Another Mac and PC computer setup stands in the spotlight today — this time a MacBook Pro and PC laptop driving a 4K display and an array of peripherals through an Orico Thunderbolt 3 dock bristling with 15 ports.
The setup emphasizes gaming, too, with a PlayStation 5 mounted under the desk. We’ll take a look at that, too.
This post contains affiliate links. Cult of Mac may earn a commission when you use our links to buy items.
Orico Thunderbolt 3 dock serves as nexus in MacBook Pro and PC gaming setup
YouTuber and Redditor MiRealEscape showcased the sleek-but-not-complete setup in a post entitled, “Macbook Pro Setup version 1.0.” He runs a 14-inch M1 Pro MacBook Pro and a PC laptop, along with a 28-inch Asus 4K display, PS5 and other peripherals, through a dock bristling with ports that we haven’t seen before — the Orico 15-1 Thunderbolt 3 USB-C Docking Station.
“This is my semi-complete MacBook Pro Setup. I also swap it out with a Windows laptop for my remote work,” he said. “For my personal use, I do content creation as I started a YouTube channel where I test out home office and gaming tech mostly. Hence the lazy cable management, as I swap things in and out a lot.”
Note the reference to and justification for “lazy cable management.” He knows setup junkies on social media throw fits over loose cables.
“I tried to go with a dark aesthetic for this,” he added. “Next time I think I’ll go black and white. Along with changing the location with a standing desk. I don’t use the Alex drawers that much.” The Ikea Alex drawers hold up the desktop, a butcher countertop.
Orico Thunderbolt 3 dock
The Orico Thunderbolt 3 Docking Station with 15 Ports looks formidable. As TB3, it can reach data-transfer speeds of 40Gbps from TB3 or TB4 devices. And you can run a single 5K@60Hz display or dual 4K@60Hz displays through it. It provides up to 60 watts of fast charging to a MacBook and a secondary TB3 port offers an additional 15W to downstream devices.
Here’s the port lineup:
2x Thunderbolt 3 ports
2x USB3.1 Gen 2 Type C 10Gbps
1x USB3.1 Gen 2 A 10Gbps
2x USB3.1 Gen 1 A 5Gbps
2x USB2.0 A 480Mbps
DisplayPort 1.4
RJ45 LAN Gigabit Ethernet port
SD/TF card reader
Audio in and out
PlayStation 5 mounted under the desk
An old-school PlayStation 5 sits in a “Stealth” under-desk mount. Photo: [email protected]
MiRealEscape noted that his “under desk PS5 Stealth mount [is] holding up the OG disc PS5.” So he’s got an old-school gaming rig there, but the same setup works for newer versions. We included these along with other setup gear in the links list below.
The Monzlteck Stealth under-desk mount is designed for PS5 and PS5 Slim. It’s a metal mount fastened with half a dozen screws. A protective cover keeps the mount brackets from scratching the console. The design avoids blocking airflow to help with cooling.
Shop these items now:
Computers and dock:
Display and monitor light:
Input devices:
Furniture:
If you would like to see your setup featured on Cult of Mac, send some high-res pictures to [email protected]. Please provide a detailed list of your equipment. Tell us what you like or dislike about your setup, and fill us in on any special touches, challenges and plans for new additions.
This 15-in-1 Thunderbolt 3 dock is capable of of 5K and dual 4K display configurations and includes data transfer speeds up to 40Gbps. Peripherals connectivity through 15 ports is epic.
BenQ is a brand best known for displays, but the BenQ beCreatus DP1310 is a USB-C dock designed to connect multiple monitors (some BenQ-made, perhaps) to a laptop via USB-C.
Unlike many competitor devices, this unit looks much more like HiFi hardware than computer equipment, with the on/off button on the front giving a distinct volume control appearance.
Despite its looks, this USB-C docking station was designed to connect a laptop using USB-C to power and peripherals with a single cable. While the ports appear identical, this isn’t a Thunderbolt dock for those with that port on their laptop.
It offers a triple monitor connection with two HDMI ports and one DisplayPort, four USB 3.2 Gen 2 ports, one of which is USB-C, dual USB 2.0, a LAN port, and a 3.5mm audio jack.
The caveat to the port selection is that this is all driven from a single USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C downlink from the laptop, so a 10Gbps line is divided between all those potential devices.
In short, the more things you connect, the smaller a bandwidth slice of the pie each will get.
Using the display outputs also requires a software driver for DisplayLink to be installed on the host system, or it won’t work.
As well-made as the BenQ DP1310 is and lovely, it is an expensive USB-C dock that can’t negate some of the significant limitations of using USB-C technology in this way come with inherently.
However, with 100W charging provided for the connected laptop, it will work with the more demanding systems and charge them while in use. Also, the ability to control a second HDMI source may attract some game developers.
BenQ beCreatus DP1310: Price and availability
(Image credit: Mark Pickavance)
How much does it cost? $299/£309/€ 360
When is it out? It is starting to be available now
Where can you get it? Through online retailers like Amazon.
The price for the BenQ DP1310 is reasonably consistent across regions. Using Amazon as the source, it costs $299 in the USA, £309 in the UK, and €360 across most of Europe. With exchange adjustments, this is one of those common examples of a product being cheaper in the USA than in Europe.
The snag with that price is that Thunderbolt docks are cheaper than this, like the $287.99 StarTech Thunderbolt 3 Dock.
Those wanting a cheap USB-C dock without the 100W charging can get the Belkin 14-part USB-C Docking Station for about half the asking price of the BenQ.
From a value perspective, the BenQ has a hill to climb.
