Docking Stations are the new Printers.

[-]

oldsongsong@reddit

Agreed, OP. I did sense that AMD based computers are pretty trouble with USB C 3.2 docks.

Did you experience similar things? Many times I need to upgrade my users AMD drivers, but still many failures.

[-]

The WD19S ones work ok, all things considered. Just keep some heat shrink ready in case the connector falls apart and use laptops from manufacturers who give half a shit about established standards (i.e. not Apple).

[-]

saucyeggnchee@reddit

Surface docks were the bane of my existence back when I was on service desk. My monitors won't turn on! Unplug and re-connect your dock cable. Only one is on now! Unplug from the back of the dock and reconnect in the same order. But they're flipped now. I said in the same order, swtich them. Now it's not charging! Let's wipe off the connector, it probably has some grime. That did it!

Rinse and repeat.

[-]

WrapTimely@reddit

I’m loving this thread! At one point I nearly ninja starred my surface book into the drywall. It was a fine PC off the dock, but holy moly was it a pain with the dock!!! I lost so much work if that thing went to sleep or I had to go to a meeting and dared to undock it without shutting down.

I almost swore Microsoft had to be scrubbing the web of complaints and issues. Searches were not producing enough outrage for what we were seeing consistently across our surface devices and docks. I was like we have to be getting gaslit here!

I would rant for hours on how we had docks that worked flawlessly in 2007 why is this a problem?

My current surface laptop and dock2 mostly works, have to pull the usb on occasion to get dual monitors working.

[-]

landob@reddit

Got to the point where we quit buying them for majority of the staff.

[-]

AlexIsPlaying@reddit

Almost all Surface one of our client bought got some hardware problems.

[-]

Schrojo18@reddit

Of any docks I've used the MS surface docks are the only ones that have caused hair to be pulled out. Probably half the issue is the Surfaces themselves.

[-]

OutsidePerson5@reddit

Several years ago I had Surfaces just stop working with external monitors through their dock. Or any dock. Wipe the Surface? Nope still won't work. Update the drivers/firmware for the dock? There are no standalone drivers or updates, Windows update or nothing.

I never could find a solution.

[-]

Fig_Nuton@reddit

Surface docks definitely suck for the price. Updating the firmware resurrected these for me a few times though.

[-]

segagamer@reddit

I think, and I may be misremembering, that the one thing that solved all of the Surface Dock issues I was experiencing had to do with the Mini DP or USB-C cables being active or passive.

I didn't even know display cables had such a varience, but once I got that variance right, we've had ZERO issues with the docks.

[-]

Sengfeng@reddit

Any dock that fails to work properly with the adapted cables the OEM itself makes deserves thrown in a lake.

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UrDadSellsAv0n@reddit

So glad u have not had to deal with one of these in a while. WHY should a dock ever need to be updated???

[-]

Illustrious_Menu1026@reddit

surface docks now are some of the most reliable pieces of equipment we have. Not a single problem with them. We overspend on gaming monitors though, not sure if that matters.

[-]

DDRDiesel@reddit

Yeah coming into this thread seeing all the Surface Dock hate is weird to me. We've got a whole fleet of various Surface laptops of various ages and the docks have been more or less reliable way past the expected service life (3-5 years). Unfortunately when a user has a problem the first thing they blame is the dock and not anything else, so now our Executive team has us buying these cheap Chinesium USB-C port replicators. They're working okay for now, but I'm scared of when enough of these get onto the network and start having problems one by one, I'm going to be the one that has the uncomfortable conversation with higher-ups about why I didn't like them in the first place

[-]

SilentSamurai@reddit

The proprietary connect is the biggest issue with those surface docks. They should have all been USB-C

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elsjpq@reddit

USB-C wouldn't be any better, it just makes things even more complicated. I had a dock that would drop ethernet randomly during high load, a menace for zoom calls

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emmaudD@reddit

Indeed, when we had the USB-C, things were complicated, and I just couldn`t

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ZPrimed@reddit

Surface connect plug at least doesn't get destroyed when the user drops a binder on it though. USB-C is way too fragile for the average drooling idiot

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mongoosekinetics@reddit

And they require constant firmware updates to resolve issues, but the update can only be pushed to them from a Surface plugged into the dock and using the Surface update software on the computer. No RMM method for pushing it out.

[-]

Aperture_Kubi@reddit

I loved that connector. Zero insertion and removal force, and you can flick it and not fear about breaking anything.

[-]

Competitive-Dog-4207@reddit

Fuck anything surface that shit is straight garbage.

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Creepy-Editor-3573@reddit (OP)

Did these for a while. I love that blowing out the port and reversing the adapter was a thing. The Surface Dock Update utility. The first Surface Books that was kind of a mess with docks and the machine.

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ADtotheHD@reddit

USB-C daisy chainable displays

You’re welcome

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thearctican@reddit

USB is not a display protocol.

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pcefulpolarbear@reddit

i bet you’re enjoyable to work with

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thearctican@reddit

Specificity keeps the cloud running.

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pcefulpolarbear@reddit

it’s specific, they are either referring to displayport or displaylink and i never seen a monitor itself that supports displaylink. its more specific than saying “displayport monitor” because displayport has at least 3 different form factors

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rybl@reddit

USB is a form factor. DisplayPort is a display protocol.

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ADtotheHD@reddit

I never said it was super-chief

If you want to get specific and ACKtHIALLy me, it’s DisplayPort over USB-C.

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gt@reddit

omg i didn't know these existed and you have saved my soul

[-]

ADtotheHD@reddit

Some of the displays even have Ethernet ports built in so you can hard wire your network connect. They can double as a dock.

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marblemorning@reddit

And usb for mouse and keyboard? And a charger for the laptop? This is why most people have docks, not just for the monitors.

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ADtotheHD@reddit

If you play your cards right and get the right display, it solves all of this. The laptop can charge over the same usb and mouse/keyboard can plug into a hub in the display.

Are you still using wired keyboards and mice instead of Bluetooth?

[-]

SynchronizeYourDogma@reddit

Philips 345B1C 👌

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rcmaehl@reddit

This is the way. We're on HP E24u displays and they've been flawless

[-]

georgecm12@reddit

We've been doing "dockable monitors" for a couple of years now. We've done the Dell C2422HE and are now using the Lenovo T24mv-30.

The C2422HE still has those times where you have to tell them to unplug the USB cable, unplug the monitor power cable, press the power button on the back of the monitor to discharge it, then plug everything back in and turn it back on. We've only had the Lenovo monitors a few months, but so far, no issues... they just work.

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fizzlefist@reddit

I’ve started seeing those in use at some orgs and the setup looks so sick. When they work, it’s like finally fulfilling that magic “1 cable does it all” schtick that USB-C was born for.

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Professional_Bar7949@reddit

This is what my company has. We Ethernet to the monitor too. Then it’s just a single USB-C to their device which powers it, extends display and gives them Ethernet connection. It’s magic.

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Creshal@reddit

Welcome to the magical future of (checks notes) 2018.

The first gen tended to have a lot of firmware issues (especially around daisy chaining), but anything we bought past 2021 or so tends to work without hiccups.

[-]

Saan@reddit

We went all in USB-C Displays and never looked back.

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Smashingtorpedo@reddit

We've been rolling out monitors that have the docking station built into the displays. They're great for people who can read and understand display inputs and outputs. I feel like its still a herculean effort to get non-tech people fully grasp what has to be plugged into what. I wish theyd just come out with displays that have only usb c ports

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soundman1024@reddit

I put color coded tape on our telework kits. It’s also useful for troubleshooting. “Unplug the green wire” is way easier for time users than unplug the monitor cable, it’s a DisplayPort.

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Smashingtorpedo@reddit

That sounds so smart, holy crap. Unfortunately, I work for the state, so I doubt I could get an idea pushed like this, but man, I'm tempted to try.

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soundman1024@reddit

I'm in government as well. Paper tape is cheap. There is a labor cost, so maybe you do it for new hires and users most likely to benefit from color-coded labels.

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CatDiaspora@reddit

“Unplug the green wire” is way easier...

I'm in government as well.

ADA lawsuit from one of your colorblind employees in 3 ... 2 ... 1...

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Slick424@reddit

Write a number on it. Problem solved.

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rybl@reddit

Are your end users remote? Why do non-tech people need to understand how to hook them up?

[-]

Smashingtorpedo@reddit

Yeah, we have a lot of hybrid users. We have setups in office that are pretty easy to do, but unfortunately, the users are at the mercy of an instructional video. Which i thought was helpful but still a little vague on some points and might need a little finagling. Unfortunately, I am lower on the totem pole, so I just voice my concerns at the video's shortcomings and continue to help people who call in.

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bob_cramit@reddit

Did exactly that around 2018 with dell monitors and laptops.

Standardized to one monitor model and one laptop model.

We even linked the usb hubs in the 2 monitors for extra usb ports as the monitors didn’t have network. Keyboard, mouse and usb network adapter all plugged into the monitors.

Few small issues here and there but nothing major. It’s been great.

Slowly replacing the monitors with newer models with built in network as the older ones start to have screen fade issues.

No idea why people still use separate docks.

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soundman1024@reddit

Great if your devices support DisplayPort MST. Rules out Macs.

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ADtotheHD@reddit

gif

[-]

MairusuPawa@reddit

Indeed. You want DP-MST.

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cor315@reddit

Yes they're great. The problem is explaining to staff that their monitor is also a dock.

[-]

nukevi@reddit

Just to note, this is Thunderbolt, not USB-C.

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33Fraise33@reddit

It is DisplayPort over USB-C and the daisy chaining is called DisplayPort MST and it does not work on Mac.

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AdWonderful9302@reddit

I bought in Dell USB-C daisy chained displays. Great technology, but have had issues with the daisy chained monitor, especially early on.

Newer models seem to handle this a lot better.

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Ziegelphilie@reddit

Really wish Dell's monitors came with better cables though. 1 meter usb-c is just a tiny bit too short, and they're not really flexible either.

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AdWonderful9302@reddit

I agree. I also hate how thicc the end is, especially in the initial monitors I ordered in 2019z Employees stress then hell out of their USB-C ports

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Conpen@reddit

No good for Macs sadly.

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TheThirdHippo@reddit

I second this. Had no end of issues with TB docks, USB-C were better but still played up a lot. Been buying Dell USB-C dock monitors since Covid and they’re pretty solid

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Creepy-Editor-3573@reddit (OP)

Thanks

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PoOLITICSS@reddit

We go with the pricey ones at our place and barely run into issue (over usb-c specced laptops only too)

But if we do need to go for a cheap one. Only go for ugreen. Solid choice

[-]

Heyfool3000@reddit

X1 carbon + ThinkPad Dock = endless issues and require Lenovo Vantage updates often enough to be a major headache. Not to mention having to change BIOS settings and turn off Thunderbolt 4 to get peripherals to work seemingly at random.

[-]

MairusuPawa@reddit

Considering the Superfish fiasco, Lenovo Vantage is one the last things I'd ever want on my laptop.

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Heyfool3000@reddit

Explain the Superfish fiasco

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Limeasaurus@reddit

We've had many tickets about Dell and Kensington docking stations. My boss bought a bunch of LIONWEI 13 IN 1 USB C Docking Stations from Amazon for $40 each and they've rock solid. I'm a bit surprised, to be honest.

[-]

MasterPip@reddit

My job buys the ones from Star-something. Forget the name. Startech? Can't remember off the top of my head. I get someone at least once a week coming for a new one because it crapped out. We have maybe 70ish in the entire place. Lenovo keeps changing theirs with every single model upgrade on their laptops and it was costing a fortune to keep up so they went to a universal one that plugs into the USB C port. Convenient but utterly garbage.

[-]

Hackwork89@reddit

What are your issues? I have collected a massive list over the years over problems and solutions for dock, maybe I can see your issue on the list and help you.

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ArSo12@reddit

The dell ones get very noisy.

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Hackwork89@reddit

Never even met a dock that made noise. Clean it?

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ArSo12@reddit

They are not dirty They have very bad termal culture (?)

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Living_Unit@reddit

we have ~200 WD19's and maybe 1 dock problem every 2 weeks

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raffey_goode@reddit

Any time we have issues, firmware fixes it. i'd argue the same for the laptops. run dell command update and lo & behold, issues gone.

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First_Ad_6837@reddit

Dock monitors are the way to go, period.

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solracarevir@reddit

Weird. my Team barely see Docking station issues. We have around 120.

What Brand / Model are you buying.

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BisonST@reddit

Dell WD19s checking in. No problems in years.

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Wd91@reddit

We have WD19s, get plenty of issues, in fairness usually fixed with firmware updates. Fan noise is the big issue that leads to them getting binned most often though.

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Creepy-Editor-3573@reddit (OP)

"Dock fan failure" - Reboot the dock, hold the button down, "Yeah it didn't say it this time." Cool! Three weeks later "Dock Fan Failure" ok..

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J53151@reddit

I wish there was a way to run a full diagnostics on the dock, specifically the fan.

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Intelligent_Title_90@reddit

We had 2 WD19s fans that were on full throttle all the time even though nothing was obscuring airflow and the room was climatised. They were brand new and still under warranty, Dell sent us replacements without any hassle. I guess it's a known issue.

Edit: I posted this comment as a response to Wd91 but decided to delete it and post it here, in case it helps you too.

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Intelligent_Title_90@reddit

We had 2 WD19s fans were on full throttle all the time even though nothing was obscuring airflow and the room was climatised. They were brand new and still under warranty, Dell sent us replacements without any hassle. I guess it's a known issue.

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Tom_Ford-8632@reddit

WD22s are fine too. One batch of them was acting up until I updated the firmware, after that theyve been pretty good.

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vincentTheDragon@reddit

For devices that have tb4 we use: pluggable TBT4-UD5 for the older pc’s we use: UD-3900 It’s been pretty stable we have about 170 of the old ones and 20 of the thunderbolt docks.

[-]

jdlnewborn@reddit

Who cares what they have…what are YOU using that you have success with? Ive used Lenovo ones and been happy with, but getting a few HP G5’s that were on sale.

