More than two years now. Can we assume this is never going to happen? It's a shame, I like the idea of having a harddisk and an optical drive in the hub, too.
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Sonnet Echo 15 Docking Stations Delayed for Thunderbolt 2 Upgrade
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Crickets
That's what we hear... Crickets.
(chirp chirp, echo echo, chirp chirp)
{same post I made on the other Echo thread}
That's what we hear... Crickets.
(chirp chirp, echo echo, chirp chirp)
{same post I made on the other Echo thread}
I read in a German website that it is being certified and going to ship early summer.
I bought the Startech TB2, but I need one more, and this seems to be the only one with eSATA+FireWire+optical audio.
Will some 4K adapter really work with the right computer?
I bought the Startech TB2, but I need one more, and this seems to be the only one with eSATA+FireWire+optical audio.
Will some 4K adapter really work with the right computer?
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They are supposed to update us at the end of August:
The Echo 15+ Thunderbolt 2 Dock has recently completed Thunderbolt Certification testing and we have begun manufacturing. We expect to begin shipping against our very large backlog of pre-orders the first half of September 2015 and anticipate that it will take a number of weeks to work our way through all of the orders.
We will provide another status update at the end of August.
I'd really like to see this dock in action. If it does what it promises it'll be a part of my set-up.
The Echo 15+ Thunderbolt 2 Dock has recently completed Thunderbolt Certification testing and we have begun manufacturing. We expect to begin shipping against our very large backlog of pre-orders the first half of September 2015 and anticipate that it will take a number of weeks to work our way through all of the orders.
We will provide another status update at the end of August.
I'd really like to see this dock in action. If it does what it promises it'll be a part of my set-up.
More to the point, right on time for Apple to switch over to Thunderbolt 3 (which we now know is going to incorporate USB-C).
Meanwhile, since this product was first announced sometime back in the 14th century, the number of people for whom a built-in optical drive was a Unique Selling Point mush have diminished considerably...
Agreed. Also, it was cheaper for me to get the OWC Thunderbolt 2 dock and an external BluRay. That's been working out well for me. As you said, Echo has simply taken too long.
They're finally shipping:
http://www.sonnettech.com/product/echo15thunderboltdock.html
I wonder if it works good or doesn't.
http://www.sonnettech.com/product/echo15thunderboltdock.html
I wonder if it works good or doesn't.
Four problems...
1. As mentioned earlier, 2.5 years ago, an optical drive would have been a killer feature for many people. Now, not so many (what's a DVD grandad?) - ditto eSATA with USB3 now widespread and cheap.
2. $700 for the blu ray writer version - no HD. Seriously? It has more functionality than the $200 Caldigit dock, true, I like the idea of a dock with a built-in HD, but worth $500 more? Caldigit stuff isn't exactly the economy option, so its not like I'm comparing a TB dock to a Walmart own brand USB hub. TB Dock prices have dropped slightly in the last 2.5 years, but Sonnet's price seems to have crept up...
3. Ye gods and little fishes, how many times did they have to hit this with the ugly stick? The prototype wasn't exactly a looker but was at least fairly neutral and functional. The production model looks hideous - Couldn't they have added a bellows and a 1930s CRT tube to complete that Brazil/Bladerunner look? Where's the hex keypad so I can enter the bootstrap code on the front panel and start up CP/M! OK, that's superficial but then they're charging Apple-level prices, and one big selling point of this over (say) a Caldigit TD 2 and a cheap eSATA HD enclosure is neatness - which isn't helped if you have to hide it under the table to avoid scaring small children.
4. TB3 is coming. OK, this isn't a critique of the product as it stands - they couldn't have produced a TB3 version without waiting at least another year, but now I'm wondering if, next year, I'll be able to buy a TB3 or USB3 dock that will power my 2016 MacBook Pro, drive a 5k display and not need extra adapters... I'm a lot less willling to sink money into TB2 kit now than I would have been in 2013...
Question is, will this appeal to "Pro" users who will pay the money if they need the functionality (which I think is how Sonnet's other products, such as PCIe expansion chassis work: whats $600 when nothing else will let you connect your $2000 pro digitiser card to your laptop?) I suspect that docks are more of a prosumer product (any video pros out there actually need to burn blu-ray from their editing machine?)