BenQ beCreatus DP1310: Specs
Swipe to scroll horizontally
Technology
USB-C, DisplayLink
Compatibility
Windows, macOS, Android, iOS, ChromeOS, Ubuntu
Number of Ports
13
Ports
1x USB 3.2 Gen 2 upstream, 3x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A, 1x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C, 2x USB 2,0 Type-A, 1x HDMI 2.1, 1x HDMI 2.0, 1x DisplayPort, 1x HDMI 2.0 in, 1x universal audio combo jack, 1x 1GbE RJ45 Ethernet port
Upstream power
100W
Size
156 x 103 x 40 (mm) (W x D x H)
Weight
?550g
Accessories
Adapter 180W 19.5V 9.23A
BenQ beCreatus DP1310 Design
(Image credit: Mark Pickavance)
Compact and stylish
Passively cooled
Unique port selection
At 550g, the BenQ DP1310 feels heavier than expected for a small aluminium box of 156 x 103 x 40mm, making it much smaller than typical USB-C docks.
The source of the heft is balanced between the internal components and a substantial aluminium case, capped front and back by plastic facia.
The extruded metal tube that provides most of the enclosure has a corrugated profile to help radiate heat and avoid the need for cooling fans and air vents.
Rubber feet are on both the base and the end, providing some choice as to how it can be orientated, and vertical would work well on a busy desktop.
The stylists behind this design clearly thought about HiFi when they designed this dock, as the large green power button. Sadly, this doesn’t rotate, which might be a missed opportunity.
It is dual function, but not in the way you might expect. Pressing it for three seconds powers the dock, and after it’s on, click it once the video output mode changes.
Along with the dramatic power button, the front has two 10Gbps USB Type-A ports, a single USB-C 10Gbps port with up to 36W power output (ideal for phone charging), and a 3.5mm headphone jack socket.
The rear has another Type-A 10Gbps port, two USB 2.0 ports for the mouse and keyboard, the USB-C downstream from the laptop, a 1Gbit LAN port, three HDMI ports and one DisplayPort.
Just to confuse matters, it doesn’t have four display outputs since one of the HDMI ports is an input. One of the HDMI ports is rated as a 2.1 specification, with 120Hz at 4K or 60Hz at 8K resolution.
(Image credit: Mark Pickavance)
In the box with the dock is a large FSP Group branded PSU rated for 19.5V at 9.23A with a total output of 180W, a UK and EU power cable (for European customers), a BenQ-certified USB 2.1 HDMI cable and a USB-C 3,2 Gen 2×2 rated cable.
It’s unclear why the USB cable is rated for Gen 2×2 20Gbps, as the dock only connects using Gen 2 10Gbps, even if support for Gen 2×2 would have been wonderful.
BenQ beCreatus DP1310: Features
Oversubscribed USB bandwidth
HDMI in and out
100W charging power
Having four USB ports, each rated for 10Gbps, there is something of an obvious over-subscription when the dock only connects to the host using a single 10Gbps connection. And that doesn’t consider the extra demands added by the LAN port, display outputs or the USB 2.0 ports.
Anyone using this needs to know that copying a file from a Gen 2 capable external SSD to another connected to the dock will not go at the marketed 1,000MB/s if any other ports are in use.
That’s why Thunderbolt is such a popular dock technology; dividing up 40Gbps between lots of ports is easier than allocating a portion of 10Gbps for multiple uses.
While using an external SDD and a mouse and keyboard won’t run into big trouble with a monitor connected, there are limits to using USB-C as the whole bandwidth channel, and purchasers should be aware of those.
One odd twist about using USB for displays is that this isn’t an inherent feature of the technology. A software driver is required to configure a data pathway for the display data to travel over USB using either DisplayLink or SiliconMotion technology, and BenQ went with DisplayLink in this context.
A large sticker on the top of the BenQ DP1310 tells the owner to go to a specific website and download the driver onto the computer to provide this functionality. Without this driver, the display outputs from the BenQ DP1310 would be largely useless.
That said, one of the HDMI ports is designed to connect another system, possibly a games console, to the box, and then the power button is used to switch the monitor to this source.
That source system isn’t connected in any other way to the dock, so the mouse and keyboard won’t control the games console or second computer when you switch over.
This inclusion makes some sense, as DisplayLink is notorious for creating a lag between the computer and the video output that might be acceptable for office work but unsuitable for gaming.
The reasonable question is why you would do that, as most monitors have more than one input, and you could select a second source directly using the same cable connected to the dock.
Using DisplayLink, it is possible to connect two HDMI outputs and a single DisplayPort monitor to the dock, although because of the limited bandwidth, they can’t be 8K at 60Hz.
It can only support 8K with a single display connected, and a second display (HDMI or DP) is at 4K, or all three outputs can be 4K.
(Image credit: Mark Pickavance)
That description of the choices has numerous problems because not all laptops support 8K, and most can only effectively drive a single 4K output, not dual or triple outputs.
The issues mostly relate to integrated GPUs that use shared memory from the system, which cannot drive multiple displays with good enough performance for video playback. Some of AMD and Intel’s new ARC designs are better than prior technologies.
Those lucky enough to have discrete graphics cards onboard might be better positioned. Still, multiple high-resolution panels are more effectively driven with desktop systems and video cards that full PCIe slots can install.
Undoubtedly, the best aspect of the BenQ DP1310 is its power distribution model. The single USB-C connecting line delivers 100W of charging power to the attached laptop, covering almost any laptop. Another 36W can be sourced from the front-facing USB-C for phone or tablet charging, and another 7.5W can be obtained from each USB-A port.
