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List of Thunderbolt 3 Docks that provide power
- Thread starter itsamacthing
- Start date
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Building a proper dock costs money. Quality parts. Significant engineering expertise. Heck, a proper 85w+ power supply typically sells for ~$70 on its own. The included Thunderbolt cable another $20.
There is good reason any of the docks that have tried to hit a lower price point have failed.
Word of caution to those using the '80W' OWC 10-port USB-C dock - the 15" MacBook Pro (87W) charges incredibly slowly through this dock. In the small print you'll see the dock only provides 60W for charging - I initially thought this would be fine but it is horribly slow. This dock is definitely being switched to the Mac Pro for connectivity and I will definitely be using a dedicated Apple power supply for the new MBP.
I'm very happy with my Elgato Thunderbolt 3 dock. It easily powers my 15" MacBook Pro and has all the ports that I need. It seems well put together and I like the aluminum enclosure. And finally, it is available to purchase right now.
Got the elgato as well for my 2017 macbook pro. Works great with power and ports. Bought a $15 card reader that sits on top the dock.
Power and display works just fine. No complaints on the functionality. Only thing I don't like is that the dock is small, unobtrusive, slick and so; but the power brick is large, heavy and ugly. Must be a better way to fix that...
I've tested my OWC dock for a while now and are extremely happy with it, especially that it includes an SD Card slot.
I use it with two 27" 4k monitors, one through mDP and one with the other USB-C port, they both run at 60Hz.
And yes, my MBP 15" still charges at 60W, and Ive not run into a case where it drains my MBP.
I use it with two 27" 4k monitors, one through mDP and one with the other USB-C port, they both run at 60Hz.
And yes, my MBP 15" still charges at 60W, and Ive not run into a case where it drains my MBP.
These docks use 1 Thunderbolt controller which only comes with 2 ports. Since USB-C (the connector used by TB3) is the future and you can easily adapt TB3 to TB1/2 it simply makes more sense to use both TB3 ports as-is instead of converting one to TB2. Converting it to TB2 only adds more costs and you'll loose the TB3 functionality of that port too.
Has anyone tested the network speeds of any of these docks? Do they reach actual gigabit speeds?
I use a Thunderbolt 3 dock connected to my Thinkpad at work and it gets real gigabit speeds.
I have an issue with my new Caldigit TS3 when connecting a 4K display via DisplayPort to DisplayPort.
I'm actually able to get the dock to run full 4K @ 60Hz upon initially plugging it in to my MacBook Pro. However, when waking from sleep , this is when I have issues. When waking from sleep, my monitor is either unable to display from my MacBook entirely, or in some cases it will display from my MacBook but only at 1920x1080 @ 30Hz. I'm aware that one potential solution is to use the other Thunderbolt 3 port with an adapter, however I have other intentions for this TB3 port and should be able to fully utilize the available DisplayPort 1.2.
Does anyone have a similar issue with their CalDigit unit? For reference, my monitor is an LG 27UD69P. I'm thinking of trying a different DisplayPort cable, even though the one I've tried with is a high quality cable which was included in with my monitor. If that doesn't work, I will even try a DisplayPort to HDMI adapter and then run an HDMI cable to the monitor.
I'm actually able to get the dock to run full 4K @ 60Hz upon initially plugging it in to my MacBook Pro. However, when waking from sleep , this is when I have issues. When waking from sleep, my monitor is either unable to display from my MacBook entirely, or in some cases it will display from my MacBook but only at 1920x1080 @ 30Hz. I'm aware that one potential solution is to use the other Thunderbolt 3 port with an adapter, however I have other intentions for this TB3 port and should be able to fully utilize the available DisplayPort 1.2.
Does anyone have a similar issue with their CalDigit unit? For reference, my monitor is an LG 27UD69P. I'm thinking of trying a different DisplayPort cable, even though the one I've tried with is a high quality cable which was included in with my monitor. If that doesn't work, I will even try a DisplayPort to HDMI adapter and then run an HDMI cable to the monitor.
B
After researching these docks online for the last few days, Belkin is the one I will buy. Glad to hear your happy with it!
I hated the thought of spending $299 so spending $349 is something I will pretend I did not do! I wish it had USB 3.1 for the money it cost, don't understand why they only included 3.0. The other thing is why does it not support the the Apple superdrive? I just used my superdrive by connecting a USB-C to USB adapter so I could create a Windows ISO for my boot camp install but prior to that, I cant remember the last time I ever needed to install anything off a DVD so it wont discourage me from the Belkin.
In the end, the Belkin will charge my laptop, drive two external monitors and provide easy access to USB ports so it will do everything I need. I think it looks pretty good too! I actually checked it out at the apple store.
I will be bummed out when these docks plummet in price but it will never be worse than the HD DVD player I bought...lol
** UPDATE** I really like the hub, I have a 27" and 22" monitor working in Extend Mode, Gigabit connection, charging laptop and USB printer. I also like the easy access USB port in the front. Hub is stylish and very low profile. I'm very happy with the purchase, just refusing to acknowledge what I paid for it!
After researching these docks online for the last few days, Belkin is the one I will buy. Glad to hear your happy with it!
I hated the thought of spending $299 so spending $349 is something I will pretend I did not do! I wish it had USB 3.1 for the money it cost, don't understand why they only included 3.0. The other thing is why does it not support the the Apple superdrive? I just used my superdrive by connecting a USB-C to USB adapter so I could create a Windows ISO for my boot camp install but prior to that, I cant remember the last time I ever needed to install anything off a DVD so it wont discourage me from the Belkin.
In the end, the Belkin will charge my laptop, drive two external monitors and provide easy access to USB ports so it will do everything I need. I think it looks pretty good too! I actually checked it out at the apple store.
I will be bummed out when these docks plummet in price but it will never be worse than the HD DVD player I bought...lol
** UPDATE** I really like the hub, I have a 27" and 22" monitor working in Extend Mode, Gigabit connection, charging laptop and USB printer. I also like the easy access USB port in the front. Hub is stylish and very low profile. I'm very happy with the purchase, just refusing to acknowledge what I paid for it!
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So far we've had zero issues with OWC's TB3 dock at the studio. It's a fantastic dock for $299 and we get round the 60W charging limitation by using another TB3 port on the MBP solely for power - this isn't an issue as we all agree we're happy with power being provided by an original Apple product rather than going through a third party accessory. We still need the Apple TB3 to TB2 adapter to run a couple of hard drives but everything is working fine with it.
Here is that main original thread:
Which TB3 dock for your 15MBP?
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/which-tb3-dock-for-your-15mbp.2028702
(and my latest post on p.14: #334)
Just got one of the pre-order http://www.caldigit.com/competition/TS3-Plus.asp in the mail today.
Its a dream come true... I couldn't be happier. Any questions, just ask.
Its a dream come true... I couldn't be happier. Any questions, just ask.
I also got one last month and I think its the best TB3 dock out there. Made a video, so if anyone is interested I'll post, don't want to hijack.