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CES 2012: Belkin Thunderbolt Express Dock to Launch in September at $299
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Actually, the mock-up looks better than the final (just like auto shows). My first thought when I saw it and the price was: The display is missing.
LOL Seriously? $300?
The docking station for my HP work laptop retails for I think around $200, if that, and it has more USB ports than I know what to do with, DVI, VGA, DisplayPort, gigabit ethernet, audio in/out and even parallel and serial ports if you still have older devices from the pre-USB era you wish to connect. And it charges my laptop too. $300 for this thing is a joke.
The docking station for my HP work laptop retails for I think around $200, if that, and it has more USB ports than I know what to do with, DVI, VGA, DisplayPort, gigabit ethernet, audio in/out and even parallel and serial ports if you still have older devices from the pre-USB era you wish to connect. And it charges my laptop too. $300 for this thing is a joke.
Seems silly to announce a MSRP in Jan for a product that won't ship until Sep. Market could be drastically different by then and it also begs another company to ship something much less expensive, which seems it would have to be if TB isn't going to end up as a niche connector like FW. $300 MSRP for a hub is a non-starter, especially in this economy.
To little too late - sorry, I should say: too much ($$) too late....
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THAT is sure true - but can this thing make your day and lighten you up with a hug and a kiss...? Didn't think so.
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THAT is sure true - but can this thing make your day and lighten you up with a hug and a kiss...? Didn't think so.
TB is dead. It'll hang around for niche connections, but at these prices it will never go mainstream.
Not to be one to say something needs this or that, but...I'd think USB 3.0 would be better than the USB 2.0 they are saying it has.
By the time this comes out, in forever, USB 3.0 will have been around long enough.
stupid piece of expensive junk.
By the time this comes out, in forever, USB 3.0 will have been around long enough.
stupid piece of expensive junk.
Arn, can we get that picture into the article instead of the mockup, since the mockup doesn't appear to be accurate?
I'll echo other posts about this being way too expensive. Hopefully the price will come down quickly, but knowing Belkin, that won't happen until after the competition brings out far cheaper options.
jW
What a load of rubbish. Anyone who buys this has way more money than sense.
For $300 I would expect at least:
8 USB 3.0 Ports
2 TB Ports
Multi-Card Reader
E-sata Port
2 Firewire 800 Ports
Express-card Slot
HDMI Port
DVI Port
Ethernet Port
Sound line out/line in
Small Hard Drive for TM backups
Power Supply for Laptop
For $300 I would expect at least:
8 USB 3.0 Ports
2 TB Ports
Multi-Card Reader
E-sata Port
2 Firewire 800 Ports
Express-card Slot
HDMI Port
DVI Port
Ethernet Port
Sound line out/line in
Small Hard Drive for TM backups
Power Supply for Laptop
Since Ivy Bridge is coming out in the next couple months and that naively supports USB 3.0 by Intel (why it hasn't been included in 2011 models because there wasn't enough room on the logic boards to stick another controller on there) I'm also wondering with the whole redesign rumored too that USB 3.0 will be part of that.
That could also be why they're releasing it in September to see what Apple has up their sleeves for this year's refresh.
$300 is still a bit on the expensive side when external TB drives cost that much. Hopefully in that time range, they'll cut the price down to around $100.
Also they can't have a MagSafe charger on there cause Apple doesn't licence it out to anyone. I believe a company, can't remember the name, that was making external batteries for the MBs had to stop making them because otherwise Apple was going to go into a lawsuit with them for using unauthorized technology.
That could also be why they're releasing it in September to see what Apple has up their sleeves for this year's refresh.
$300 is still a bit on the expensive side when external TB drives cost that much. Hopefully in that time range, they'll cut the price down to around $100.
Also they can't have a MagSafe charger on there cause Apple doesn't licence it out to anyone. I believe a company, can't remember the name, that was making external batteries for the MBs had to stop making them because otherwise Apple was going to go into a lawsuit with them for using unauthorized technology.