Impressively, this unit can output a tremendous amount of power while maintaining an internal temperature of a maximum of 40C for prolonged periods.
(Image credit: BenQ Inc.)
BenQ beCreatus DP1310: Verdict
A few issues with this dock might put some customers off, and they slightly undermine a beautifully made piece of hardware.
But let’s first cover what BenQ got right. That charging power of 100W is ideal for most users, even if it makes the PSU rather large.
Most modern laptops need at least 65W to charge and run. Those with an onboard discrete GPU might want 89W or more, and BenQ is looking to service that market with this device.
You can use it with a low-power laptop or a Chromebook, but that isn’t what this dock is designed for. These won’t support the three monitor outputs that the BenQ DP1310 offers, making it somewhat redundant.
These mobile workstations and gaming machines often have Thunderbolt ports, yet the BenQ DP1310 was designed to exploit USB 3.2 Gen 2 instead.
The choice of USB-C implemented with DisplayLink technology has well-documented limitations that might only become apparent after initial use.
Of these, the one that causes the most consternation is the latency created by the encoding of the data stream, making it entirely unsuitable for gaming or interactive graphics.
It might be fine for office work but not for gaming. The workaround for that is the HDMI in port, which would allow a machine with HDMI out to be connected to the dock without delays in DisplayLink. However, would it be simpler to connect it directly to the monitor than to connect two HDMI cables via the dock?
These caveats make us wonder if BenQ engineers fully thought the DP1310 through, as the USB-C and Thunderbolt docks market is remarkably competitive.
While the engineering and design that went into the BenQ DP1310 is excellent, it stretches a single USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 port beyond its practical limits, and maybe Thunderbolt or USB 4.0 might have been a better choice.
BenQ beCreatus DP1310: Report card
Swipe to scroll horizontally
Value
Priced like it’s a Thunderbolt Dock, but it is USB-C
3 / 5
Design
Small, elegant and very well-made
3,5 / 5
Features
Many ports and input link for HDMI from second source
4 / 5
Total
For a USB-C dock this should be cheaper. But it’s a high-quality item even if it can’t compete with a Thunderbolt alternative.
Game on the go with this Nintendo Switch dock and charger combo. Photo: Cult of Mac Deals
For Nintendo Switch gamers, it’s all about portability. But let’s face it: That Super Smash Bros. session can end all too early if you’ve forgotten to fully charge up the device. That’s just one of the problems solved by this $35.99 portable Nintendo Switch dock and charger.
Again, this is much more than a simple Nintendo Switch charger, but it does that job impressively. It uses USB 3.1 Type-C PD to deliver 36W of fast charging. Better still, you can game without fear of overheating or blowing your voltage thanks to a smart GaN chip that regulates the output.
Another major bonus? You can also use it to charge compatible phones and tablets.
But here’s the best part. While your Switch is plugged in and charging, you can use the HDMI port to route the feed to your smart TV or other monitor. Games like The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom and Monster Hunter Rise deserve a big-screen presentation. And this Nintendo Switch dock and charger lets you do just that. The HDMI port can accommodate 4K screens at an impressive 60 Hz, ensuring Switch gamers don’t miss any graphics details.
You get all that in a hub that weighs just a few ounces and is small enough to fit in your back pocket. There are many Nintendo Switch accessories that can enhance your gameplay, but this might be the only one you truly need for gaming on the go.
makes some of our favorite third-party game controllers. The gamepads work with a variety of devices (now including the ) and they’re well-built. Right now, you can pick up a bundle of an 8BitDo Ultimate Controller and charging dock for $56 on Amazon. That’s 20 percent off and close to a record low. It’s the best price we’ve seen so far this year.
8Bitdo
8Bitdo makes some of the best third-party game controllers around. This one is compatible with PC, Switch, Steam Deck and even Apple Vision Pro.
If you’re a Prime member and you’re signed in, you’ll see that the controller is sold by 8BitDo directly. Otherwise, you’ll see the peripheral for the same price, but a third-party seller is flogging it instead.
Along with other devices, the Ultimate Controller is compatible with Nintendo Switch and Steam Deck over Bluetooth or a 2.4g adapter. To connect wirelessly to a Windows PC, you’ll need to use the adapter.
You can use a PC or mobile app to customize the sensitivity of the joysticks, triggers and vibrations, as well as to remap the buttons, add macros and create settings profiles that are saved to the controller. Other features include Hall effect sensing joysticks that will likely be more resistant to wear and drift than many other joysticks, a pair of back paddle buttons and motion controls.
While 8BitDo says that you’ll get up to 22 hours of use out of a single charge, having a dedicated dock to plunk the Ultimate Controller into is handy. In a neat touch, the controller automatically turns off or on when you dock or undock it, respectively.
Overall, the Ultimate Controller is a great, flexible gamepad (for one thing, it’s one of the few third-party controllers that can wake a Switch from sleep mode). After six months of using the peripheral, Engadget Senior Commerce Writer Jeff Dunn a “comfortable and versatile pro-style pad that should stay alive over the long haul” and “my endgame controller for both Switch and PC.”
The Belkin Auto-Tracking Stand Pro can hold up an iPhone, rotate and tilt to keep the camera focused on the user during video calls. It’s wish fulfillment for every TikTok or YouTube creator working alone. The same goes for anyone who’s frequently in video conferences.
I went hands on with the accessory and my iPhone 15. And wow, this thing is impressive.
This post contains affiliate links. Cult of Mac may earn a commission when you use our links to buy items.
Belkin Auto-Tracking Stand Pro review
When video chatting with an iPhone, you can hold your iPhone or put it in a stand. In the first option, the camera moves too much. In the second, it doesn’t move enough. The same is true when making a TikTok or YouTube video without someone handling the camera for you.