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Hopeful_Extreme4084@reddit

Dell WDS19DS and all of its sibling models around that time have caused NOTHING but trouble for about 2 years now.

[-]

never-seen-them-fing@reddit

HP G5 docks are the WORST thing in the fucking world. They constantly require firmware updates, constantly drop monitor connections, regularly stop charging the laptop entirely, regularly can't switch between wifi and hardwire connections.

I fucking hate them.

[-]

TrowaB3@reddit

Work great for us with Elitebooks. Just gotta update them with hpia as they get unboxed.

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cowprince@reddit

We've got ZBooks and really don't have any issues with the thunderbolt version of them either. I have seen on random rare occasion where we'd have to Win+Ctrl+Shift+B to fix a monitor flicker issue. But it's not very often. I run 3 1080p monitors in the office and a pair of 1080 and a center 1440 at home.

[-]

fearless-fossa@reddit

I've discarded about fifty of those this week. Man was I happy to see them go. Both the G5 and the G4 dock deserve a special place in hell, along with whoever designed them.

At least they fit in properly with the rest of HP hardware.

[-]

pdp10@reddit

The USB-Ethernet interface in a dock is just a plain USB-Ethernet chip. It's the laptop OS's job to switch between them.

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dstew74@reddit

Yeah, complete dogshit. I've been able to use "remote work" to cut a monitor and therefore those docks from new user setups. Now users just get a monitor that plugs directly into the laptop.

We also don't request that monitors get shipped back during off-boarding anymore.

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Wild_Swimmingpool@reddit

Can fucking confirm. It was so bad we accelerated our move to 1440p screens so we could get monitors with built in docks and the WD w/e out of our environment.

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Fraktyl@reddit

Which monitors are you using that have built in docks? We're about to do a monitor refresh here.

Thanks

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Wild_Swimmingpool@reddit

We’re using the Dell Ultrasharp line. Specifically a U2722DE and U2722D. The DE has the built in Ethernet port and docking station but the D line pretty much does all the same except for the wired Ethernet port. They daisy chain display too which is nice.

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Aperture_Kubi@reddit

U2722DE

What's the ethernet behavior with sleep mode?

I have a Samsung LS49A950U and the ethernet and usb ports all disable when the connected computer goes to sleep. Then I can't wake from the mouse or keyboard and it has to go through a rediscovery of everything including ethernet.

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Wild_Swimmingpool@reddit

USB ports definitely stay active. The goal I set for this is for someone to come into the office, plug in their laptop closed, tap the space bar and have it all pull up. We’ve been able to make that happen here. I’m not 100% sure on the Ethernet and sleep mode. Not something I’ve tested

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Hardiiee@reddit

We use the p2725he paired up with a p2722h in our offices.

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themanbow@reddit

Dell's WD__ docks got better as the "year" digits increased. WD15 was terrible. WD19 (and variants) were better, but still had problems. WD22 are a bit more solid..

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ZPrimed@reddit

I've been using a WD19TB on a Mac for almost a year, but MacOS 15 made it stop working 🤦‍♂️

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CyclicRate38@reddit

Oh those things are the fucking worst.

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omglolbah@reddit

Odd. I have 30ish WD19S docks at work and the only issue I have is with Mac users here and there.

I do wish they had a replaceable cable though, as I've had two with damaged usb-c connectors :(

[-]

jeffmartel@reddit

No real issue with the WD19S or WD19TB. We have now WD22TB4 and still working fine. We have 100+.

[-]

B4zza@reddit

The thing that annoys me the most with the docks, and causes a lot of issues for us, is the port for the dock on laptops and the lead from the dock are on the same side.

This I find cause people to put stress on it as unlike Dells pretty pictures people don't sit with the laptop in front of the dock taking up desk space. They have them as far back on their desks as possible, side by side, which means the leads have to double back past either the dock or the laptop, depending on where the use places them, puttingting stress on the USB C port causing no end of trouble.

Number one problem from this is screwing the charging board in the laptop. Results in the laptop not charge or overheating when charging, messing up the battery or in worst case, the whole laptop, requiring a new on being shipped from Dell.

Oh and the price of them.

Bring back the clunky plug in the bottom docks, those things would work no matter what!

[-]

FiftyFathoms666@reddit

I dealt with Dell for 6 months and they're docking solutions were TERRIBLE. Every single morning, I had to plug my computer in, reboot it, sometimes twice, to get the connected screens to function. And this is just one random problem I had as a user, let alone all the others. Patches on patches on patches, nothing fixed it. I'm with a company that uses HP now and I haven't had a single issue all month!

[-]

Intabus@reddit

Chiming in on the Lenovo branded docks. Been using them since COVID got us all sent home back in 2020 and have not had a single dock failure. We only run maybe 20 of them though. We started with Kensington universal usb-c docks but those are pricey for hit or miss compatibility.

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JazzlikeSurround6612@reddit

Yeah +1 for Lenovo don't remember the exact model but we get the ones with, usb-c, 2 hdmi and 2 display ports. Those things are beasts don't think I've ever had one go bad yet.

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buecker02@reddit

Just in the last week or so I''m getting several complaints about screens flashing off for a few seconds and then back on. I know they are not the newest screens but with so many popping up at the same time it is confusing.

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bgatesIT@reddit

We were using lenovo TB4 Docks, also had the flashing displays. Switched to Startech docks and they have been rock solid.

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mpaska@reddit

1+. We're running 40+ StarTech TB3DK.... docks for ASUS, Dell and Mac's and they've been rock solid for us too.

Previously also burnt by CalDigit, Lenovo and Dell's shitty docks.

[-]

mcdithers@reddit

I have a whole pile of Lenovo TB3 and TB4 docks that had the same issue. We switched to Plugable brand docks and they’ve solid for well over a year now.

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buecker02@reddit

This is good to hear! I'll have to order some to try out.

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bgatesIT@reddit

We are using the Startechs on our Lenovo PC's and our Mac's

Previously the Lenovo docks did not play nice with the new addition of mac's in the environment and have been atrociously buggy on our Lenovo laptops(current model P16s/t14s)

Nice thing about the Startech ones there device agnostic and dont rely on that fake displayport driver like the lenovo docks use, i forget the actually term for it

[-]

slp0923@reddit

Us too. We have the ThinkPad USB-C Dock Gen 2 - Type 40AS units and holy hell we have so many display issues. Lenovo has recommended disable DSC which seems to help with some users but not a full solution and the issue still crops up a lot. We've opted to replace cables on some setups which also seemed to help in some cases.

[-]

Flexhead@reddit

https://support.lenovo.com/us/en/solutions/HT514019

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SirArmor@reddit

1000x this, it really works. It's also not specific to Lenovo docks; I can personally vouch for it working for HP and I've seen reports of it working on Dell, too. The Lenovo tool just makes a registry key, you can do it yourself for other brands.

https://www.dell.com/support/kbdoc/en-us/000197102/how-to-enable-display-stream-compression-on-latitude-precision-and-xps

(The article is titled "enable" but you want to disable DSC to fix the flashing)

[-]

pdp10@reddit

EMI is a serious possibility, also electrical grounding. There are recent threads about these.

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Synergythepariah@reddit

Which model of Lenovo dock?

[-]

buecker02@reddit

Thunderbolt 4

[-]

anxiousinfotech@reddit

Funny enough, we've had absolutely horrendous luck with ALL models of Lenovo docks. Doesn't matter which one or which model of ThinkPad they're connected to, if it's Thunderbolt it's been absolute garbage going back at least 6 years.

On the other hand we've never had a single issue with any variant of the Dell WD19 series docks, especially using them with the Lenovo laptops.

The worse part of these damn things is how hit or miss they are. You tell someone to buy one model because your company has never had an issue with it, and every single one they get will be defective... I swear the real problem is the cables. Too many tiny fragile conductors in too small a connector. The slightest abnormality in the cable, the connector on the cable, or the port on the laptop/dock and it all falls apart.

[-]

VexingRaven@reddit

We use the Hybrid USB C w/ USB A docks. They were better than any of the Thunderbolt docks for us.

[-]

Synergythepariah@reddit

On the other hand we've never had a single issue with any variant of the Dell WD19 series docks

What I genuinely like about those is that the cable bit is replaceable - you also can take a non thunderbolt WD19, swap in a thunderbolt cable/module and upgrade it.

You can also swap in the TB4 cable/module and essentially upgrade a WD19 into a WD22TB4

[-]

changee_of_ways@reddit

I also notice the new Lenovo docks have sucked since they went to USB-C. It really reminds me of USB hubs in the old days. Magic box that just works, until it doesnt. Then fuck you that's why.

[-]

orion3311@reddit

Until you open Teams and it drops calls with them where people just unplug and use wifi, rending your $40k worth of network gear as paperweights.

[-]

thefpspower@reddit

I have one and every now and then it loops trying to negociate display and I have to power cycle it.

[-]

angrysysadminisangry@reddit

Yeah we have Lenovo as well and I get a weird issue where just randomly it stops passing video. Driver/firmware ultra, changing cables etc don't fix. Only fix seems to be to reimage the laptop which is really annoying

[-]

mullethunter111@reddit

Dell. No issues. 100 of them.

[-]

Stuck-In-Blender@reddit

I hate HP G5, HP released an update for them on summer holidays 2023 and it completely stopped functioning in some cases and stopped working after sometime. Annoying as hell, I had to reconnect all the cables myself and had to deal with dozens of tickets about this. Hate G5s man.

[-]

Fragrant-Hamster-325@reddit

All Lenovo docks and Lenovo laptops here. No issues.

We also started to deploy USC-C Samsung monitors. No issues either. Even better because it eliminates the dock entirely and keeps a nice clean desk.

[-]

Caleth@reddit

Best of luck with the HP5G. They start out well, but seem to have trouble with the USB C connectors after a bit. We had units that just would go to sleep and not wake up until power cycled. Or the combo of HP pcs and docks was the issue, but didn't have remotely enough time to run extensive tests.

Point was I had more tix for 5g than anything else dockwise.

[-]

Forgetful_Admin@reddit

Tha vanilla USB-C docks from Dell seem to work well for us. I don't know the model.

Thunderbolt however, they are total crap no matter the brand.

[-]

themanbow@reddit

YES!

A lot of it has to do with the Thunderbolt implementation in Windows, though.

Like you, we did end up switching to vanilla USB-C Dell docks because of this.

[-]

solracarevir@reddit

I'm using Wavlink WL-UMD03

[-]

p47guitars@reddit

we have a lot of those in production. they work well enough. but users get confused when i ask them to power off the dock - they never can find the power button.

[-]

jdlnewborn@reddit

nice price!

[-]

solracarevir@reddit

Yeah. And way better than the old Dell crap we used to buy. Try have triple monitor support, power pass through and a ok amount of USB ports.

Must of our users just use a 34 ultrawide Monitor + their laptop as secondary screen. But we have a few with dual monitor + laptop screen.

[-]

jdlnewborn@reddit

Is it externally powered?

[-]

pdp10@reddit

Docks and docklike hubs accept power in over USB-C. Cheap ones may only pass-through 60W to the upstrem port, but most will do 100W.

[-]

solracarevir@reddit

No need to. But you can power it externally.

[-]

Moyer_guy@reddit

We've had great success with the Dell P3223DE. It's basically a big ass monitor with a built in dock. Got hundreds of them deployed without issues.

Stear clear of any HP or Visiontek docks. Those have had nothing but issues for us and we've tried just about all the models they offer.

[-]

mahsab@reddit

Have the same Dell P3223De and have some issues with network connection dropping out. Ended just plugging a separate USB-ethernet adapter into the back of the monitor.

[-]

OcotilloWells@reddit

We are learning the hard way on Visiontek. If it isn't the dock itself, the power supply goes bad. And if the power supply goes bad and is plugged in, the dock won't work right, like no monitor output. But if it is unplugged from the non-functional power, the dock starts working again.

[-]

Angy_Fox13@reddit

Mostly Lenovo here too they're too expensive and often have to unplug/plug the power cord to get them to work.

[-]

ZipTheZipper@reddit

How? We were using Lenovo USB-C Dock Gen2s and they had a 70% firmware corruption rate. Complete garbage.

[-]

Inevitable-Art-Hello@reddit

Same - we use Anker usb-c docks with 100w anker adapters and they work great.

[-]

sapiengator@reddit

This is the way.

[-]

Jealentuss@reddit

My company is an HP house and has probably a couple hundred G5's deployed. As long as you keep the firmware updated they're pretty flawless besides the occasional powercycle. Only one that we had to swap out was because the lady was cranking the laptop at such a hard angle that the cable frayed out.

[-]

cntry2001@reddit

Plugables have worked great for me basically no issues

[-]

soundman1024@reddit

The Pluggable TBT4-UDZ has been great for us. Solved all sorts of problems with DisplayLink docks like WavLinks. We did move on to just doing a Dell 49” ultrawide with a hub and networking built in, but the TBT4-UDZ has been great everywhere we’ve put them in use.

[-]

Creepy-Editor-3573@reddit (OP)

Dell docks.

[-]

Bluetooth_Sandwich@reddit

I remember during 2020 how many issues had plagued the OEM docks...since then, maybe some random off-shoots but the Dell ones we've been using have been reliable.

[-]

ThinkMarket7640@reddit

My fancy high wattage dual connector dell dock was fine with two monitors, but the moment I attached a third one it’s glitch galore. Every once in a while one of the monitors doesn’t wake up from sleep. Sometimes the image goes all glitchy like in a movie, the first time it happened I thought I was going crazy. USB peripherals randomly don’t work.

[-]

superradguy@reddit

What are you using?

[-]

solracarevir@reddit

This

[-]

Tech_support_Warrior@reddit

Same 200 for us. We are using Dell WD Docks and they are solid.

We've recently been phasing them out in favor of Dell Conference monitors because it ends up being slightly cheaper. P2424HEB monitors have been fantastic.

[-]

NowThatHappened@reddit

Yep, they are a menace, especially the budget ones.

