Experiences with Lap Dock on Mac mini

[Kris Kelvin]

I use a few Mac mini as servers. They sometimes are in a small rack and run headless (no monitor or keyboard/mouse attached). When there are low-level issues (e.g. at boot), it's hard to troubleshoot them. Software-based solutions (VNC, Luna, Duet) require a running system.

There seems to be such a thing as a "Lap Dock" (basically a laptop without a CPU). While this concept was created to turn a smartphone into a "full computer", it would also be great for quickly troubleshooting a headless Mac mini.

Does anyone use a Lap Dock with a Mac mini? If so, what model/year?
Does everything (display, keyboard, touchpad, etc.) work as expected?
Can it be powered with the same USB-C cable that carries video/data?

I've found the following products:

• HP Elite x3 Lap Dock (discontinued)
• Sentio Superbook S1 (discontinued)
• NexDock 360
• Miraxess MiraBook
• UPerfect UDock (various models)

Alternatives considered:

1. It would be even better if there was a way to use a MacBook as a hardware-based "Lap Dock", but I haven't found any way to do that.
2. A USB-C-Dongle with an ethernet port that provides IP-based KVM would be great, too. Unfortunately, such a product doesn't seem to exist.

 

[Kris Kelvin]

I've bought a used HP Elite x3 Lap Dock for around $100 and it's fabulous! Absolutely perfect for troubleshooting a headless Mac mini.

Tested devices:

Source: Mac mini M1
Target: HP Elite x3 Lap Dock
Cable: 2m USB-C cable (USB 3.1/10Gbps with support for DP Alt Mode with 4K@60Hz)

Prerequisites:

• Mac mini must be connected to the USB-C port on the left side of the Lap Dock
• For charging, the USB-C power source must be connected to one of the two USB-C port on the righthand side of the Lap Dock

Lap Dock hardware supported by macOS:

• Screen works perfectly in 1920x1080@60Hz (see workaround below)
• Keyboard works; layout is properly recognized
• Touchpad works (but isn't as good as the one on the MacBook)
• Speakers work

Problems and solutions:

The Lap Dock's screen sometimes stayed black after connecting the Mac mini. There seems to be some issues with display signal negotiation. The fix for that is:

1. Disconnect Mac mini
2. Reset Lap Dock (hold power key on left side until HP logo appears on Lap Dock)
3. Wait until connection screen appears on Lap Dock
4. Connect Mac mini

I don't know what firmware is installed on my Lap Dock; there might have been an updated firmware that works more reliably. However, there is no way to upgrade the firmware today (HP servers hosting the updates are said to be shut down). The workaround was 100% reliable so it's not that big of an issue for me.


All things considered, I'm very happy.

I was wondering why so few manufacturers produce Lap Docks, but then realized that only a very small percentage of Windows computers has USB-C ports that support DP Alt Mode. This will probably change.