Belkin Auto-Tracking Stand Pro can be your camera operator. Place an iPhone 12 or newer model on the MagSafe connector and the stand automatically rotates 360 degrees (and more) or tilts up and down 90 degrees to keep you on camera.
It works with both front and rear cameras, and can charge the iPhone at the same time.
Table of contents
Your robot camera operator pal
Belkin’s new iPhone stand pans and tilts to keep the camera following you. Photo: Belkin
Belkin Auto-Tracking Stand Pro is cylindrical and about 8.5 inches tall. It’s just large enough to do what it needs to do and no bigger. The gadget won’t crowd your desk, though be sure to give it room to move.
The accessory needs to be a cylinder so it can rotate a full 180 degrees. If for some reason you want to film yourself walking around and around, you can.
A MagSafe charging mat sits at the top of a short arm. This magnetically holds your iPhone, and can tilt 45 degrees upward or downward. So yes, you can jump up and down on camera if you want to.
Because the connection is magnetic, you can easily position your handset’s camera in landscape mode to record YouTube videos or in portrait mode for TikTok videos.
I put the dock on my desk so it’s ready for video calls, and to keep my iPhone battery topped off with the wireless charger. It makes a great stand for the handset — just don’t force the motors to move to position the screen.
DockKit enabled
There have been similar products before, but the Belkin Auto-Tracking Stand Pro stands out by using Apple’s own DockKit system. That means it doesn’t require a third-party application — the tech is already built into the iPhone.
DockKit is part of iOS 17 and was unveiled at WWDC2023. “It determines how to best position the iPhone camera to frame and track objects, with improved person tracking using combined body and face tracking for human subjects,” noted Apple.
There are limitations. Most notably, the iPhone video application you want to use must support DockKit. FaceTime does, of course, but Slack does not. I expect more software support soon — Belkin’s recently released iPhone camera dock is the first to be DockKit-enabled.
And the software is intended for video. You can’t use it to center yourself in a still image. For example, when using the Apple Camera app on my iPhone, DockKit only activates in Video mode. Switch to Photo and my iPhone camera stops following me.
I’m hoping Apple changes this in DockKit 2.0. It should stay active when taking a still images. It’s great for selfies.
Belkin iPhone camera dock simply works
Belkin’s iPhone camera dock is right at home helping with a FaceTime call. Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
My testing of the Auto-Tracking Stand Pro began even before I realized it. Last autumn, I had a video call with a Belkin spokesperson during which she got up and moved around. The camera smoothly followed her, and I assumed she was calling me from an iPad with Center Stage. No, she then revealed she was demonstrating her company’s upcoming iPhone camera stand.
I was blown away. The camera moved smoothly, and perfectly quietly, too. I really thought it was a fully software solution, not hardware.
Once I got an Auto-Tracking Stand Pro to test for myself, I continued to be impressed because it simply works. I don’t have to do anything complicated — put my phone on the dock, activate it, run a video or conferencing application, and forget about worrying about the camera. It’s going to follow me, no matter how much I move around.
I hesitate to say the system keeps me centered when recording — DockKit is actually smarter than that. In my testing, the iPhone camera dock doesn’t twitch every time I move slightly. That’s good — too much camera movement is distracting and even potentially nauseating for viewers. Instead, I’m kept somewhere near the center of the image, and the dock only moves when I significantly change position.
That said, I don’t want to overstate the capabilities of Belkin Auto-Tracking Stand Pro. Unlike a human running the camera, the device can’t anticipate my actions. When I start walking to one side, the camera follows me, but there’s a brief delay. In other words, it’s a lot better than a static camera, but neither is it perfect.
As for multiple people on camera, my experiments indicate that the Belkin iPhone camera dock follows the first person it sees. When I start a recording then have another person join me, the camera stays on me if they walk off. It’ll angle to try to keep both of us in frame, but if we get too far apart, I take priority.
And DockKit offers a neat trick: when I’m holding something off to one side, the camera keeps me and the object centered in the frame. It’s just what you want if you’re going to use video to demonstrate a product. And if I’m on a FaceTime call while looking at my MacBook, the camera will angle itself to show both me and the laptop so it’s clear I’m not staring off into space.
Both front and rear cameras supported
The system supports recording with both the front- and rear-facing cameras. In my testing, the front camera works perfectly for video conferences — but then, that’s what it’s there for.
Before recording your TikTok or YouTube video with the rear camera, I recommend doing some experiments with the front one to get used to the quirks of Belkin’s accessory and DockKit. Then flip to the rear camera and start filming.
I tested the limits of the hardware/software so you don’t have to. My iPhone and the Belkin Auto-Tracking Stand Pro continue to follow me even when I’m 20 feet away from the camera. That’s as far as I could get in my office.
I also tested to see how quickly I had to move to get off the camera. I literally had to run while only about five feet from the camera to be going too fast for it. So it’s probably ready for you to record an exercise video.
Belkin camera dock vs. Apple Center Stage
Center Stage is a brilliant feature that lets an iPad’s front-facing camera follow someone on a video call. There are a lot of similarities to Belkin’s iPhone camera dock with DockKit, but some significant differences too.
Most notably, Center Stage only works in video conferencing apps. It’s not intended for recording video. And even if it did, the feature only supports the tablet’s front-facing camera, limiting the resolution.
Belkin Auto-Tracking Stand Pro gets power via a 5-foot USB-C cable, and it comes with the necessary wall adapter.
The accessory does not have to be plugged in to operate — it has its own built-in battery — so you can position it wherever you need, including the middle of a large room. However, it will not charge your iPhone without an external source of power.