[-]

JazzlikeSurround6612@reddit

Yep this. We pay I believe around $300 a pop but those things run for years and years with no issues. I remember a few times our CFO tried to cheap out and get some rando cheap or generic ones for $100 and of course that ended pretty quickly.

[-]

JasonMaggini@reddit

We had the opposite experience. We had a bunch of expensive Dell docks for workstation laptops, and they've all failed. We ended up getting some ~$50 Anker docks, and they've been working like champs.

[-]

Angy_Fox13@reddit

Same with us but it was Lenovo vs Hodo (cheap on amazon). None of these are even docks (using older terminology) they're port replicators. Docks were the ones where you docked your laptop into it with the bottom port. And those were WAY better than what we've got now. We all have probly seen that.

[-]

talz13@reddit

Only problem with the actual docks were that you had to have the RIGHT docking station for a particular laptop. New laptop? Probably need a new dock! (Especially if changing brands) at least a quality USB c replicator can work on almost anything, from a laptop to a tablet to a phone

[-]

Synergythepariah@reddit

We had a bunch of expensive Dell docks for workstation laptops, and they've all failed.

TB16?

[-]

mazobob66@reddit

Our first models was Dell D6000's. I would guess maybe 20% failure. We now are buying the WD19S model, and it is much more reliable. I would mention that we have to power-cycle them occasionally.

[-]

wilhelm_david@reddit

Why would anyone even buy a dock these days when the Dell monitors have everything built in?

Video/usb/network/laptop charging all in on.e usbc cable

[-]

parad0xIl@reddit

This is the way. Of the 1,000+ deployed, we’ve had less than 10 with issues so far. End users love it, less wires and easier to troubleshoot. Be aware that Macs should have the HE model, even m3 or m4 due to resolution compatibility for multi monitor setups.

[-]

wilhelm_david@reddit

True that, at my work desk my M2 Air will only do 1 monitor out of the 2 linked Dell monitors because Apple were intentionally stingy on the MacMook Air M2, but my home setup with an Alogic usb-c dock will do 2.

Apple have since walked back their poor decisions on the M3 Air.

The Alogic docks are so over-engineered they will just make it happen whether your laptop has capability or not.

That does imply discrete graphics hardware inside the dock though, so it's going to be fine for excel etc but for performant graphics work (or gaming), doubtful.

[-]

parad0xIl@reddit

You’ll need the UltraSharp (serial # ending in HE) version of the Dell hub monitors to have native support with two monitors with the M2 or M3 airs.

But yeah, Mac dual monitor support is overly complicated.

[-]

Agreeable-Date3707@reddit

Weird. I got a D6000 that I use between my Mac and PC for four years and no issues.

Even got my boss to start selling them to clients and we have not had issues besides the occasional one offs.

[-]

mazobob66@reddit

I mean, I estimated a 20% failure, so that means 80% are still in use. That is not a bad success rate. I guess it means I am more pessimistic than optimistic in my view of them. =)

Essentially our procedure is to replace a D6000 with a WD19S as soon as we encounter any issue with a D6000.

[-]

J3ffO@reddit

You'd think it would have a recessed USB-C Port on the docking station so that the plastic can take most of the shock of being yanked around by a feral monkey?

[-]

J3ffO@reddit

How many of the 20% of the docks that are failing are with people who smoke?

[-]

gadget850@reddit

You mean restart the computer inside?

[-]

mazobob66@reddit

No. We have seen a few times that USB devices plugged into the docking station become unresponsive, or sometimes will drop off/on periodically (specifically remember a USB keyboard dongle doing this).

And a few times where a user has 2 monitors connected to the docking station via displayport cables, and 1 of the monitors is detected but no video signal. Nothing done in monitor configuration in Windows fixes it, and a reboot does not fix it. But disconnecting the laptop from the docking station, removing power to the dock and re-plugging it (what I mean by "power cycling" the dock), and the connecting the laptop again fixes the issues.

[-]

8tim@reddit

From memory, a firmware upgrade fixed that

[-]

scottymtp@reddit

On the dock or laptop?

[-]

8tim@reddit

Dock

[-]

notHooptieJ@reddit

the firmware update made it worse for us-

we see cross platform use, and while it made the windows side more stable, it made the mac side displays unusable.

I now use a USBc>HDMI in one side of the mac, and my accessories and network plugged in the dock on the other because displays in that Dell dock are so so unreliable.

[-]

SkiingAway@reddit

I have to ask just because we had so few problems with them.....you are/were running the latest version of the Displaylink Manager software, right?

[-]

dhellgrammite@reddit

We also had users hold down the power button on the dock to discharge it as well

[-]

GuyOnTheInterweb@reddit

Yes, my own docking station (WD19!) requires a power-reboot after a couple of weeks. It's bad programming, as it would only be doing the same thing.

[-]

p47guitars@reddit

You mean restart the computer inside? We just started sending messages to devices that have not restarted in 7 days.

user confused, shutdown pc and turned on again.

[-]

WVjF2mX5VEmoYqsKL4s8@reddit

Too many of our users believe they have a desktop and a laptop

[-]

Vaxtrian@reddit

At our company the D6000s are quite good, maybe 5-10 have failed in the 2 years I've been there, of about 200 in use. The only downside is that newer Dell laptops (5540 and up) don't work that well with the D6000s, so we're getting UD22s for the newer models

[-]

haufii@reddit

We have a few people at my office with WD19S. The only issue I've ran across them is that either the NIC freaks out, or it can't handle processing monitors anymore and gives up. Requires a restart to fix.

[-]

robotbeatrally@reddit

I have a bundle of something19s and wd19s and they are both having high rate of issues.

[-]

shrekerecker97@reddit

Dell put out a firmware update that actually did help with this but that in itself is a headache

[-]

CoccidianOocyst@reddit

WD19 docks - unstable video, disconnects, overall flaky, and the Precision 7770/7780 laptops aren't great either, making troubleshooting very difficult.

[-]

mazobob66@reddit

Don't say that! This may sound bad, but hopefully it is just affecting you.

[-]

notHooptieJ@reddit

the dell docks are all overpriced and awful.

our shop pushes the wd19s out to us and that thing is awful

the $29 jsaux steamdeck dock i bought works better. (i know because it stands in SO SO often)

[-]

Loudergood@reddit

Ethernet jack failed on almost all the D6000s we had in circulation..

[-]

shrekerecker97@reddit

Same here. So God damn irritating

[-]

CobraBubblesJr@reddit

I've seen 2 D6000 failures out of 20, but that's still 10%. My main issue is that they're temperamental. At one client I had to tell everyone in the office only to plug the dock into the left front USB port. Any other ports and mice plugged into the dock wouldn't work. 🤷‍♀️

[-]

D3xbot@reddit

My org saw close to a 40% fail rate with them

[-]

ScottyPinthahouse@reddit

We have a metric fuck ton of dell 5410s that ALL have failing usb-c solder so docks have been acting hinky. We have been using the d6000 dock on a usb-c to USB adapter as a workaround and I hate it with a passion.

[-]

Psychological_Dig564@reddit

My previous shop all of the WD19s were awful. If you looked at that usb c connector wrong the plastic shield popped off.

[-]

kspecial41@reddit

Had that happen a ton at my place too. But according to Dell support, it’s our fault. Not theirs… Had to start taping them up if they were still good otherwise.

[-]

GuyOnTheInterweb@reddit

Happened to my WD19 USB-C connector as well, and of course the other end is wired in so the whole unit has to go back to fix it.

[-]

lakorai@reddit

The TB16's were absolute trash

[-]

AHrubik@reddit

WD15s are trash.

TB19 is better but only supports 100w charging for no Dell and upto 130w for Dell.

WD22TB4 didn't improve on the 19 much if at all.

[-]

matroosoft@reddit

Still waiting for a dock that does 240W which is the max of USB-PD. Our high performance laptops still need their own chargers besides the hub.

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GuyOnTheInterweb@reddit

This sounds like computers that are not safe to put on the lap.. ;-)

[-]

CrestronwithTechron@reddit

Does the WD19DCS not deliver enough for Precisions?

[-]

matroosoft@reddit

Yeah I think they only deliver 200+ watts to some of their own laptops. And we don't have Dell laptops. Also if I recall correctly, you need to connect two USB-c cables to the laptop to get full power.

[-]

funnyfarm299@reddit

WD22s are literally the same dock as the WD19. They just upgraded the thunderbolt chip.

To that point you can actually field upgrade from one model to the other.

[-]

sys_127-0-0-1@reddit

And removed the headphone jack!

[-]

Klynn7@reddit

That actually happened on the 19 with the S models. It was a COVID chip shortage change.

[-]

shrekerecker97@reddit

Don't forget to update the firmware on them. Will save you some massive annoying AF headaches

[-]

Got2Bfree@reddit

Docking Stations are only fun if you have thunderbolt right?

For my private setup, I like Ryzen Laptos because I get more bang for my buck, but they don't have thunderbolt...

[-]

RedFive1976@reddit

I agree the WD19 series is pretty good. I do occasionally have to power-cycle them, but that's like once every few months, maybe twice in a year. We have dozens of them in our offices, and I think we've had 3 go bad.

[-]

woodburyman@reddit

I still have tons of trouble with the WD19TB(S), WD22TB4, and WD19DC docks. Every 2-4 months pretty much every dock needs a power cycle to behave. I did two today alone. The WD19DC docks (For Precision 7000 series, anything with 180w or higher power requirements) really suck, the fans on them fail all the time. And I usually only get 1 year warranty on them, guess when they fail?

[-]

horus-heresy@reddit

I’m still using my wd19tb I got off eBay in 2020 since new job did not send any peripherals. It have not failed once

[-]

StockMarketCasino@reddit

The tb16 ran so damn hot they baked the internals. And wtf is with the square shape

[-]

pcs3rd@reddit

So that's why mine was only $16.
I use it with my Mac, and still needed another external dock on tb passthrough for video.
What a odd piece of equipment.

[-]

virtikle_two@reddit

The TB16 can suck it. I've thrown away hundreds, they are the worst.

[-]

Rackhaad@reddit

Ill never agree with any logic that led them to think that removing the 3.5 mm audio jack was a good idea.

[-]

Embarrassed_End4151@reddit

I use the wd19tb and wd23tb too. They are fkn solid for us

[-]

poi88@reddit

The TB19 model was a huge pain point for us in the past.

[-]

_510Dan@reddit

Oh god... we hopped on the TB16 train early and it was painful.

[-]

BigYoSpeck@reddit

I have my own TB16 and it works flawlessly with Linux on my personal laptop. My work issued laptop which is the exact same model but running Windows 10 the USB devices only work like 1 out of 5 times it's plugged in and if an ethernet cable is connected it constantly disconnects and reconnects all USB devices

[-]

Unable-Entrance3110@reddit

Same experience here.

The cubes were garbage. The slabs are better.

We image our computers still so we used to run into a lot of strange driver problems.

The Advanced Driver Restore feature of Dell Command Update solved 100% of those problems.

[-]

Billtard@reddit

I'm new to this company but been in IT for a long time. This company has lots of TB16 and WD15 docks. They are all broken, breaking, or dead. I'm basically replacing them all now whenever I work on them. There isn't any budget for this but I'm not fighting these stupid things every other day. Just replace it and move on with life.

[-]

Connection-Terrible@reddit

WD22TB4's are THE dock for my organization. Update firmware when you get them and I've been good to go.

[-]

SamuelVimesTrained@reddit

WD 19… needs reset every month or so. WD 19 DC(S) same… But, at least they work after…

[-]

Algent@reddit

The WD15 all failed for us too.

The WD19 have been better with the connector no longer breaking but they are also starting to fail now, fan going 100% probably due to a temp sensor breaking. Luckily for us so far it mostly happened under warranty.

[-]

scsibusfault@reddit

Dell has like 4-6 models of docks, all with random-ass assortments of features and only one or two have all the features you actually want. Headphone jack but no DP, or HDMI DP but no dual HDMI, shit like that.

And whichever one you end up buying, will end up being the one that has major failure issues this cycle.

USBC for docks is just a fucking nightmare. Either the docks fail, or someone drops a book on the port and bends the connector and now either dock or motherboard is fucked forever.

Click-in docks worked. I think in 10 years I had maybe one fail, if that. I've thrown away so many USBC docks.

[-]

EntireFishing@reddit

Ah the good days of click in docks. Then someone made a port replicator. And downhill all the way

[-]

blameline@reddit

I had a Fujitsu Lifebook some years ago and their docking stations for home and office. Never. Ever. Failed.

[-]

greet_the_sun@reddit

Then someone made a port replicator

Uhh I don't know if other companies use different terminologies but for Dell at least the "port replicator" WAS their line of click in docks, and they were cheap and basically indestructible:

https://www.amazon.com/Dell-EPort-Advanced-Replicator-Latitudes/dp/B01LYNM3AK?source=ps-sl-shoppingads-lpcontext&ref_=fplfs&psc=1&smid=A1WZHIS83L0QRK

I saw maybe 2-3 out of a fleet of 100+ die over 5 years and 0 issues otherwise.

[-]

EntireFishing@reddit

Docks for me were what you linked to. A click on platform. Port replicators started I guess around 2010 and were the USB devices we have now

[-]

land8844@reddit

Dock ≈ port replicator

They're interchangeable terms.

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GuyOnTheInterweb@reddit

The difference I guess is in wiring, the port replicator needs loads of contact points as wires go straight through. A dock will connect to the bus somehow, e.g. with USB-C.

[-]

scsibusfault@reddit

Yeah, didn't want to be that guy, but "port replicators" were click-in-docks' official names for sure (at least for Dell, anyway).

[-]

land8844@reddit

HP, too. I had some old Elitebook 8440p laptops that had port replicators. They were the click-in type.

[-]

WeirdAlDavis@reddit

I did end user support for longer than I’d care to admit. I had exactly two of those snap in docks fail on me across our entire user base during that time. Those things were indeed bulletproof

[-]

purpletees@reddit

Dell has like 4-6 models of docks, all with random-ass assortments of features and only one or two have all the features you actually want. Headphone jack but no DP, or HDMI DP but no dual HDMI, shit like that.

