy you replied to - was obviously referring to the dock, not the laptop. Why would you think he was saying the Macbook wasn't meant to be carried around?
Because it sucks?
I second that; if all you need is to connect keyboard, mouse, power and a display then the Apple one is more than enough as it comes with all the necessary ports. The dock reviewed here just brings you some more convenience. It comes with an ethernet port, more ports (no need for extra usb hub and usb-ethernet adapter) and is basically your second power adapter.
I have to (mostly) agree with this post.
While a second USB port is somewhat of a dumbass omission, I can see how many can do without it on the go, especially since Apple didn't stop offering the other models in their lineup (unlike what they did with the Mac Pro...grrrrr!).
The fear is that Apple will carry over their design philosophy across lines.
As such, a dock like this one makes sense. This machine is an iPad with a keyboard, and in keeping with the single-user-cloud-everything philosophy, it is sharp in its execution.
Still, a not-much-heavier Air, with retina and available in space black, would have been awesome and a far, far better machine.
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You are old-fashioned. And the yuck dockingstations, they are made for people like you. To add back the odd thing old people will be missing about the future. I also like my hardware port, singular. One port ought to be enough for anybody. Provided it is versatile, speedy and daisy-chainable. USB-C is just a trick to make every new accessory on the market Thunderbolt 3 compatible. Apple will continue to build in special high-performance ports, but this time in a non-proprietary, industry-standard kind of way. I don't know what's not to love about the unfolding port situation of 2016. It's a dream come true.
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I'm in both camps and rather not have to carry dongles, but that TB3/USB-C is very promising.
Razer is coming out with an external graphics enclosure that uses it, and for that alone I'm excited. Modular computers are close. Apple started that with the Mac Pro but the TB ports on it DO NOT match the internal PCI bandwidth. TB3 either mitigates or overcomes that.
Still, we need more than one bloody port. The point of a portable is to carry it to where your stuff is not, so I'd rather have the flexibility to connect to whatever I need to out there. Apple is merely offloading the cost of connectivity to us, as dongles and docks have and will become a necessity.
In the end, I see this is the future. But until the future catches up to Apple, I'll hang on to my 17".
The new MacBook ( Apples fanless ultraportable ) has only one port. The 13" MacBook Pro will have 2 or 3 and the 15" MacBook Pro will have 3 or 4 TB3/USB-C ports. Depending on how many PCIe lanes are free after everything else is connected to the bus.
[doublepost=1453957673][/doublepost]I agree completely with these marketing articles that pass as reviews. I've gone through several USB-C hubs and returned them all. Charging problems, devices being dropped, OS X beach balls. One cable from a "respected" vendor damaged the USB-C port on my first rMB. I'll wait until USB-C vendors get their act together before wasting any more money on vapor ware and problem products. As of right now, after originally scheduled to ship in October, I believe OWC is still not shipping. There seem to be serious problems with the first generation of USB-C products. Buyer beware, especially pre-order buyers. My favorite of all the great vaporware reviews were those of the Sonnet Echo Thunderbolt Dock. Didn't some folks wait two years on that thing? It did look pretty in all those rave "reviews", however.
