CES 2018: Elgato Announces New Thunderbolt 3 Mini Dock

[MacRumors]

Elgato is adding to its Thunderbolt 3 dock lineup with a new Thunderbolt 3 Mini Dock, which comes equipped with HDMI, DisplayPort, USB 3 and Gigabit Ethernet ports with up to 40Gb/s throughput for full performance for every port.

A built-in Thunderbolt 3 cable powers the Mini Dock, and when not in use, the cable tucks away to make the Mini Dock easy to transport.

"Thunderbolt 3 is the only standard that offers full performance and stability when simultaneously running 4K video and high bandwidth data signals over a single port," said Markus Fest, General Manager, Elgato Systems. "With Elgato Thunderbolt 3 Mini Dock, building sure-fire setups becomes possible whenever and wherever you work."

"Thunderbolt3 delivers unrivaled single-cable docking solutions", said Jason Ziller, General Manager, Client Connectivity Division at Intel(R), "the Elgato Thunderbolt 3 Mini Dock introduces a whole new category by packing Thunderbolt 3 performance into a sleek, portable design."

Elgato plans to release the Thunderbolt 3 Mini Dock in the spring of 2018, and pricing has not yet been announced.

Article Link: CES 2018: Elgato Announces New Thunderbolt 3 Mini Dock

 

[826317]

If it's less than $100 I'm getting it. I've been waiting for a good and CHEAP dual-screen over 1 cable solution for a while now.

 

[4RunnerHeaven]

Willing to bet it's $200.

 

[Bryan Bowler]

Willing to bet it's $200.

I bet you’re right. I wish TB accessories were a lot cheaper. If so, we’d have a lot more selection to choose from.

 

[tillsbury]

Nice bit of kit though

 

[44267547]

If it's less than $100 I'm getting it. I've been waiting for a good and CHEAP dual-screen over 1 cable solution for a while now.

I'm thinking closer to $200.00 seems more likely, maybe slightly under. I don't see the Elgato starting at $100.00 or under.

 

[danielwsmithee]

If it's less than $100 I'm getting it. I've been waiting for a good and CHEAP dual-screen over 1 cable solution for a while now.

There were about 4 companies that announced that at CES this year they are all about $75. None of them have USB or gigabit Ethernet though.

 

[Trey M]

Interesting that it doesn’t seem to include USB-C PD passthrough. Definitely a negative as I have an Aukey USB-C hub which offers this. This means you’ll always have at least 2 cables plugged in to your notebook versus one, which definitely limits this devices’ ability as a desktop docking solution (keeping everything plugged in at one location).

Probably would’ve picked this up otherwise. I do have an Elgato Thunderbolt 3 dock which I very highly recommend paired with a 2016/2017 MBP. One cable for 85W power, dual 4K, USB and Ethernet. It is a true desktop dock though and not something portable like this new option.

 

[Daum]

Bro, where the SD card slot at?

 

[satinsilverem2]

ive been wanting something to replace my old failing Belkin thunderbolt 1 dock from 2012 that I can connect a monitor, ethernet and a USB hub to for a while but didn't need a full Thunderbolt hub. If its less than $150 ill probably get it. I would like to see a USB C PD passthrough so I only have to connect one cable but its not a deal breaker if it doesn't.

 

[Jimmy James]

Likely another overpriced product for ports that should come installed or bundled at the prices Apple is charging. I hope I'm wrong.

 

[jonnysods]

Why would you need a portable tuck away cord when it's a dock with two HDMI ports. Planning on carrying monitors around too?

 

[ayale99]

Why would you need a portable tuck away cord when it's a dock with two HDMI ports. Planning on carrying monitors around too?

Conference room projectors. I run into this problem often.

 

[jasonsmith_88]

Looks enticing, passthrough would be very nice though, especially for those on 12" MacBooks.

Likely another overpriced product for ports that should come installed or bundled at the prices Apple is charging. I hope I'm wrong.

If something is bundled, the consumer pays for it. So you think it would be better to force everyone – regardless of need – to pay for a dock to be bundled with their MacBook, instead of just letting those who need a dock buy one of their choosing? Rightio then.

And don't bore us with the "MacBook should have all the ports" spiel. USB-C is the future. In 10 years we'll be laughing about how ridiculous it was when the sides of our MacBooks were littered with random ports, many of which were rarely or never used.

 

[springsup]

Looks cool, but two hundred dollars for a dongle is just way too expensive.