"Peanut butter, no jelly. Hamburger, no ham"

[-]

marklein@reddit

Sticking with the known brands is probably the winning formula. Anker and Pluggable are 2 brands I wouldn't think twice about using.

[-]

netsysllc@reddit

you have never had Dell ones then

[-]

marklein@reddit

100% of our Dell docks have been 100% reliable.

[-]

Moscato359@reddit

I have had 2 dell docks that occassionally flicker over hdmi but not over display port in the last year

[-]

netsysllc@reddit

maybe they have gotten better, but the WD16, WD19, WD22 and others have had a lot of issues, this subreddit is full of posts about the problems

[-]

notHooptieJ@reddit

I'll vouch for this.

our shop pushes out Dell wd19s, and they're fcking awful

the boss and the engineer like them, and theirs work, so "they're the best docs weve ever used" so the rest of us to have to unplug and replug the monitor 4-6 times a days can get fckd.

mine is awful i end up just running a usbc to HDMI from my other c ports, and leave network and usb in the awful dell thing.

[-]

marklein@reddit

Yeah, I don't get it. We run WD22.

I think that if you're looking for complaints then you'll find them. Kind of like how if you go to the tech support section for iPhone you'll see nothing but threads about stuff that doesn't work right, even though iPhones are one of the more reliable things ever.

[-]

netsysllc@reddit

Sure, but the ones before that were pure crap. I have never seen iphones with 90% failure or issues

[-]

fgc_hero@reddit

I second this. My previous job had these and didn't see any of these die out on me during my 2 years over there lol

[-]

badtux99@reddit

I have some Pluggable gear here that I will give you for free. Because it’s junk. Both the docks and the standalone usb3 network interfaces. See my other post for the woes I have had with them. The best I can say is that they are no worse than the big name ones. Like saying a knife wound is no worse than a gunshot wound at that point.

[-]

jmbpiano@reddit

Absolutely. My first exposure to Anker was a top-loading USB SATA hard drive dock. I was a little worried (based solely on how inexpensive it was) that it would turn out to be a piece of garbage. It absolutely wasn't.

Years later I've bought dozens of bits of kit from Anker both for business and personally and I've never been disappointed. That HD dock is sitting on my desk right now worn, dusted with grime, but still perfectly functional.

[-]

ambient_whooshing@reddit

Wow, same first Anker product I bought as well. It took me a while to even notice it. We give them so much money now.

[-]

inbeforethelube@reddit

The early Anker gear was a lot of knock offChinese crap. At some point they started designing or getting exclusive rights to better material and designs. Since then they have been a top tier brand.

[-]

yankeesyes@reddit

Our users love the Pluggables. The ones we use just went down $25 in price also which management loves.

[-]

spanky_rockets@reddit

This, the cheap Chinese ones just work, and are PnP, no drivers needed.

[-]

magikowl@reddit

Mind sharing which Anker dock?

[-]

JasonMaggini@reddit

The 565, I think?

[-]

magikowl@reddit

Thank you.

[-]

kearkan@reddit

This has been my experience and even then, taking into account the price difference is need to have 3 times as many cheap docks stop working to make them end up more expensive to manage.

[-]

timmy_the_large@reddit

Some of those Dell have been a scurge. One thing that helps is to make sure you are using a clean Windows image with no dell software, except drivers. Once we ditch all the Dell software our docks started working properly.

[-]

Raisin_Gatorade@reddit

Yep same. Except Lenovo docks. Super expensive but major problems. Cheaper docs worked flawlessly.

[-]

systonia_@reddit

We ended up in buying the xxxH monitors that include a full dock and can do Daisy chaining on DP. They just work and are cheaper .

[-]

StockMarketCasino@reddit

What model Anker? Do they support power button for the laptop? Dell and Lenovo asking

[-]

robotbeatrally@reddit

I've had better luck with anker than dell as well.

[-]

Lazy-Function-4709@reddit

We have observed this with the WD19DC docks. Absolute garbage. I've probably replaced close to 10 docks (some multiple times) in a fleet of maybe 20 docks. The WD22TB4 has been much improved.

[-]

caillouistheworst@reddit

Yea, these cheap Ankers and others have given me no issues ever really. Way better than the $2-300 fancy oem ones.

[-]

WhiteRabbit_69@reddit

Same experience. Display link drivers are absolutely awful.

[-]

sdeptnoob1@reddit

Anker seems to be a good brand.

[-]

i8noodles@reddit

ironically i had the exact opposite. dell docks are working like a champ lol. i surpose its just the luck of the draw

[-]

gt@reddit

what ankers did you get - the dell ones I have are constantly annoying me lol

[-]

pyrhus626@reddit

Yeah Dell docks have been a recurring headache for us depending on the exact models we ordered and which batch they came from. For a while there we had a bunch get completely bricked the first time Command Update tried to push a firmware update.

[-]

themanonthemooo@reddit

Which ANKER docks?

[-]

Nick85er@reddit

WD19DCS here. Feel your pain point

[-]

Korlus@reddit

Yep this. We pay I believe around $300 a pop but those things run for years and years with no issues. I remember a few times our CFO tried to cheap out and get some rando cheap or generic ones for $100 and of course that ended pretty quickly.

There's a specific Chinese chipset I've come across in two or three different dock designs that all seem to have an issue with poor voltage regulation on the USB ports, which can lead to all sorts of issues. Sadly, I can't find the specific chipset in question.

[-]

crankysysadmin@reddit

why is the CFO making decisions about which docking stations to order? sounds like you work in small business hell

[-]

Lukage@reddit

Here, $100 IS the expensive one. Lucky.

[-]

punkwalrus@reddit

I don't know what brand, but my last in-office job had actual fires start from cheap docking stations. They weren't like the tray you slide your laptop into, but some external USB 3 mutliport shaped like a cube. The fires usually started where the power supply met the cube, but sometimes the USB ports leading to the laptop.

[-]

daschande@reddit

I, too, learned the hard way not to buy the $5 USB-C chargers on ali express.

[-]

NowThatHappened@reddit

Well! That happened!😦

[-]

Mr_Mediocrity@reddit

I've been purchasing the Dell hub monitors ever since they became available. Way better than the docks and free up desk space to boot.

[-]

poncewattle@reddit

I've been having a lot of good luck with them too. I was skeptical at first but a decent hub monitor is like $350 and a standalone Dell dock is like $300. Plus far less issues.

[-]

rybl@reddit

Do they support duel monitor setups?

[-]

poncewattle@reddit

Yeah. If DP MST is turned on in the monitor and you connect second using DP out on first monitor. The dell monitors come with that off by default.

[-]

lakorai@reddit

MSR works as long as you are running Windows.

It does not work on MacOS.

In addition on a Mac you can find only do 1 external independent display on Non-Pro ARM Macs. That is the biggest scam from Apple.

Granted you can do DisplayLink but for $1500 you shouldn't have to do this.

[-]

GuyOnTheInterweb@reddit

These are really nice, some of these monitors even have Ethernet ports (which may or may not work)

[-]

Tikan@reddit

Have they fixed the ethernet issue? We bought these years ago and had to add a usb ethernet dongle as the built in ethernet would constantly shutdown and dell didn't offer a firmware update. Maybe a recent driver has resolved it but we gave up after 2 years of fighting with Dell support.

[-]

ajrc0re@reddit

we have almost three thousand dell ultrasharps across our company as part of our standardized desk setup and every single employee including the CEO/rest of the c-suite use them as their primary dock daisychained onto a second monitor for dualscreen and we have very very few issues. anyone using standalone docks in 2024 must really hate themselves and their users

[-]

Tikan@reddit

We didn't splurge on ultrasharps, just the p series and I've had nothing but issues with them at two different organizations over the last 6 years.

[-]

ajrc0re@reddit

just ran a search in our servicenow help desk because i was curious. In the last 12 months 79 of the 7838 tickets were related to the monitor

[-]

Tikan@reddit

Good to know. We've got a couple dozen deployed but as standard monitors right now. I will have to see if they issued a firmware or driver update that resolves the issue.

Cheers.

[-]

Affectionate-Cat-975@reddit

“We can solve the hardware in code”.

[-]

pdp10@reddit

We buy a lot of low-end ones and throw hardware at mot problems.

That strategy doesn't work when the user manages to have a "need" that only two models of dock in the work can accommodate. This is almost always related to multiple displays.

One of several reasons why we strongly prefer one big display over multiple displays. Fewer issues filed all around.

[-]

EpicCode@reddit

What kind of monster would prefer one big monitor to two separate monitors?? You’re gonna have to rip my dual monitors from my cold dead hands lol. But seriously, not to assume anything, why not just buy good quality docks and be done with it?

[-]

NetworkingJesus@reddit

I replaced 3x 1080p ~22" monitors with a single 4k 43" monitor and it was a massive improvement. The idea was to go big enough that I could run 4k without having to increase font scaling, so that it ends up being the same as a 2x2 grid of smaller 1080p monitors, but without borders. It's perfect.

[-]

bregottextrasaltat@reddit

i still find the support for maximising windows to screen areas to be lacking

[-]

NetworkingJesus@reddit

I think there are software options to divide the screen if you really want. Waaaay back, I used to use nvidia's nview software to create snap points on my 2048x1536 trinitron when everything was still designed for 1024x768 or 1280x1024 and I loved that. Nowadays I don't bother with such software though; I'm mostly manually adjusting windows to only as big as they need to be and then the window size is remembered next time I open it.

Most maximizing I generally need is to get extra height for a long document, but usually don't need extra width as well, so grabbing the top edge and dragging to the top is perfect. Keeps the width, maximizes the height, and reverts back to previous size when I move it away from the edge.

[-]

b00n@reddit

We all have 43" 5k monitors at work and it is way better than 2x27" monitors. You can split the screen 1, 1/2, 1/3, 1/4 ways where as with 2 you are limited. They are also single thunderbolt cables that do power, display, ethernet etc

[-]

pdp10@reddit

There are numerous reports of issues with all of the first-party Thunderbolt docks. Far fewer from the likes of Caldigit and Plugable, but I think that's largely a function of numbers -- the third-party docks are less common.

We can show a relationship between number of displays and issues filed. We spend the money on big 4Ks, because 4K is an integer multiple of 720 and 1080. We do still deploy existing monitors, just always choose big single displays over multiple because there are fewer things to go wrong.

[-]

bemenaker@reddit

I just switched from two 24 inch monitors to a single 34, and love it. Well still use the laptop screen for email, since we use mostly teams internally.

[-]

blackhodown@reddit

I’ve found that USB 3 docking stations are about 100 times more reliable than USB C

[-]

nellj21@reddit

Yep, stopped supplying end users with a dock and dual monitors. New hires get One Ultrawide screen and that's it. Dual monitors still in rotation with older employees, they can still use them. As soon as they have a dock issue or want a new monitor(s), they get the we don't provide or support docks and dual monitor setups anymore. Take what we offer and if you decide to purchase your own setup, we won't support or troubleshoot your issues. I have 100% back up from my Director.

[-]

soundman1024@reddit

We’re doing the single ultrawide as well. We’re using Dell 49s. They clean up the desk a lot.

[-]

bit0n@reddit

Exactly this. Why does your colleagues one work any yours doesn’t. They spend £200 on the Levovo one that’s supported by their laptop you spent £15 thinking you’re smart.

Our new approved policy is to say by the time I send someone to site to investigate you would be better buying the supported model.

[-]

badtux99@reddit

Not even the expensive name brand ones work well. Some issues I have had with expensive name brand ones: Network just quits working from time to time. Video randomly glitches. Backup drive randomly goes offline. From time to time the USB3 power supply suddenly only provides 20 watts of power. Etc. multiple brands. Multiple power supplies. All supposedly reputable brands. Bah humbug!

[-]

fizzlefist@reddit

My org gave up on each laptop brand’s proprietary docks and has fully switched to universal Targus docks. I haven’t heard any rumblings about issues with them, thank goodness.

The Dell USB-C dock I had assigned with my last laptop doesn’t work with my new Dell laptop, or my client’s issued HP laptop, but it still works perfectly with my personal MacBook Air and Steam deck, so that’s what it does now.

[-]

notHooptieJ@reddit

HA! Hilariously i have the EXACT opposite issue.

i got a $300 dell dock issued and its so so awful i end up using a cheap $29 jsaux steamdeck dock at work for my macbook pro.

[-]

Hollow3ddd@reddit

Dell: if issues, turn off all security.

..... thanks?

[-]

supnul@reddit

We have had issue with Dell and Lenovo branded docks.. my fan in mine zooms like a dirt bike. Sometimes stays on for ever. No difference in load or temperature apparent.

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robotbeatrally@reddit

even the expensive ass dell ones are abslute garbage. 1in5 has some weird problem. half of them i have the cat6 connected to the laptop instead of the dock.

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RottiBnT@reddit

I have a cheap Amazon Basics one at home that works 1,000x better than the friggin Lenovo ones we issue.

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eNomineZerum@reddit

Could be like my wife's smaller company, she asked for a dock from the IT duo that run things and was told all they could do is her us a UBS-C to 3x USB-A dock.

That place is a joke...

[-]

corruptboomerang@reddit

No, what's worse is the expensive ones!

We run all surfaces at work, and the MS docking stations are NOTING but trouble!

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p47guitars@reddit

Yep, they are a menace, especially the budget ones.

we've had issues with surface docks. those are not cheap one bit..

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Wolkinhin@reddit

I couldn`t agree more with you

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dustojnikhummer@reddit

budget ones.

And they aren't even cheap

[-]

thetechwookie@reddit

Every Dell WD19S I’ve come across sucks, they all have some kind of issue

[-]

TankstellenTroll@reddit

That's so true!

And they have really weird issues like broken Ethernet ports and some kind of freezes, where only a restart helps.

I hate these things so much.

[-]

thetechwookie@reddit

Yup, this is my experience exactly. Ive been considering replacing my Dell dock with an Anker one. Everything made by Anker that I have bought seems rock solid.

[-]

thetechwookie@reddit

Yup. I have one on my desk that I bought brand new and the Ethernet port doesn’t work. Never worked. I’m using an Anker usb Ethernet adapter.