Belkin says the battery is good for five hours of use. Mine lasts longer than that, so the exact length depends on how much you move around.
Belkin Auto-Tracking Stand Pro final thoughts
The Belkin Auto-Tracking Stand Pro can be your virtual cameraman, whether you’re making a TikTok video or simply on a video call. Photo: Belkin
Belkin and Apple collaborated to make the best iPhone accessory it’s been my pleasure to test in years. It’s not going to replace human camera operators, but it’s a godsend for any video creator working alone.
I regularly watch college lectures on YouTube, and the Belkin Auto-Tracking Stand Pro would be ideal for these. A professor can address the class directly then walk over to a whiteboard and they’ll smoothly stay on camera. Without needing help from anyone.
All in all, it’s a blessing for video creators of almost any type. And it’s great for those who are on frequent video conferences, too.
★★★★★
Frankly, I’d give it more stars if I could.
Pricing
Belkin Auto-Tracking Stand Pro costs $179.99. It’s available now.
Popular accessory company Satechi offers a wide variety of docks and hubs compatible with Apple’s Mac lineup, and I’ve recently spent some time testing out the company’s $150 USB-C Dual Dock Stand that adds a significant amount of connectivity to your Mac while remaining tucked out of sight and even giving your laptop a bit of extra breathing room.
Perhaps the most noteworthy design aspect of the USB-C Dual Dock Stand is right in the name, and that’s the fact that it serves as a stand to elevate your Mac laptop on a desk, allowing for extra airflow to help keep things cool and giving a couple extra inches of height to the display to bring it a little closer to eye level and perhaps make for a bit more comfortable typing position if you’re using your MacBook’s keyboard.
The dock measures right around 12 inches (30 cm) wide, and its wedge-shaped form factor sits nicely under the rear portion of a Mac laptop. Rubber feet on the dock help with stability, and there’s a raised rubber ridge on the top surface of the dock for your Mac to sit on without scratching either the Mac or the dock. Openings on the front and back bottom edges of the dock provide some ventilation for the dock itself, but I didn’t notice anything getting significantly warm.
The dock is largely constructed of space gray aluminum with a black top, and there’s some clean Satechi branding in white on the top, though all of this will be essentially invisible if you’ve got your Mac sitting on top of it. A 7.5-inch integrated dual cable sticks out one end of the dock, terminating in USB-C connectors for hooking the dock up to your computer. There’s a space gray collar around the two connectors that spaces them perfectly to connect to adjacent USB-C ports on recent Macs with a single motion, or if you’ve got a compatible machine with different port spacing, the collar can slide back to give you more wiggle room with the individual connectors.
Most of the dock’s other features are along the rear side, allowing you to route cables out of sight off the back of your desk. In addition to a color-coded sliding power switch and a white LED that confirms whether the dock has power, the USB-C Dual Dock Stand includes nine ports along the back side. There are two USB-C ports (one supporting up to 10 Gbps and one up to 5 Gbps), two USB-A ports (similarly with one at up to 10 Gbps and one at up to 5 Gbps), and a Gigabit Ethernet port if you need a wired data connection. For display compatibility, there are two HDMI 2.0 ports each supporting up to a 4K display at 60Hz, plus a DisplayPort 1.4 port also supporting up to 4K60Hz.
Depending on your Mac, the USB-C Dual Dock Stand can support up to two external displays, with either both connected via HDMI or one via HDMI and one via DisplayPort. The USB-C ports on the dock do not support video, so you can’t connect external displays via that method. If you’re running an Apple silicon Mac, you’ll need one of the higher-level Pro or Max chips to support dual external displays, and if you have a base M1, M2, or M3 chip you’ll be limited to one external display.
In addition to Apple silicon Macs, select Intel-based MacBook Pro and MacBook Air models are also supported, as are a handful of Windows machines such as the Microsoft Surface Pro 9 and Surface Laptop Studio, Lenovo Yoga 6 and 7i, Samsung Galaxy Book 3 Ultra, and Dell XPS 15.
There’s one final port on the rear of the dock, and that’s a USB-C port for accepting incoming power. The dock can be bus-powered from the connected Mac, but performance under heavy load will be hampered. Using an external power adapter, which isn’t provided in the box but should be readily available to most users, the dock can draw up to around 15 watts while providing up to 75 watts of passthrough power to the connected Mac, ensuring you only need one connection to your Mac for everything. I used the 140-watt Apple power adapter that came with my MacBook Pro, and it provided all the power the dock needed while I also saw 69 watts of power going to my Mac, which was plenty to refuel it quickly and keep it charged up during use.
Beyond all of the rear ports. the USB-C Dual Dock Stand has one more trick up its sleeve, and that’s a built-in SSD bay, letting you add some external storage (sold separately) to your Mac for backups or extra storage space without taking up any additional physical space. The enclosure accepts M.2 SATA and NVMe SSDs at up to 6 Gbps for SATA drives and 10 Gbps for NVMe drives. SSD sizes of 2242, 2260, and 2280 are all supported, and I used a fast 2 TB WD_BLACK NVMe drive in a 2280 size for my testing.
Installation was fairly simple, requiring easy removal of a cover on the bottom of the dock to access the drive bay and installation of an adhesive thermal pad to prepare for adding the SSD. From there, it was just a matter of sliding the SSD into the socket in the bay, pressing it flat, and securing it with the provided screw and screwdriver. Getting the tiny screw in the proper position down in the drive bay was a little bit of a finicky process, but it only took a couple of minutes to get everything assembled.