Here's a list of some cool Apple stuff in the same ballpark price, just to give you a sense of perspective:
- AirPods: $159
- Apple Watch Series 3 (GPS): $329
- Apple Watch Series 3 (GPS + cellular): $399
- iPad mini 4 128Gb Wifi: $399

 

[danielwsmithee]

Looks cool, but $200 would be way too expensive.

For comparison, that's only half the price of a new iPad mini 4 128Gb WiFi ($399, Apple.com - could certainly get a used/refurb one for less). Obviously they are different things, but you know... that's two hundred dollars for a dongle.

This has almost the same functionality of every $299 thunderbolt Dock.

My guess is this thing will go for about $150. The nice thing about it is it is the only dongle you could need.

 

[springsup]

This has almost the same functionality of every $299 thunderbolt Dock.

My guess is this thing will go for about $150. The nice thing about it is it is the only dongle you could need.

I just searched for "thunderbolt 3 dock" on Amazon, and there are plenty under $100 that seem to have the same port repertoire (they even do USB-PD passthrough for charging, which this explicitly doesn't). I think the difference is that, while all of them support a single 4K display, not all of them support dual 4K displays. I'm not sure that matters in a portable dock with a single HDMI output, though.

Personally, I have quite a lot of disposable income (not bragging; I'm a young guy with no wife/kids to support). I'm sometimes a little annoyed by the dongles with my MBP, but I'd never buy something like this. I would never in a million years recommend this to a friend in a similar situation. The cost of the fix is disproportionate to the problem. If I'm going to be $200 poorer, I'd rather be a little bit poorer still and have a shiny new Apple Watch.

It's not a specific criticism at Elgato. Maybe these things in general are just too expensive for the average consumer (even your average MBP owner). Maybe I'm just not good at prioritising my spending.

 

[Anonymous Freak]

I bet you’re right. I wish TB accessories were a lot cheaper. If so, we’d have a lot more selection to choose from.

What's annoying is that it's all profiteering. The TB chips are a couple bucks, there's no major expensive licensing or technical parts inside. It's purely "most Thunderbolt computers are Macs, so we're going to jack up the prices."

Once TB is integrated in to the main chipset, rather than an extra support chip, and even low-end computers are coming with TB, we might finally see TB accessories drop in price.

 

[jimthing]

Over ~$120 and this is overpriced. It has limited functionality compared to the previous TB3 docks (not USB-C docks!), so price should reflect that.

It's up to them. Sell at reasonable price get sales. Don't then don't. The end.

 

[manu chao]

Why would you need a portable tuck away cord when it's a dock with two HDMI ports. Planning on carrying monitors around too?

There is one HDMI and one (m)DP port. And you carry it around with you when you need to connect to a projector plus any USB-A device or Ethernet (though I see this as the least-used port). Essentially it combines a USB-C to monitor port adaptor with a USB-C to USB-A adaptor. Though getting the individual adaptors might be cheaper than getting this dock. It might cut down on the number of items you need to carry around but mostly it serves people which don't have enough USB-C/TB3 ports.

 

[mlody]

Bro, where the SD card slot at?

Perhaps not everyone needs SD card? I for one welcome this dock as it comes with the ports I need and would use, nothing else.

 

[eekcat]

But will it be able to do 4K @ 60hz in both displays? My kingdom (or wallet) for a dock that will do that and power pass through...

 

[Jimmy James]

Looks enticing, passthrough would be very nice though, especially for those on 12" MacBooks.



If something is bundled, the consumer pays for it. So you think it would be better to force everyone – regardless of need – to pay for a dock to be bundled with their MacBook, instead of just letting those who need a dock buy one of their choosing? Rightio then.

And don't bore us with the "MacBook should have all the ports" spiel. USB-C is the future. In 10 years we'll be laughing about how ridiculous it was when the sides of our MacBooks were littered with random ports, many of which were rarely or never used.

No, I'm saying for the current pricing this should be included. Apple has been increasing pricing as ports, droves, and even previously bundled extension cords are removed. Alternatively, I want to see Apple lower their pricing model. I know it's a pipe dream on my part but the profit margins are off the scale to the extent it's seriously affecting what I can afford.

 

[4487549]

But will it be able to do 4K @ 60hz in both displays? My kingdom (or wallet) for a dock that will do that and power pass through...

The HDMI display would be 30Hz, so no.

 

[Daum]

Perhaps not everyone needs SD card? I for one welcome this dock as it comes with the ports I need and would use, nothing else.

Next to USB A, The SD card slot is probably the next most used. And since the Macbook PRO doesn't have one, why not include it in the hub? I mean it is a pro model after all right?