[-]

Jaxson626@reddit

I agree only thing that can be done is swapping them out. I did manage to switch the cable on one once

[-]

Kamil_z_Kaszub@reddit

We are using Lenovo docking station on USB C (before those we have used Lenovo Ultra Docking station) and they worki pretty well. Sometimes I must reboot docking station but that's all

[-]

Equal_Bumblebee689@reddit

Just buy a hp g5 and be done with it. Firmware updates with hpia pushed with intune.

[-]

RyanMeray@reddit

Dell docks are great. 🤷

[-]

ComprehensiveGrab315@reddit

It's a nightmare when customers purchase these themselves for their sites without asking for advice, they don't work and they ask us to look at them and we have to tell them the usb ports don't support hdmi passthrough which they need to run the screens and they have to purchase different docks. "Universal" serial bus is a joke really.

[-]

boomboom244@reddit

We use the WD22TB4 from Dell and have pretty much zero issues. I highly recommend those.

[-]

Assumeweknow@reddit

Lenovo universal docks have been rock solid for us mac and pc compatible as well.

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Normal_Trust3562@reddit

I raise you… label printers

[-]

Maro1947@reddit

Counter-offer...... Zebra Printers

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Normal_Trust3562@reddit

Ooh that’s exactly the one I was talking about

[-]

cowprince@reddit

What sort of issues do you have with them, just curious.

[-]

Maro1947@reddit

With Citrix

[-]

Generico300@reddit

Don't have too many problems with Zebra label printers.

[-]

cowprince@reddit

Echoing this. We have a ton in our warehouses and really don't have any issues with them. The only time we have is when using the ZD421s with wireless NICs and batteries. The NICs could become unseated during shipping. And the battery screw could be overtightened. But the actual printer was fine

[-]

BigSnackStove@reddit

Label printers are really mean. With normal printers you are usually happy when they just spit something out, it’s usually correct.

With a label printer, you finally get it to print something, and the label is off, welcome to the new hell mf

[-]

synkrox@reddit

Brother or nothing for label printers. Hard wired only, none of that Bluetooth and WiFi shit.

[-]

gordonv@reddit

Brother Black and White Laser printers, USB only.

You unbox, plug in, you're done. So easy, even a regular employee can do it. Set and forget reliability. No crapware software. No registrations.

[-]

themanbow@reddit

Even their color laser printers are "decent" (or perhaps the "least bad" out of the alternatives).

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Normal_Trust3562@reddit

Zebra 🙂‍↕️ also scales that send to epos suck as much as printers

[-]

Important_Scene_4295@reddit

We started off cheaping out with wavelink ones. Now get the expensive dell ones and have had far fewer issues. I can't throw the wavelink ones away without our controller (wife of the president) pulling them from the trash asking me why I'm throwing good equipment away though. So I have a stack of them taking up space. Oh but when she can't connect one day, she comes and steals a new one from me without calling or putting a ticket in, uhg!

[-]

HEpennypackerNH@reddit

Docks suck, but printers are still printers.

[-]

Talkyn@reddit

I'm so glad I'm not alone.

[-]

DorianBabbs@reddit

I see very few issues with the Dell WD19S's that we deploy. I have seen 1 or 2 ethernet ports fail, but no wide spread issues.

[-]

Here_is_to_beer@reddit

We are getting Dell monitors that have built in docks. Network, USB hubs, hdmi, display port. All connections go to monitor and a USB C to C to the laptop or computer. Easy to manage and cheaper than a monitor and a dock

[-]

PsychologicalDot1020@reddit

This feels like a “Tell me your using a Dell docking station without telling me your using a Dell docking station”.

I can’t imagine spending 100-200 in a Dell docking station for it to quit every year, sometimes twice a year.

Glad my employer buys it and not me.

[-]

uosiek@reddit

I'm just stick to i-Tec docking station with DisplayLink chip. Skips all USB-C protocols nightmare at expense of slightly bigger CPU load.

[-]

h00ty@reddit

We have about 500 wd19’s. Sure there are some failure’s but for the most part they run for months without any intervention. I am not sure why System Administrators are even worried about that in the first place as that is a problem for the service desk.

[-]

lakorai@reddit

Basically zero issues with our Caldigit TS4's other than the rare random power supply or TB cable failure.

Lenovo Thunderbolt 4.0 Workstation Docks have also been quite stable.

[-]

JPDearing@reddit

Probably the very worst Dell dock I ever had come across my path was the TB19DC which we had for several Precision laptops we had for a few developers. This was the dock with the big fat double USB-C connector. The laptops were awesome but those docks were absolute trash. Driver support was abysmal and frequently would crash. We eventually replaced those docks with the WD19 with the dual USB-C connectors. The biggest issue overall was Thunderbolt support and getting the full 240 watts into the laptop.

I have a Dell 5531 right now and it's actually working just fine with a WD-15 dock. I get a complaint from Windows that the power is a little under but it still powers that laptop and charges the battery, just a little slower. A minor annoyance at most.

But yes, docks are a pain.

[-]

RoloTimasi@reddit

Dock issues are annoying, but they aren't anywhere close to taking over that special place in hell printers occupy, in my opinion. Especially thermal label printers in warehouse environments. When a label would peel off and get stuck to the roller, those were a nightmare.

[-]

shoesli_@reddit

Word. Label printers have a special place in hell. No matter what you do, settings will keep changing themselves. Suddenly it starts applying a margin in the beginning, unpeeling the label and dragging it into the machine. Or changes to direct termo, burning the ribbon. Fuck industrial label printing.

[-]

Ziegelphilie@reddit

Funny enough the Dymo labelwriter 450 I frequently use is the best working printer I've ever had. The label software can be a bit clunky at times but other than that it just does what it's supposed to do.

[-]

Thin-Professional379@reddit

Just don't try the 550

[-]

Ziegelphilie@reddit

Oh dear, did they mess it up? We've been considering ordering more Dymos so I'm not the only one printing labels for stuff in the office, and the 450 is no longer for sale.

[-]

Thin-Professional379@reddit

Requires proprietary labels that cost 3x generic. Terrible networking support. Sensor that checks for proprietary labels often fucks up causing the printer to need a reboot between prints. Support team does not even understand the issues, let alone helping.

It's the epitome of an enshittified product which is why the now discontinued 450 commands high prices on the secondhand market.

[-]

Ziegelphilie@reddit

Jeez, way to ruin a product.

Just looked some stuff up and the 450 duo and twin turbo are still for sale, guess we'll be getting a bunch of those instead. Thanks for the cautionary warning!

[-]

bythepowerofboobs@reddit

Pro tip: Stay away from Zebra. We've got a few hundred Datamax / Honeywell thermal label printers and really don't see hardly any issues with them at all.

[-]

Thin-Professional379@reddit

Dymo is the true cancer

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RoloTimasi@reddit

Luckily for me, I haven't had to deal with label printers in a very long time (1st IT job), but they were Zebra printers. Between them and Okidata dot matrix printers for pick tickets, I quickly learned to despise printers. I really wish I could've gone Office Space on some of them.

Don't get me wrong, Okidata dot matrix printers were workhorses, but we'd deal with print head pins getting stuck, causing a line to print across the sheet or, in some really bad cases, the paper to rip. That and other issues I don't recall the details on. We'd keep spare printers around, of course, and order replacement print heads to have in stock, so it wasn't terrible, but I dreaded the emails or calls about printer problems on an almost weekly basis. The Zebra print issues were less frequent, but far worse though.

[-]

bythepowerofboobs@reddit

The printer issues I hate are the inkjet printers in our bagging machines and the ink jet printers on our boxing lines that print directly on the boxes. We use hot-melt wax ink on the boxing lines and I seem to somehow always end up with that crap all over myself by the time the issue is resolved.

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shoesli_@reddit

Zebra printers are cancer. Honeywell/intermec is the least bad brand from my experience.

[-]

sleepybeepyboy@reddit

THIS - am so fuckin triggered by label printers

[-]

moffetts9001@reddit

Or when the labels are super intricate and the alignment has to be perfect, but the alignment very slowly drifts and nobody notices until a ton of labels are messed up.

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Loud_Meat@reddit

didn't your ones use gap/web/mark sensors then? it is one of those classic pains in the ass to get dialled in for media with cut outs etc but shouldn't be drifting over time if the sensors are working/configured to be used?

[-]

moffetts9001@reddit

Mercifully, I don't remember the minutiae. I just recall it being an issue along with all of the other joys of running label printers.

[-]

AH_BareGarrett@reddit

Now add on using a custom program for label printing... which doesn't listen to Zebra config... another layer

[-]

kylegordon@reddit

Then purchasing get a label of the same specifications... from a different supplier :'(

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Loud_Meat@reddit

don't get me started, how can the industry seemingly use the term 'low tac' 'low adhesion' 'removable' and those all mean completely different things to different suppliers 🤣 they don't care if the thing they've quoted you on is anything like the old one either, they will say anything to get a sale and then argue its your fault later for getting the requirement wrong like 10mm isn't 10mm in 'the industry'. some of the flakiest lead times of any industry I've had to work with either, just another opportunity to fleece desperate customers, well shot of that headache 🤣

[-]

autogyrophilia@reddit

The other day I was shopping at Lidl and the ticket printer paper caught fire.

I'm starting to think I have some sort of aura or printers hate me for realsies

[-]

furtive@reddit

Nothing like a SaaS app that needs to use multiple printers (receipt, label, etc)

[-]

Smagjus@reddit

I still wonder why I see multiple different HP printer series regularly entering an error state where they demand the user to physically turn it off and on again.

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anna_lynn_fection@reddit

What's really fun is when people run label sheets through expensive color MFP's more than once and several of them peel off, sticking to the fuser, belt, and different transfer rollers, and end up costing half as much as the machine to repair all that shit.

[-]

Nonstop_norm@reddit

me reading this better have no jinxed it. Havent had one in a while but its a fucking nightmare every single time.

[-]

_Crazy8s@reddit

Try to print a pdf on a 1.25 X 1 label. That shit was challenging! Label program was too slow to load and print, they bitched. Adobe was too slow, they bitched.

Had to python code to automatically print the pdf with Sumatra and rotate it landscape hardcoded. This ran in tandem with another program that would print to a different label printer 6.5 X 4.

Python code would stall out when another print job was sent to big label printer. Some of most crazy shit I've seen.

Works great now after some added code. I can't wait to quit my job

[-]

Coobuller176@reddit

Agreed. I still will take docking station issues over a printer issue 100% of the time. Especially since a couple of printers at my work have a Fiery box attached for better color or something. I fear those printers. Dont even get me started on the stupid Label makers. Our marketing team has like 8 that are constantly buggy or broken.

[-]

reelznfeelz@reddit

Yeah. It’s because promoters have hardware, software, and network considerations all of which can and will break.

[-]

zakabog@reddit

Are we the only ones buying cheap USB C docks without issue? I don't use a charger through the dock but we just buy whatever generic dock is available from Amazon with the ports we need and that has worked quite well for us.

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AmountAny8399@reddit

All of our users who want a home setup get those along with anyone who uses an iPad or MacBook Air. I think the last bulk buy we did came out to $35/ hub for something that can output to two monitors (one for iPad Airs or Pros and MacBook Airs), and has enough USB A ports to run a basic setup. We could probably go cheaper but the Baseus one consistently gets the job done and has all the ports we need.

For the office Windows users we deploy Thunderbolt 4 docks due to triple monitor support, higher power delivery, and generally higher reliability.

[-]

RussEfarmer@reddit

We have a super mixed fleet (sad) and use Anker thunderbolt docks with success, there are some that fail after 1 year but overall not many problems. OWC thunderbolt docks I have had zero issues. Surprisingly the pluggable brand USB4 triple monitor docks for our engineers are mostly solid.

[-]

Mindestiny@reddit

Anker powered docks have been better for us than any of the mainstream manufacturers. Dell, Lenovo, etc all years of nightmares and "update your dock drivers/firmware!"

[-]

scsibusfault@reddit

I hate that this is the truth, but yeah. The little $80-ish powered stick-of-gum anker docks have absolutely zero issues, and do almost everything a "real manufacturer dock" does without costing $300 and weighing more than the laptop itself. They run a little hot (especially if using ethernet), and they're easy to lose. That's about the only downside for the ankers.

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No_Carob5@reddit

You guys are using docking stations?

USB C into the monitor with usb wireless mouse and kB.

[-]

Marioawe@reddit

The last msp I worked for, a good 20-30% percent of the calls and things we sent back were docks. We used Lenovo, and if you didn't update those fuckers before giving them to an end user, those were bricked in a month or two. Why send out a product you half bake. Perhaps, I don't know, send out devices with current firmware?

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sryan2k1@reddit

Cheap ones maybe. We buy Dell Dock monitors (typically U27xxDE's) and have no issues.

[-]

avmakt@reddit

We run 100+ Dell U24xxD/DE and U27xxD/DE (2020 and newer), and while i do love them there are a few minor issues.

The first issue is the lack of centralized firmware updates, which might in the future be possible through Dell Command Update or similar. Adding to that is the fact that most daisy chain setups have to be disconnected before updating, and because the update process is still so effing slow, any dual screen setup will likely be offline for 20-30 minutes even when you bring two laptops to update both screens simultaneously.

Another issue is the fact that (fully updated) monitors still have the occasional hang, requiring you to unplug the power temporarily to get things working. Cycling the "power" putton won't cut it. I know from experience that this can be extremely annoying to users in locations where outlets are hidden away to make things look nice and clean, but I won't fault Dell for that :) The hangs aren't frequent enough for users to remember the fix, but but with 100+ setups we get about 2-3 "my screens are dead" tickets per week.

No showstoppers, and Dells docking screens sure beat their WD docks by leaps and bounds. WD15/16 (? Can't remember if there were two models or just variants of one) were so horrible we ended up throwing them away as defective. We still got about 50 WD19 (TB and non-TB) resting in a closet somewhere as it is cheaper and easier than convincing accounting that we actually recycled the shits instead of reselling them for personal profit like the suspected criminals we always are. Still have a few WD22TBs in production for people with non-docking monitors, and while the 22s require the odd power cycling they haven't been too bad - just stupid expensive compared to the docking monitors.

