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15" MBP Docking Stands?

cwa107


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The Elgato Thunderbolt dock finally made it here today, having been on the slow boat from China.

This thing seems pretty good thus far. Audio quality is notably better than the CalDigit and everything seems to work as it should. The next test is to see how well it drives two 23" monitors!
 

pigoo3

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The next test is to see how well it drives two 23" monitors!

Chris...I'm curious about this part. Isn't this docking station (like many notebook docks)...really just a giant hub (lots of different ports) to make using peripherals with a specific model notebook much easier (less connecting & disconnecting)?

What I mean is (in regards to driving 2 x 23" displays). This dock doesn't actually contain any video processing hardware inside does it?

- If it does...that is VERY interesting.
- If it doesn't...what inside the dock would hamper performance vs. plugging 2 x 23" displays directly into the notebook (assuming 2 x 23" displays can be plugged into your notebook simultaneously).

I did take a quick look on the web in terms of it's specs. Maybe I missed something.;) Just curious.:)

- Nick
 

cwa107


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Chris...I'm curious about this part. Isn't this docking station (like many notebook docks)...really just a giant hub (lots of different ports) to make using peripherals with a specific model notebook much easier (less connecting & disconnecting)?

What I mean is (in regards to driving 2 x 23" displays). This dock doesn't actually contain any video hardware inside does it?

- If it does...that is VERY interesting.
- If it doesn't...what inside the dock would hamper performance vs. plugging 2 x 23" displays directly into the notebook (assuming 2 x 23" displays can be plugged into the notebook simultaneously.

I did take a quick look on the web in terms of it's specs. Maybe I missed something.;) Just curious.:)

- Nick

I'm sorry, I didn't mean to imply that the dock itself is doing the GPU's work. However, there is a thunderbolt bridge there, as well as a USB 3.0 hub and USB audio codec. So, it's more than just a dumb hub.

Also, to my knowledge, short of buying a display with DisplayPort or Thunderbolt daisy chaining (rare as hen's teeth), there is no other way to attach two external monitors to a MacBook Pro with a single Thunderbolt port. And yes, I'm aware they make USB video cards, but those are a joke.

So, that's what I meant by "driving"....
 

pigoo3

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So, it's more than just a dumb hub.

Ok...I got it. You said it VERY succinctly. It's not a "dumb hub"!;)

Also, to my knowledge, short of buying a display with DisplayPort or Thunderbolt daisy chaining (rare as hen's teeth), there is no other way to attach two external monitors to a MacBook Pro with a single Thunderbolt port.

Good deal. Understand what you're saying here too!:) I knew Thunderbolt peripherals could be daisy chained...but that the hardware to do this wasn't cheap (and what you mentioned not commonly available).

I also couldn't remember what model MBP you had. I know some slightly older MBP's have 1 Thunderbolt port...and newer ones (last couple years) have two Thunderbolt ports.

Thanks for explaining,:)

- Nick
 
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The Elgato Thunderbolt dock finally made it here today, having been on the slow boat from China.

This thing seems pretty good thus far. Audio quality is notably better than the CalDigit and everything seems to work as it should. The next test is to see how well it drives two 23" monitors!

Report back in a few weeks please! I really need a docking station, but I'm not exactly anywhere near my desk for a while ;)
 
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So, how's it working out so far?
 

cwa107


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So, how's it working out so far?

The only problem I have with it - and this is likely more about the way that Thunderbolt works and less about the dock itself - is that devices plugged into it aren't active until the machine boots fully.

Normally this wouldn't be a problem, but since OS X Yosemite has you login before the system is fully booted, my external keyboard/mouse combo are not active and I have to use the laptop's own trackpad and keyboard.

Otherwise, all other functions are working exactly as expected. The USB3 transfer rates are in-line with what I've seen from other USB3 devices (mind you, my MacBook Pro is the 2011 model that does not have USB3 natively). I have all of my network activity channeled through the dock's own gigabit ethernet, and I have external speakers connected to the audio port. In terms of audio quality, I find it indistinguishable from the native audio on the Mac (though I am no audiophile, to be sure).

One other item to note - because my MBP lives on a Rain Design mStand, It's elevated a few inches above my desk and the bundled Thunderbolt cable was not long enough to comfortably position the dock where I wanted it (behind the stand). It might have been OK beneath the stand, but my desk setup works better with the dock a few inches behind. I ordered the 1M Thunderbolt cable (Apple OEM), and though pricey, it does the trick and gives me a lot more latitude.

The next step is to get a second 23" monitor and connect it via HDMI and run the MBP in clamshell mode continuously. I have been putting this off, to be honest, in light of some of the stories I'm reading about older MBPs and GPU failures. For now, I am content with just the one 23" monitor and the 15" screen. Sorry if that's the portion of the review you were looking forward to hearing about.
 

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