With the SSD installed in the dock, the drive mounts when the dock is connected to the Mac giving you easy to access to however much additional storage you’ve added. My testing showed write speeds of 975 MB/s and read speeds of 880 MB/s, and while there are certainly external enclosures out there that can support faster speeds with this drive, the performance was quite solid.
USB ports proved to be a bit more of a mixed bag. The ports on this dock are intended to be primarily for data use, so they don’t provide significant charging capabilities. They offer enough power to support most low-demand accessories like a thumb drive or even my Stream Deck, but they struggle more with higher-power devices like bus-powered external SSDs. One of my test enclosures worked fine when connected to the 5 Gbps USB-C port on the dock, but my Mac threw up an error about drawing too much power when I connected the enclosure to the 10 Gbps USB-C port. So just be aware that while this dock provides some nice flexibility for USB connectivity, you won’t be able to connect high-powered peripherals like Apple’s SuperDrive or quickly recharge an iPhone.
Display connectivity is as you would expect, and I had no issues driving a pair of 4K external displays in either the dual HDMI or the HDMI/DisplayPort configuration. Displays hooked up via the dock looked good and I experienced no connectivity glitches. It’s worth emphasizing that with no support for USB-C/Thunderbolt displays and a maximum of 4K supported over HDMI and Thunderbolt, you won’t be able to use higher-resolution displays like the Apple Studio Display with this dock. But the popularity of 4K options means many users will already be using displays that do work.
I did notice that physically plugging and unplugging some of the beefier connectors like HDMI and DisplayPort from the dock could be a bit tricky as the dock tucked under my MacBook Pro tended to slide around a bit, but I got the hang of stabilizing the dock on its two ends while manipulating the connectors. Fortunately, one of the main points of a dock is to allow all of your peripherals to remain connected, so you shouldn’t need to be plugging and unplugging both things very frequently.
Overall, Satechi’s USB-C Dual Dock Stand offers a nice set of features for those looking to beef up their MacBook desk setup. It offers enough ports to provide some extra connectivity, plus the onboard SSD bay is a nice inclusion. The dock’s form factor means it can be tucked cleanly out of the way while also offering some minor ergonomic benefits. And while it’s around a foot long, the fact that it can include an onboard SSD and runs off of either bus power or the USB-C power adapter you probably have in your bag already, it’s fairly portable.
The dock is missing a few features like support for USB-C display connections and an SD card reader, but if its feature set meets your needs, it’s worthy of consideration. While you can find some USB-C hubs with dual 4K display support for less, $150 really isn’t a bad price considering the extra features this dock brings. Just remember you’ll need to spend a bit more for the SSD to go inside it if you want to take advantage of that feature.
Note: Satechi provided MacRumors with the USB-C Dual Dock Stand for the purposes of this review. No other compensation was received. MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Satechi and B&H Photo. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.
OWC has discounted the popular 14-Port Thunderbolt 3 Dock down to $99.99, from its original price of $279.99. This is a match of the all-time low price on the accessory, which is set to expire on Monday, April 1. Besides this dock, you’ll find a large collection of accessories on sale at this time on OWC, including USB-C hubs, external drives and enclosures, and internal memory upgrade kits for Mac.
Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with OWC. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.
In regards to the 14-Port Thunderbolt 3 Dock, this accessory features two Thunderbolt 3 ports, five USB Type-A ports, one USB Type-C port, one Mini DisplayPort port, one gigabit Ethernet port, one S/PDIF digital audio output port, and one 3.5mm stereo audio input/output port. There are also two memory card slots for microSD and SD cards.
All of the devices listed below are in new condition at OWC, although the retailer does provide various item condition options for anyone who might want to save money by purchasing open box items. Be sure to visit OWC’s sale landing page to browse the full sale, which also features deals on cables, Mac accessories, keyboards, and headphones.
Docks and Hubs
External Drives and Enclosures
Memory
Miscellaneous
Keep up with all of this week’s best discounts on Apple products and related accessories in our dedicated Apple Deals roundup.
Apple will introduce new iPad Pro and iPad Air models in early May, according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman. Gurman previously suggested the new iPads would come out in March, and then April, but the timeline has been pushed back once again. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Apple is working on updates to both the iPad Pro and iPad Air models. The iPad Pro models will…
Phishing attacks taking advantage of Apple’s password reset feature have become increasingly common, according to a report from KrebsOnSecurity. Multiple Apple users have been targeted in an attack that bombards them with an endless stream of notifications or multi-factor authentication (MFA) messages in an attempt to cause panic so they’ll respond favorably to social engineering. An…
At least some Apple software engineers continue to believe that iOS 18 will be the “biggest” update in the iPhone’s history, according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman. Below, we recap rumored features and changes for the iPhone. “The iOS 18 update is expected to be the most ambitious overhaul of the iPhone’s software in its history, according to people working on the upgrade,” wrote Gurman, in a r…
Apple on late Tuesday released revised versions of iOS 17.4.1 and iPadOS 17.4.1 with an updated build number of 21E237, according to MacRumors contributor Aaron Perris. The updates previously had a build number of 21E236. The revised updates are available for all iPhone and iPad models that are compatible with iOS 17 and iPadOS 17, but they can only be installed via the Finder app on macOS…
With the App Store and app ecosystem undergoing major changes in the European Union, The Wall Street Journal today shared a profile on App Store chief Phil Schiller, who is responsible for the App Store. Though Schiller transitioned from marketing chief to “Apple Fellow” in 2020 to take a step back from Apple and spend more time on personal projects and friends, he is reportedly working…
Apple may be planning to add support for “custom routes” in Apple Maps in iOS 18, according to code reviewed by MacRumors. Apple Maps does not currently offer a way to input self-selected routes, with Maps users limited to Apple’s pre-selected options, but that may change in iOS 18. Apple has pushed an iOS 18 file to its maps backend labeled “CustomRouteCreation.” While not much is revealed…
Apple this month sued its former employee Andrew Aude in California state court, alleging that he breached the company’s confidentiality agreement and violated labor laws by leaking sensitive information to the media and employees at other tech companies. Apple has demanded a jury trial, and it is seeking damages in excess of $25,000. Aude joined Apple as an iOS software engineer in 2016,…
It’s the best of both worlds: A computer setup with a Mac and a PC. They each have their strengths. But how best to use both in the same workstation? Well, today’s setup does it with a MacBook Pro and Anker dock arrangement.