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SirEDCaLot@reddit

Absolutely. The Dell USB-C monitors are fantastic. And if you have a simple setup where one monitor daisy chains off the other, they can sync their settings over the USB cable.

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Wild_Swimmingpool@reddit

We likewise moved this way. We tested a few different dock monitors but the U27 series won out. Surprised me considering the impetus was to get the Dell docks out, but it’s been pretty solid. We do see some connectivity issues but they been caused by the new gen of laptops not the dock monitors themselves

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zephalephadingong@reddit

They've been trash ever since the move to USB-C. I don't think it's actually USB-Cs fault, but its hard not to suspect the "does everything, will replace every cable" hype when an actual use case for a do everything cable turns out horrible

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Creepy-Editor-3573@reddit (OP)

Agreed

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zqpmx@reddit

Who needs a dock and cannot take 10 seconds to connect mouse, keyboard, monitor and power supply?

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thaneliness@reddit

Docking stations have come a LONG way. 10 years ago they were even worse. They are pretty damn solid now as long as you don’t use the Amazon special.

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shadnat@reddit

That and it ain't got displaylink so you not having your three screen output on that dock.

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SecurityHamster@reddit

Docking stations? We’re just buying dual desktops with USB ports, USB-C to connect to laptop, and display port to connect to second display. Has been working like a charm for a couple of years now, and it sounds like most our docking stations have been cycled out T this point

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SleestakWalkAmongUs@reddit

We're constantly replacing the damn things. I miss the days of actual DOCKING stations.

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Wrong_Pattern_518@reddit

we use dell wd19s with latitude 5XXX series laptops and they are painless so far

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GuyOnTheInterweb@reddit

If you have seen the firmware updates for docking stations, you may realise it is basically a whole second PC in the docking station.. just without its own keyboard and display; ironically as that is what we connect there!

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DaCozPuddingPop@reddit

Yep, they're trash, even the good ones.
We've been slowly replacing older monitors and docks with daisy chainable monitors with a built in dock (a.k.a. a couple usb ports and a usb c cable) - seems to be working quite well with less fuck-uppidness happening.

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Former_Lynx_4436@reddit

I stick with Plugable brand docks, they are amazing and I've had issues with literally every other brand.

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brandonw00@reddit

Yeah I’m a Plugable convert. They are like half the price of name brand docks and they work perfectly. I’ve been switching the entire office over to those docks after having so many issues with Dell docks.

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MikeLinPA@reddit

I wish nobody prints anymore!

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fotogi@reddit

I have had little to no issue with any docks, just users abusing the TB/USBC ports and cables.

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worktheoldmuscles@reddit

Never had any issues with the thunderbolt line of Dell docks. WD19TBS and the newer versions since. Even still have a few D6000 out there that run fine.

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Krinkk@reddit

Saved this comment for later. We're on hp right now and I've been thinking about switching to Dell for some time really

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worktheoldmuscles@reddit

Then just so you have some more info, we run dell latitudes for everyone - the 5XXX series with the dual thunderbolt ports.

Default setup is a 43 inch Samsung tv with HDMI and then a side dell monitor using a DP- the P24XXX series.

We’ve had a couple hundred and the only times I’ve really replaced one has been due to a user just damaging the thunderbolt cable/port by yanking it around.

[-]

Timberwolf_88@reddit

Same here, we have a few hundred and I have only seen one that needed fixing, and it was a user who had torn up the usb c cable, so the fix was rather straight-forward.

[-]

SirEDCaLot@reddit

Came here to post this.

The Dell thunderbolt docks are rock fucking solid, no matter what computer you use them with.

[-]

formal-shorts@reddit

Had a few issues with the WD series but nothing either a firmware update or returning to Dell under warranty couldn't fix.

[-]

yellowadidas@reddit

we BURNED thru the d6000’s for a few years until i started buying the wd19tb instead and they’ve been incredible. not a single issue at all yet

[-]

gumbrilla@reddit

we've got a heap of D6000, no issues.. (well apart from fans sometime, then we just ditch them)

[-]

eblaster101@reddit

Never ever knew it had fans

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Ragepower529@reddit

The $349.99 once’s from lenevo almost cause 0 issues

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Tumleren@reddit

What's the model?

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SilentSamurai@reddit

Well that's the answer in a way, isn't it?

Spend a premium for good docks and you won't have those problems. Now convince the C levels that there is in fact a difference between buying a Pontiac Aztec vs. a Toyota Highlander.

[-]

elsjpq@reddit

Since when was an accessory that costs as much as a low end laptop a good solution? If it takes $350 to make a good dock, then the maybe docks are a shit solution to a problem that shouldn't exist in the first place

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SilentSamurai@reddit

Let me guess, in your ideal environment employees would just use desktops exclusively?

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elsjpq@reddit

It must be a very privileged environment that it's worth spending $350 to solve the first world problem of "I don't want to spend 10 extra seconds to connect cables every day" or "My laptop doesn't have enough ports" It might cost $350 to make the device, but is sure isn't worth $350 of convenience and reeks of shit design.

[-]

SilentSamurai@reddit

Lol, your end users must love you if you're telling them to connect multiple cables every day for their laptops rather than just getting them docking stations.

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SMS-T1@reddit

Not even mentioning the amounts of failure points both during the plugin process and long term.

And the fact, that many notebooks have not had enough ports for 2 external monitors and 2 usb devices for a decade at this point.

[-]

nutbuckers@reddit

Let me guess, buying steelcase office chairs is also unreasonable first world luxury since a walmart chair offers all the same functionality minus the extra cost, plus the org should be hiring employees who are capable of standing at their stations since that's better ergonomics anyways?

[-]

pdp10@reddit

difference between buying a Pontiac Aztec vs. a Toyota Highlander.

Yikes. Hipsters keep the prices of those AWD Azteks high?

[-]

shiggy__diggy@reddit

Breaking Bad tax

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fucksickos@reddit

We still have plenty of issues with them. Some think pad models will simply not be able to get the display to work on some docks. The E14s in general are a pain in the ass with that display issue. Think pads are also incredibly sensitive to firmware updates. My monitors will start randomly blinking and disconnecting whenever a new update is out. Happens to a bunch of users to.

[-]

Ragepower529@reddit

Not sure why you’re deploying e14s but they should be auto upgrading firmware.

Really just depends on your set up. When I was internal IT, I made sure all my end users at my office location knew to look for updates before calling me over. Or else I would use my full SLA time on them

[-]

fucksickos@reddit

E14s were all we could source during Covid. We are set to auto update but they’ll only let us push out one forced reboot per month so for users who leave their laptop plugged in and turned on at their desk all hours they run into dock issues.

[-]

desolateone@reddit

And generally any issue they do have is solved by either unplugging power for a min, doing a pinhole reset on the laptop, firmware update or a combo of the three. Honestly pretty easy to troubleshoot, I've been mostly happy with them.

[-]

gordonv@reddit

Just make sure the one that is specifically mentioned in the manual. Then you will have no issues. The Lenovo Utility will maintain the firmware for you.

[-]

Coffee_Ops@reddit

If you're not getting USB-c docking monitors you're just asking for trouble.

[-]

t3hnp@reddit

I DO NOT miss supporting 15K printers AND 10K D6000 docks AT THE SAME TIME. The bank hurt me.

[-]

Fibbs@reddit

I'm amazed this shit isn't built into mobos or laptops.

Fuck paying a few hundred dollars for something that is nothing more than a charger and a spliter. Even second hand, there's literally thousands of them out there yet they still cost hundreds.

[-]

Darkblitz9@reddit

Printers: Finally starting to get their shit together

Docking stations: "Bonjour!"

[-]

SAD-MAX-CZ@reddit

3D printer: "Hello"

But people who use these mostly know how to operate and troubleshoot them.

[-]

nickbird0728@reddit

We use the dell thunderbolt docks I haven’t seen a docking station ticket in months

[-]

hyper9410@reddit

We use HP for our equipment and I'm frustrated about their networking implementation.

The Docks don't have their networkchip in there but use the one in the notebook. Admittedly we use Shrewsoft VPN (10 years since the last update) which makes realtek drivers crap out, but why is there not a Intel chip in a $3000 dollar workstation grade Z-Book.

[-]

Natirs@reddit

We are a dell shop. WD2019, 2022, the new phone charging dock, have all been fine. Have we had issues? Sure, but you update the firmware, update the laptop BIOS and they don't have problems after that. Much of the problems that are reported are because of no updates. If a dock is causing an issue and it's not actively being blocked by your antivirus, then update the laptop and dock and that will usually fix your problems.

Unironically, I have always had the issue where the USB functions will stop until you plug it into a different USB-C port on the laptop. Had that issue going all the way back to the WD15 and TB dock versions.

Word of caution, if you get a 3rd party dock, you are taking a risk and you should always stick with the manufacture's line of docks where you get a warranty.

[-]

everythingelseguy@reddit

My preferences currently:

Surface thunderbolt dock 4 - surface devices only Hyper - chromebooks *Pluggable - everything else

[-]

Left_of_Center2011@reddit

Yeah the cheapo driverless models have been shit, but the HP USB-C one is pretty good as long as the firmware is updated

[-]

Geminii27@reddit

There really needs to be a dock design which is basically a flat thin pad, flexible and slightly rubberized, which contains a wireless charging pad with about a two-foot range and a NFC high-speed wireless link, plus slots underneath for (replaceable) Bluetooth and WiFi chips. Send video signals to deskside monitors over the WiFi, maybe use the Bluetooth so monitors can figure out if a laptop/pad is nearby enough to be an accepted video source.

Put the laptop down on the pad, it starts charging and (optionally) takes over networking - corporate laptops could be configured to switch to that corporate network when in range. It's also powering the full-size keyboard, mouse, and whatever other desk peripherals can take a tiny wireless charger in their battery slots.

Heck, give it enough flexible photovolatic film to use ambient light to be able to respond to a laptop asking for a charge with a "This docking pad has not been plugged into a working electric socket" signal if that's the case, and flash a small red LED. The laptop (if it has any remaining battery) can pop up a message for those few users who actually read such things.

Given that it'd be more or less solid-state and not actually require users to make sure the physical connection was solid, and techs could tell if a given docking pad was on the network or not, it should cut down on at least some types of calls.

...Right up until some user says "I didn't know what that thing on my desk was so I unplugged it and threw it in the trash", of course. Hopefully, they could come with corporate logo screenprints to at least make most users think twice before doing that, but you know there will still be people who toss it in a desk drawer or bury it under a pile of papers.

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sssRealm@reddit

I get annoyed when they require a laptop and dock and it never leaves the desk.

[-]

Gh0styD0g@reddit

We have hp they’re decent

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matroosoft@reddit

G5's?

[-]

Gh0styD0g@reddit

Yeah, we just deployed around 100 of them.

[-]

Nitricta@reddit

I've tried all of the Lenovo docks, and they're all causing screens to flash and requires frequent reboots. We have Lenovo laptops, Lenovo screens, Lenovo docks, and they still can't make it work!

[-]

sid351@reddit

Our approach has been to stop buying the "cheap" ones.

They add value anyway, so one the "just works" can justify it's £220 price tag when setting up a desk with a laptop, 2 monitors, dual monitor mount, a wireless keyboard & mouse combo, a nice (gaming) chair, cable management tray, USB C psu, etc.

My point: a new desk setup costs a fair wack anyway, and the "extra" for a quality dock is worth it, even tmif that's just in reducing interruptions for the team member using it and distracting support tickets for the IT team.

[-]

Neaj-@reddit

But isn’t the solution to just always unplug and reply all the cables?

“My man! Looks like your docking station is acting up”

“It is! I have been staring it for 20 minutes and nothing is happening”

unplug and replay everything with a sleight of hand roll natural 20

“You’re a wizard! Your IT magic is unbelievable! I’m going to give you a raise”

…

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matroosoft@reddit

Narrator: the raise never came

[-]

Dizzy_Bridge_794@reddit

Yep. Almost 300.00 and they constantly are an issue at times.

[-]

matroosoft@reddit

Which ones do you use?

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Worth-Bed-7549@reddit

Dude I hate docking stations so much. I’ve been out of work for about a year and somehow forgot about them. Surface pro docks are garbage and the Dell docks were the most compatible with our Lenovo laptops.

[-]

Grandcanyonsouthrim@reddit

basically most are network enabled but unable to be network managed fleet of poor coded computers...

[-]

Polar_Ted@reddit

I have the Dell monitor with a built in USB C hub and gig data port. Never have a problem with it..

[-]

bebearaware@reddit

Yeah rolling back a NIC driver because they somehow borked vpns was a new one.

[-]

user_none@reddit

Almost the entirety of this thread is why I steer people to a desktop with two monitors. Even then, I'm leaning towards a desktop and one ultrawide monitor.

A laptop, a dock and external monitors has become too much of a crapshoot.

"No problems with X model."

Then...

"We've had nothing but problems with X model."

Who has the time, patience and budget for that bunch of bullshit?

[-]

mooboyj@reddit

We've moved to monitors (Dells) with inbuilt docks. Neater and less problematic than the HP dicks we've been using.

[-]

dembadger@reddit

I miss the old style lock in style stations that youd get on the dells and lenovos. The usb ones have been universally disappointing

[-]

Techn9cian@reddit

the Dell ones suck ass

[-]

daven1985@reddit

Yep. We use monitor ones now and so many issues we used to have are now gone plus cleaner desks.

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ValeoAnt@reddit

Only had one minor issues with our HP USB g5 docks in 4 years

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ssmsp@reddit

Agreed they suck!

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bleuflamenc0@reddit

I used to deal with Dell ones a lot, and I can't say that I had a lot of problems with them, but it was crazy, some of them are pretty much a computer that you just plug your laptop into at this point. Needs some rethinking.

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JLee50@reddit

I have a lot of Dell displays with USB-C PD integrated and they’re amazing. I can’t recall any end user problems with one.

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FostWare@reddit

My HP doesn’t like the D6000 (freeze and/or restarts) but loves the WD19TB works fine. Other way around for the Dell 5420. Got the TB cheap because internal IT wanted rid of them :P

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xintonic@reddit

Started out using Dell Docks but they were trash, switched over to Wavlinks and they have been solid.

[-]

RevolutionaryBox5411@reddit

wavlinks are cheap trash, we had 100s with 80% failure rate to date after we purchased them during the chip shortage. Seemed like a no brainer for the price at the time, but you get what you pay for. Failing ethernet ports, usb a ports, and usb-c cables getting wonky and disconnecting displays. We have a wavlink graveyard. We've since replaced them with Dells and rarely see an issue outside of cycling its power on rare occasion. The 130W PD of the Dells are key for our fleet of workhorse laptops. Hubs just don't do 130W PD when we need it.

[-]

xintonic@reddit

I don't know what you're buying but i replaced Dells with them and have had all of 2 failures in 4 years

[-]

No_Resolution_9252@reddit

never had problems with TB docks - all lenovo though

[-]

woodburyman@reddit

Yes. Twice today I had to unpower two different Dell TB docks, repower, then replug laptops in to solve random issues.

[-]

curi0us_carniv0re@reddit

Never had an issue with a traditional laptop dock.

But these usb-c things that manufacturers have moved to suck ass

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Schrojo18@reddit

At my work we have had little to no issues with our printers and out docks. They both work pretty well with one MFD getting up there with the most used of that manufacturer in our state.

[-]

WayfarerAM@reddit

Say this with me “first party docking stations only”. The extra cost for a Dell/ Lenovo/ HP (matching the laptop) docking station will pay for itself in the massive decrease in support tickets related to docks and things attached to them.

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Imdoody@reddit

Dude even the lenovo usb c ones are a menace.

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Long_Start_3142@reddit

Startech joints are the move

[-]

nighthawke75@reddit

Docking g stations are their own curse.

[-]

RykerFuchs@reddit

HP shop. Generally good experience with the Thunderbolt G4 and USB-C G5 docks.

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iama_bad_person@reddit

Out of maybe 1000+ G2 docks we had... maybe 20 come back with Thunderbolt cable issues? Other than that they have been flawless, same with the G4's.

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RykerFuchs@reddit

I hate the regular G2 “top as a button” design, so I usually leave it out of a recommendation. I actually still use a G2, but the speaker top version. It’s rock solid.

[-]

iama_bad_person@reddit

When we first for the G2's we had no idea the top was even a button until the someone in the trial group pointed it out. So annoying. My G2 died a couple weeks ago and I was overjoyed when swapped to the G4 😂 never got the speaker top versions since we are all open plan.

[-]

hillside126@reddit

We use Dell WD19S and WD19TB docks for around 300 users and get a dock issue once every 3 months or so, pretty solid. However, we briefly switched over to VisionTek docks and those caused so many issues we got rid of them all within 6 months.

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HeKis4@reddit

Kinda miss the ol' Dell docks from before 2017 (?) that were just a bunch of ports compacted down to a connector on the bottom of the laptop. No drivers, no electronics, just good old wires and letting the OS do it's thing.

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countdonn@reddit

We use Lenovo and they are a huge pain. A common ticket is computer is docked but not charging. If the model laptop has two USB-C ports sometimes just changing the ports work, otherwise the only steps that work are power the laptop down, disconnect the USB-C then reconnect the USB-C and power on.

We've started getting visiontek docks and they seem to work well.

[-]

pc_g33k@reddit

Yeah, they should just provide a proper workstation PC instead of a laptop. I also blame Apple for starting this minimal ports trend on laptops.

[-]

tejanaqkilica@reddit

USB A > USB B Docking Station? Rock solid, works 99% of the time.
USB C > USB C Docking Station? 50/50 depending how the feel that day.

And I don't think it will change as long as we keep using USB C, it was a good idea but the execution was horrible.

[-]

MairusuPawa@reddit

USB A docks are usually using DisplayLink. Meaning using CPU resources to render the display, but more importantly, injecting weird drivers in your kernel. They should be banned outright.

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PCLOAD_LETTER@reddit

I dunno, calling something the new printers is a pretty high bar to meet. Printers have sucked ass for DECADES. Every major city has at least 2-3 competing printer service companies. An entire sub-industry built for the sole purpose to make owning a printer slightly less terrible. That's gonna be pretty tough to beat.

[-]

WBCSAINT@reddit

BRING BACK THE OLD DOCK CONNECTORS! Those things were bulletproof. Now USB C is great on the surface for its ease of use but yeah in practice it is GARBAGE when it comes to being a dock.

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robisodd@reddit

The old docks also used to pass the laptop hardware though, not install new devices. I can no longer be sure a MAC address is for a specific laptop as the dock now has its own built-in NIC with its own MAC. It also means I can no longer use ACLs to block devices from the network as anybody can bring their home laptop and plug in the USB-C dock and get an IP address.

[-]

D3xbot@reddit

My org's Caldigit TS3 and TS4 docks are bulletproof. Never gotten a call about one.

The Dell WD19TB and WD22TB docks tend to be pretty solid too. Only troubleshooting I've ever had to do is

Customer

Hi my laptop doesn't (screens &| Ethernet &| mouse/keyboard)

Me:

Have you

Unplug dock from laptop

Unplug power from dock

Press and hold power button for 30 seconds

Plug dock back into power

Plug dock back into laptop

Customer

No I haven't tried that let me... Oh it works now! Thanks!

WD15 and their DC6000 docks are total garbage, though.

The Kensington and Startech docks we've tried are hit and miss. Some units are solid and some units are constant troubles.

[-]

meanwhenhungry@reddit

Actually , all in one 8k hdr 49 inch monitors, with usb c 1000 watt power delivery/hub, and windows hello enable webcam are the next the next dock, for 2k, my guy

[-]

OutsidePerson5@reddit

Lenovo especially. Oh hai you needed a docking station to access ethernet because your laptop doesn't have an rj45 jack? Lulz sux to suck loser, the dock won't work until you go online and update the drivers!

The fact that somehow Lenovo docks will just not work with a lot of Lenovo laptops without being updated is so stupid. You make both things! How can they not work together?!

[-]

Knightwing1047@reddit

Printers have become the least of my worries anymore.

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FireCyber88@reddit

Wd15 wd19 wd22 have all been great!

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dickie96@reddit

i wished nobody printed anymore at my company

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ZiziPotus@reddit

The usb-c ones.

Had no issues with the ones before. (But yeah yeah they were less interchangeable and cross compatible. But reliable at least)

[-]

BoredTechyGuy@reddit

I want my old E-Port dock back. Those things were bullet proof.

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_MAYniYAK@reddit

Yeah eff docks. We just bought all new printers 3 years ago and even with 40 or so printers we only have 4 tickets a year with them now. Docks on the other hand, several times a day. Less issues with our hp docks but our Dell docks the fan stops the dock stops, sometimes you have to power cycle the dock to get it to show on the screen

[-]

matroosoft@reddit

We recently switched to the LG G5. Works quite well and can have three screens. Nice small form factor too.

[-]

sambodia85@reddit

Our org thought they’d get around it by getting 34in widescreens with a built in dock. Now we have shit Monitor issues we can’t solve.

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Moorific@reddit

We just recently transitioned to monitors with built-in docks. Hopefully they’re a little more reliable.

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scottwsx96@reddit

Docks suck. Printers suck more. But nothing, nothing touches the circle of hell that was SCSI. You have to perform various forms of witchcraft and voodoo and Catholic sacraments to get multi-drive SCSI tape libraries working consistently.

[-]

sonic10158@reddit

The Dell WD19TBS docks are the worst. I’ve had to RMA half the ones I’ve ever deployed

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DirectInsane@reddit

Really? We have like 100 of them or the smaller ones WD19S in use and only one failed within 3 years of using due to a user breaking the USB-C connector.

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sonic10158@reddit

It is weird how hit and miss they seem to be. I either hear people like me who have nothing but issues with them or people like you who have zero issues, there is no middle ground. It sucks too because actually setting them up is so easy!

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RedditNotFreeSpeech@reddit

Especially when it comes to mac. Docking station with 1 HDMI and 2 DP? Nope! You need a USB to DP for each monitor past the first.

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jholmes514@reddit

I have a WD19DCS and it does work most of the time, but I definitely have problems quite frequently getting my monitor to work.

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LeDevnoob@reddit

All My Homies Hate Docks and KVMs 😤

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asedlfkh20h38fhl2k3f@reddit

I prefer the Pluggable brand ones. Just remember that on macbooks you have to 1) install the displaylink driver/app, and 2) add the app to the logon items so it automatically starts when the mac user logs in.

If you get their $250 model you get 3 dedicated video output ports, EACH with HDMI and DP, and they can also charge over USB-C. These units also come with BOTH usb-A and usb-C cables so you can choose whichever you need.

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lilelliot@reddit

I think the problem with docks is that there's almost 0 useful standardization from line to line and mfr to mfr of laptops. I mean, what if you have a user that's been perfectly happy on an old 20" 1080p monitor and they get a new 32" 4k 60hz (or more) and they're trying to find a combination of cable + dock that will push 60hz to the display. ... or they have multiple displays that aren't the same, and may support different resolutions and refresh rates?

I was at a traditional enterprise for a long time and we had a horrendous mix of lowest bid crap, and it was awful. Then I spent 8 years at Google where almost everyone had either Chromebooks or Macbooks, both of which supported cheap USB-C docks, and the users running THinkpads had sufficiently rapid refresh cycles that we never had to deal with old hardware. I never heard anyone complain about docks there.

Fwiw, at home my wife's company standardized on HP Elitebooks and her HP G5 dock (USB-C) seems to work flawlessly. My employer lets us pick our own laptop ($2k stipend) and I have a Macbook Air M2 I got for about $1500 and then spent $400 on a Caldigit TS4 dock, which has also been perfect.

[-]

Smarty_771@reddit

Stay AWAY from StarTech! They’re overpriced and they suck so much! OEM Dell and HP USB-C docks have given us barely any problems.

[-]

sprucecone@reddit

Dell docking station WD-19 in particular.

When I started it was CRT monitors and so much more simple. We had one that would get fuzzy on a regular basis but we figured out that it was too close to the classified shredder. I don’t long for simpler times I just hate the mind boggling variety of peripherals and how they can break.

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Secret_Account07@reddit

They really are.

Our desktop group pushes out updates, including dock driver/firmware, and it feels like they break constantly.

You’re right. It’s exactly like printers. So unreliable.

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Roanoketrees@reddit

We need to go back to the old snap down docks. These USB docks Dell has are unreliable as hell.

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daniel8507@reddit

I swapped out all docking stations for Lenovo USB-C monitors with Ethernet ports. Works like a fucken dream, and we've regained so much time from supporting those piece of shit docking stations.

[-]

martin8777@reddit

We have loads of Lenovo and a few Dell docks around the office and I don't think we've had an issue yet that wasn't resolved by just power cycling the thing.

Or replacing the USB-C cable at most.

[-]

anna_lynn_fection@reddit

I'm really starting to think my issues have to do with static, but I'm not quite sure how, exactly.

I can stand up and sit down at my desk 100 times in a row w/o an issue.

If I get up and walk around the office and come back and sit down in my chair, my monitors (and sometimes other devices connected to the dock) go out, and then come back.

I'm not even touching my desk, or anything on it, at that point.

But that happens like 75% of the time.

I feel like maybe if I run some ground wires, it would probably be fine.

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the_doughboy@reddit

When they were port replicators they were great, now they have drivers and firmware.

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Int-Merc805@reddit

We started buying the dell monitor docks. They’ve been fantastic so far. They did require a firmware upgrade but since then, rock solid.

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notonyanellymate@reddit

My budget USB hub works perfectly driving 2x 27” screens and supplying power to my partners workplace Chromebook setup. She just uses a budget HP14a too.

However, it the screens used to go black for a couple of seconds every minute or so. It was discovered that if the USB power was plugged directly into the hub instead of the Chromebook that problem went away. …in case this helps someone…

[-]

simplyworkinghere@reddit

We use the Pluggable UD-3900 and have had very few issues in our environment. It doesn't charge laptops which is a downside, but it works with macOS, Linux, and Windows, which helps greatly with purchase uniformity.

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Lazy-Function-4709@reddit

Bring back dumb port replicators. Nobody needs this daisy chain Thunderbolt crap. People just need to plug shit in and have it work reliably.

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ImPattMan@reddit

We've just started introducing them into our environment, we're mostly surface and dell in our org, and so far have probably 30 docks in the wild. Only issues we've had to my knowledge is the surface ones take issue with some usb c to display cables.

Other than that the docks have been great! Hell even better than my last org, back when they needed extra software on the pc to run the dock since it had a display adapter in the dock basically.

Now everything being displayport alt mode or thunderbolt has even simplified things.

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VirtualDenzel@reddit

You are lucky you are running surfacebooks for the docks. On the other hand you are using surfacebooks so thats a big ugh.

Saves you from dock issues but you end up with a laptop as crap as a mac

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ImPattMan@reddit

Mostly surface laptops actually.

Either way we're replacing them all with Dell laptops and Dell thunderbolt docks over time, or dell monitors with built in dock/kvm.

Really not issues with those yet.

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VirtualDenzel@reddit

Yeh those docks work fine. That was the only good thing about or surface fleet.... till the connectors bonked, you end up woth 1 screen or it missing keystrokes from the keyboard 😅

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G305_Enjoyer@reddit

In other news, boomer yells into the wind. More tonight at 9.

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T0astyMcgee@reddit

No way. Docks are annoying but printers can’t be topped.

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BlackReddition@reddit

We've moved to monitors with USB-C, docks are definitely the new printers.

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ChompChompBandit@reddit

My two cents. Dell docking stations (the latest ones, not from 2019/2020) are pretty reliable.. until we started allowing automatic driver updates on the workstations. Now all sorts of issues arise. Monitor not working, loss of network connectivity, mouse/keyboard stop working. It's always "unplug the power from the dock and plug it back in".