The user, a systems engineer for a software developer, relies on an Anker 5-in-1 Thunderbolt 4 dock to connect an M1 Pro MacBook Pro and Windows laptop to displays that suit them, plus other peripherals.
This post contains affiliate links. Cult of Mac may earn a commission when you use our links to buy items.
Setup’s M1 Pro MacBook Pro swaps with PC laptop using Anker 5-in-1 Thunderbolt 4 dock
System engineer and Redditor Stephen Horan (u/stephotosthings) showcased the formidable setup in a post entitled “Finishing Touches.” The setup runs a 14-inch M1 Pro MacBook Pro and an unidentified Windows laptop through an Anker 5-in-1 Thunderbolt 4 dock to a pair of displays and other peripherals. A fifth-gen 12.9 iPad Pro rounds out the mix.
“Been working on a cleanish-but-lived-in-feeling setup for a few years,” he said. “I still wonder about going up to a 48-inch monitor and a 27-inch vertical. But if I can get my hands on a cheap LG DualUp in place of the 16:9 vertical monitor then I definitely won’t.”
Horan works for a software developer but also uses the setup for a series of semi-intensive tasks, like photo editing and gaming.
“I work as a system engineer for a software developer, and swap the MacBook out to a Windows laptop with the Thunderbolt dock, Bluetooth accessories [Logitech MX series mouse and mechanical keyboard],” he added. “Personal workflows are photo editing, AI generation, media consumption and some gaming.”
MacBook Pro and Anker dock: Connecting everything
So Horan’s Anker Thunderbolt 4 dock with five ports connects all the vital gear, allowing him to swap the laptops pretty easily. It works with MacBooks running macOS 11 (Big Sur) or later and Windows 10 laptops that include a Thunderbolt 4 port.
And the dock expands connectivity. It offers an 85W Thunderbolt 4 upstream port that connects to a laptop and charges it. Plus he gets three Thunderbolt 4 downstream ports with 15W of charging and 40Gbps data transfer speed, and one USB-A port.
And for displays, the Thunderbolt 4 downstream port supports a single monitor in up to 8K@30Hz, or to dual monitors in up to 4K@60Hz.
The pair of displays would seem to suit Steph’s work and play, as well as their Mac and PC laptops. One is a 25-inch Dell U2520D UltraSharp 1440p monitor running at 60Hz refresh rate (Mac-friendly). The other is a 43-inch Gigabyte Aorus FV43u gaming display running at 144Hz (PC friendly).
DIY shelving
“I also recently added these cheap pine shelves to the space, mainly as I got too much stuff and I want it all on show all the time,” Horan said. See the photograph below.
And if you like the desktop wallpaper on the displays (most clearly on MacBook Pro), Horan said he got it from Basic Apple Guy.
Shop these items now:
Here’s a shot of the whole office nook, complete with DIY pine shelves for extra gear. Photo: [email protected]
Computers and dock:
Displays:
Input devices:
Audio:
If you would like to see your setup featured on Cult of Mac, send some high-res pictures to [email protected]. Please provide a detailed list of your equipment. Tell us what you like or dislike about your setup, and fill us in on any special touches, challenges and plans for new additions.
This compact dock features up to 85-watt charging for a laptop, 15W charging for other connected devices, single 8K@30Hz or dual 4K@60Hz display support, USB 3.1 Gen 2 port. Works with MacBook Pro/Air and more.
Thunderbolt docks bristling with ports are great tools for connecting your Mac to displays and other peripherals in your computer setup. And right now you can get excellent deals at Amazon on well-reviewed 15-port CalDigit Thunderbolt 3 dock or — for blazing-fast connectivity — an 18-port Thunderbolt 4 dock.
This post contains affiliate links. Cult of Mac may earn a commission when you use our links to buy items.
CalDigit Thunderbolt dock deals: Get up to $80 off Thunderbolt 4 and Thunderbolt 3 devices
The TS4 dock’s 98-watt power delivery is ideal for any Thunderbolt or USB-C host device, including larger-screen laptops that require plenty of power. A single cable will charge your laptop and connect 18 devices at once.
This dock sports an impressive 18 ports providing connectivity for even the most demanding workflows. Ports include a built-in DisplayPort 1.4 connector, a total of eight USB ports with full 10Gb/s performance. You also get SD and microSD 4.0 UHS-II graphics card readers, three Thunderbolt 4 (40Gb/s) ports, three audio ports, 2.5GbE and a security slot.
Display options
For macOS users, the dock can connect a single display up to 6K running at a 60Hz refresh rate. Users on M1 Pro and M1 Max can connect up to dual 6K 60Hz displays, while users on Intel based Macs can connect up to dual 4K 60Hz displays. Users on original M1 Macs are limited to a single display only. Windows users can connect up to dual 4K 60Hz monitors.
The TS4’s 2.5GbE port for data transfer is twice as fast as standard 1GbE, allowing users to connect to faster networks, routers and NAS devices. This port is fully backwards compatible with 1GbE devices.
The dock works with Thunderbolt 4, Thunderbolt 3, USB4, and USB-C computers. Those include M2, M1, M1 Pro, M1 Max, M1 Ultra, Intel-based Macs, Windows PCs and Chrome OS devices. It is also compatible with the new USB-C iPhone 15 and 15 Pro, and tablets including iPads and Windows tablets that feature Thunderbolt or USB-C.
You can pick up the CalDigit TS4 Thunderbolt 4 Dock for $80 off — $449.95 $399.95 (plus $30 off coupon for price of $369.95).
For many users, CalDigit’s TS3 dock is plenty. Photo: CalDigit
For those who don’t need so much speed and power — and for those who want to spend less — the CalDigit TS3 Plus Thunderbolt 3 dock is a great device.
So the dock, which provides 87W charging, bristles with 15 ports. Port include two Thunderbolt 3 (40Gb/s), one DisplayPort 1.2, five USB-A and one USB-C 3.1 Gen 1 (5Gb/s), and one USB-C 3.1 Gen2 (10Gb/s data only). The dock also features Gigabit Ethernet, UHS-II SD graphics card slot (SD 4.0), optical audio (S/PDIF), and 3.5mm stereo audio. The dock’s sturdy aluminum construction provides a heat sink without a fan.
And you can connect up to two 4K@60Hz (4096 x 2160 30-bit color) monitors via DisplayPort and Thunderbolt 3/USB-C port. Or you can connect a single 5K@60Hz display via the Thunderbolt 3 port. (Note that M1 Macs cannot support dual display over Thunderbolt.)
You can nab CalDigit’s Thunderbolt 3 dock for $249.95 (apply $50 off coupon for price of $199.95).
The versatile dock features 18 ports and 98W charging. Ports: 3x Thunderbolt 4 40Gb/s, 5 x USB-A, 3 x USB-C (10Gb/s), 2.5GbE, single 8K or dual 6K 60Hz displays. Compatible with Mac, PC, Chrome via 0.8m cable.
OWC has again knocked the price of the popular 14-Port Thunderbolt 3 Dock down to $99.99, from its original price of $279.99. This is a match of the all-time low price on the accessory, which we last tracked earlier in March. Besides this dock, you’ll find a large collection of accessories on sale at this time on OWC, including USB-C hubs, external drives and enclosures, and internal memory upgrade kits for Mac.
Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with OWC. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.
In regards to the 14-Port Thunderbolt 3 Dock, this accessory features two Thunderbolt 3 ports, five USB Type-A ports, one USB Type-C port, one Mini DisplayPort port, one gigabit Ethernet port, one S/PDIF digital audio output port, and one 3.5mm stereo audio input/output port. There are also two memory card slots for microSD and SD cards.
All of the devices listed below are in new condition at OWC, although the retailer does provide various item condition options for anyone who might want to save money by purchasing open box items. Be sure to visit OWC’s sale landing page to browse the full sale, which also features deals on cables, Mac accessories, keyboards, and headphones.
Docks and Hubs
External Drives and Enclosures
Memory
Miscellaneous
Keep up with all of this week’s best discounts on Apple products and related accessories in our dedicated Apple Deals roundup.
Apple’s iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models concurrently, which is why we sometimes get rumored feature leaks so far ahead of launch. The iPhone 17 series is no different, and already we have some idea of what to expect from Apple’s 2025 smartphone lineup. If you plan to skip…
Apple today released iOS 17.4.1 and iPadOS 17.4.1, minor updates to the iOS 17 and iPadOS 17 operating systems. The new software comes a couple of weeks after Apple released iOS 17.4 and iPadOS 17.4 with app changes in the European Union, new emoji, and more. iOS 17.4.1 and iPadOS 17.4.1 can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to Settings > General > Software…
Apple plans to maximize the display size on the upcoming iPhone 16 series by using a new ultra-thin bezel technology, claims a new report out of Korea. According to Sisa Journal, Apple will use Border Reduction Structure (BRS) technology to minimize the bezel at the bottom of the display. BRS achieves this by rolling up the internal copper wiring into a more compact package. Apple…
Apple’s next-generation iPad Pro models will be offered with a matte display option for the first time, according to the Weibo leaker known as “Instant Digital.” The Weibo user explained that the iPad Pro’s new matte display option will be offered in addition to the standard, glossy glass finish. It apparently features -4° to +29° of haze and may tout some kind of blue-light blocking…
The next-generation iPad Air is now reportedly shipping to the United States and other countries in preparation for launch. The rumor comes from the leaker known as “Instant Digital,” who claims that manufacturers in China are now shipping the 2024 iPad Air in two sizes to overseas locations. “Everything is ready” for launch, the Weibo user says. The sixth-generation iPad Air is rumored…
Earlier this week, leaker “Instant Digital” on Chinese blogging site Weibo claimed that Apple will be making an iPad-related announcement next Tuesday, March 26, suggesting a potential press release introduction ahead of pre-orders and a launch date. Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman has now weighed in, however, to say that this claim is “not true.” While disputing a March 26 announcement, Gurman has…
The next-generation iPad Pro models will feature thinner bezels around the screen compared to previous models, according to a rumor shared today by a previously-accurate leaker known as “Instant Digital” on Chinese social media platform Weibo. The leaker claimed that the next 11-inch and 12.9-inch iPad Pro models will have 7.12mm and 7.08mm bezels, respectively, when excluding the metal…
Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with OWC. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.
Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with OWC. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.