I swear, if you're on a stable firmware with no issues with the dock, stop fucking updating it. It'll lower your blood pressure by 20 points.

[-]

viswarkarman@reddit

It is a wonder any of them work at all, considering what they do. I read through some of the technical documentation for the Dell WD19 series. Holy crap! Basically you have another computer hanging off your USB-C serial port cable - it's an external high-speed peripheral bus. Network, multi-lane video, audio, USB hub - the whole bag. And it can be connected and disconnected at any time - laptop running or cold. And the laptop-side software has to be able to keep track of the configuration of every dock a user might attach to it - and most of my users have one of these in the office, and one at home, and maybe a third or fourth they hook up to in a conference room.

What I really wish is someone would give me some tools to troubleshoot these things - a utility to not only update the firmware, but show me what the dock thinks is attached to it, and let me force deletion or rescan of the attached peripherals. The whole things sucks so bad because you are left to troubleshoot through trial-and-error.

[-]

rthonpm@reddit

At least you can buy the controller for them separately. I've had some that flaked out: two screws and a little strength to separate the controller, slap the new one in, and life is good again.

[-]

Strongit@reddit

Wouldn't be a normal day at the job if we didn't get at least one ticket for a dock issue. We use 24/27 inch Dell monitors with them built in.

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Helpjuice@reddit

I normally recommend CalDigit TS4s which I have been using at mom and pop shops SMBs and large enterprise companies.

Worker comes in plugs in their Thunderbolt 4 cable from their Macbook Pro, Dell/HP/Lenovo Laptop to the Thunderbolt 4 port on the doc and they are good to go. Complaints have been zero, used to use the TS3 Plus and had no issues. Throw in the locks at the desks and they don't disappear, and you can already have evertything else hooked up.

Key here is Thunderbolt 4, no DisplayPort, no DVI, no VGA Thunderbolt 4 and they are good to go. Having gotten rid of all the other cable formats and standardizing on Thunderbolt 4 has been a game changer. They know to look for that lightening cable that has the number and we provide more through vending machines when needed and the people are happy, no tickets, no walkups, nothing concerning docs or how do I plug it in. They just figure it out because it's the same at all our sites globally.

[-]

panopticon31@reddit

I really miss the old Dell docks that had the direct to motherboard connection on the bottom. Those truly just worked. I think I remember maybe one over the course of my career that didn't work and that was because it had shorted out so it was pretty clearly dead.

[-]

yellowadidas@reddit

the greatest to ever do it. would get the occasional neanderthal user that would slam the laptop down on it too hard and break some pins but other than that they were the most solid piece of hardware in the entire office

[-]

TaliesinWI@reddit

Yeah, the Dell E-Docks were great. I'm using the Lenovo equivalents of those at my current job and we're very sad that for the next batch of laptops we're going to have to use Thunderbolt docks.

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ArSo12@reddit

I do to. The current ones.are garbage and step back

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Cheomesh@reddit

I'm going to disagree - printers give you diagnostics and interfaces to at least attempt to do something about the issue. Docking stations don't.

[-]

Rocknbob69@reddit

Every time there is an update they shit the bed until the updates are complete.

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InShambles234@reddit

Couple years ago they started replacing all the docking stations in my company and never tested them in our environment/lab. We start getting flooded with "network is down" tickets. The new docking stations were sending their MACs to be authenticated, which would prevent laptops from getting on the network because it was designed to only allow one MAC per domain on each port.

Didn't even notify Ops or Engineering before starting the project.

[-]

infeliciter@reddit

eport replicators were the best. they all suck now.

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cinn_x@reddit

Great alternative to docking station? Monitors like Dell P2425H(E) - these are cheaper than the docking station + monitor combo and are working for us flawlessly. You can easily swap out the USB-C cable to a new one, with no need to disassemble the station and trying to fix it with some expensive parts.

[-]

Next_Information_933@reddit

Buy actual brand docs from pluggable.
Reboot them every year once or twice.. That's about it actually....

[-]

J53151@reddit

Our Dell ones always have glitches.

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gordonv@reddit

Yup. A previous workplace had a whole slew of those things. Bought my own dock and everything worked. Then I left that place.

[-]

Overdraft4706@reddit

Did you take the dock with you?

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quasides@reddit

lenovo docks on lenovo laptops work fine

hwoever keep in mind the limit ofc the usb c port. with multiple 1080 or worse even 2k displazs on there is little wiggle room

qeue in usb 3 stick datatransfer.. time to set these displays to 30hz lol

[-]

Cpt_Rocket_Man@reddit

What kind of docking stations are you using? My experience with the Dell docks hasn’t been too bad over the last 4 years.

[-]

C_isfor_Cookies@reddit

Do system admins troubleshoot docking stations?

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caerbannog13@reddit

For us it's not so much the docks as the ham-fisted way that the users (teachers) hammer the USB-C plugs into their sockets. So many scratches, so many broken ports.

As long as it's Dell to Dell then it just about works. But when the media or games dev teachers decide they 'need' high-powered gaming machines of another make, it all goes to shit. Laptops with a dedicated gfx card don't support video over USB-C, and/or won't charge either. Then add WiFi reliability issues and it's a support nightmare.

I miss the days of a nice suite of hardwired desktops...

[-]

Casty_McBoozer@reddit

Remember how flawlessly they worked when there was a proprietary docking port and proprietary dock for each model laptop? Now that everything is Thunderbolt it's a shit show.

[-]

mikeredstone@reddit

Amen

[-]

mikeredstone@reddit

Lenovo USB c is what we are using 175 -275 depending where you buy. Once you install the driver you are gold.

[-]

mikeredstone@reddit

HP docks are really bad g4 and g5 garbage. Though the g5 is better. Good luck with a triple monitor setup. Get ready for tickets.

[-]

Slyme_JR@reddit

The HP G5 dock stations have not been too bad, although they do have very weird tendency to not connect external monitors for some reason a couple of times...

[-]

thearctican@reddit

You get what you pay for. The dock I have for my home office was nearly 400 dollars. Worth every single penny, zero headaches.

[-]

CornBredThuggin@reddit

I'm really glad that I don't have to mess with them anymore. I loved my slider docks, they just worked. The USB-C docks can be really dodgy. You'll get a batch that has constant issues that eat up so much time.

[-]

Ziegelphilie@reddit

I got so pissed off at docks I eventually ended up supplying laptop workers with usb-c monitors instead. Dell's P2425E has power, networking, a usb hub and supports displayport daisychaining. Haven't had one fail one me yet.

Well except for the mac users (marketing department, of course) but that's because their shitty overpriced laptops can only drive one display at a time per usb-c port.

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Spiritual_Grand_9604@reddit

We've had no issues really with HP G5 USB-C Essentials dock, any other has been tempermental.

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mullethunter111@reddit

You get what you pay for.

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bbqwatermelon@reddit

At least docking stations don't produce nebulous error messages that state nothing useful and show "contact administrator" on their display.

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djDef80@reddit

I have one of those real nice Dell ones with all the Thunderbolt goodies and I tried plugging it into my Samsung S22 Ultra and was pleasantly surprised Dex picked up everything including the Ethernet port on the multi-port adapter.

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Skullpuck@reddit

Sorry to hear of your troubles. We use Dell docking stations and we have maybe 3 fail in a year. That's with 2600+ users.

They are expensive, true. But worth it. It's possible we're just lucky. We do reinforce with people to not block the airways and to treat them with respect.

But yeah, the Dell WD19's are our go to. They barely ever fail.

Fuck printers.

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Garble7@reddit

The HP ones I use work perfectly fine 99% of the time, no issues.

Just don't buy crap.

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emmjaybeeyoukay@reddit

Anyone remember the older Latitude D docks. The one you pushed yhe laptop down onto?

Stable and ridiculously long lived. Fairly sure we had a few at the 12+ point until we moved over to the WD series.

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themanbow@reddit

Both the D and the E series docks were great!

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subrosians@reddit

Eh, the E series docks got funky after a few years of daily use, especially for the users that used the laptop's keyboard while attached to the dock. They would get sloppy and little knocks on the desk would cause them to disconnect and reconnect. D series docks were indestructible though.

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ExceptionEX@reddit

USB-C and trying to abuse the USB bus is largely to blame for how shit this is.

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lexbuck@reddit

We’ve got around 90 Dell docks and I’m not sure we ever have many problems out of them at all. What brand are you buying?

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CriticismTop@reddit

No

As bad as docking stations are, printers are still worse.

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But_Kicker@reddit

I have the HP G2 and G5 docks. I’m constantly telling my users to power cycle them because screens start flickering, screens don’t wake, etc. nothing I can do about it, just shitty firmware and internal hardware. Yet, they all seem to think it’s my fault. Lol

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AustinGroovy@reddit

No disagreement here..

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PrincipleExciting457@reddit

I can truthfully say I’ve never had a docking station issue.

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gordonv@reddit

3 options:

Proprietary, as in the docking station your laptop recommends. Lenovo Thinkpads have a recommended docking station. Specific to the model number. Not "Any Thinkpad station."
Plugable, - high end docking stations

Everything else is no - VisionTek, affordable, good quality

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themanbow@reddit

Anker's a good #4 choice.

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gordonv@reddit

Dell = Never

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beetcher@reddit

The first version was horrible, especially after the real Dell proprietary docks, they've gotten a lot better

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TheMajorMeerkat@reddit

Honest to God they are... used to order cheap USB C ones off Amazon for the company I work for (HDMI, Ethernet and all that) and lord... the amount of times I'd get a Teams message saying "Screens not working again!"

Ended up getting approval to just source Lenovo branded ones that now work without a hitch with the ThinkBooks

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moldyjellybean@reddit

It’s because they are these stupid usb docks. I swear back when thinkpads and latitudes had the dock ports on the bottom it was just some sort of pass through? Never needed drivers etc.

Now these isb ones need a display driver , or the box driver and if the connection is right or even if it’s right people will lose internet because it’s some usb to nic that depends on the chipset, usb root hub, usb connection, usb dock driver, usb dock firmware there’s so many points of failure.

Thanks god AMD and NVDA retired me so I don’t have deal with it. Back when it was docking ports on the bottom we had 10,000 thinkpad laptops there was almost never a dock issue .

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themanbow@reddit

I swear back when thinkpads and latitudes had the dock ports on the bottom it was just some sort of pass through?

You are correct! Less complexity! Fewer devices/device drivers for the OS to deal with.

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Individual-Teach7256@reddit

Trying to convince my boss to let me order dell docks for $150 instead of a $40 amazon special is getting really tough.

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simple1689@reddit

I miss Dell's E-Port Replicators

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sluzi26@reddit

I recently returned to a Lenovo shop. Their docks have a cloud component where they literally take up two IPs in scope, apparently. It’s a dedicated cloud management IP.

What the fuck? Like, who asked for that?

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gnomehome815@reddit

eBay HP USB-C Dock G5. They don't give me many issues and can be had for as low as $50. If some start acting up, it's cost-effective to replace.

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themanbow@reddit

Old passthrough docks were great, despite having proprietary connectors. No extra hardware to be detected by the OS--just a passthrough for the same hardware that's on the laptop itself.

USB-C docks add way too much complexity, as every device on the dock is a new piece of hardware to be detected.

On top of that we have the usual issues that come with USB-C in general:
* Cables supporting the right standards and power delivery * Ppossibly damaged cable and/or connector * Flaky device drivers for the USB-C port(s) in general on the laptop as well as the drivers for each component on the dock * Charger may or may not supply enough power * Dock plugged in at the "wrong" time * etc.

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tawtaw6@reddit

Can you not just get monitors mounted on the desks, I have not seen a docking station for at least 8 years in the Netherlands.

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DaylightAdmin@reddit

Please don't kill Linux support, like they did with printer.

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Asleep-Scallion-4483@reddit

had some wd19s docks where the fans kept ramping up and down at random. Warrantied those and haven't seen it happen recently (maybe a bad batch?). UD22 docks have been solid so far.

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Diamond4100@reddit

My favorite thing to do is to replace a dock with another dock of the same model and the laptop work just fine. Then take the broken dock and give it to someone else and it works just fine.

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DixOut-4-Harambe@reddit

We have the Lenovo ones with the Dell 27" monitors and we've had a spate of monitors start to flicker - usually the left/main one.

Monitors go back to normal if unplugged from power for an hour, but I am wondering now if it might be the docks?

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klauskervin@reddit

I miss the docks that would connect via pushing the laptop down to connect to a docking port on the bottom of the laptop. I had zero issues with those across all manufacturers. Now I'm lucky if a HP G5 dock recognizes that it's plugged into a new HP Probook without having to install drivers or updates.

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Bodycount9@reddit

I don't know. My Lenovo Gen2 dock has worked great for many years. I just upgraded to a Gen3 dock and it's working just the same. Just remember to firmware update it and you're golden.

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Kardinal@reddit

Never had an issue with the old Dell non-USB-C ones. They were absolutely dead solid reliable and fast.

I know about proprietary and expensive but damn they just worked perfectly every time.

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Turak64@reddit

Install the right drivers and firmware, never had an issue with the Dell ones after that.

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Ikarus3426@reddit

I spent some of my morning going through my pile of docks from the past couple weeks and seeing what was dead and what could be fixed.

On the one hand, it's great that when someone is having a problem with their monitor or something, I immediately know what the problem is.

On the other hand, what if no tickets? Wouldn't that be nice.

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soulless_ape@reddit

Fuck I hate them. I wish we could go back to business laptops and proprietary docks. Usually any issue gets solved with a firmware update. We have used docks from all brands from 150 ~ 400 bucks and they all suck

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JLock17@reddit

I had particularly bad docks before. The Dell WD15s were garbage, but the WD-19s worked pretty good. I also hated that the WD15 had 3 different display cable outputs. Genuinely dumb for a corporate setting.

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SuperBry@reddit

I miss docking stations that you actually docked into. These USB-C/Thunderbolt port replicators are for the birds.

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Lukage@reddit

So what you're saying is, plug the printer into the dock?

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PikachuDoesIT@reddit

Old Lenovo docks with the bigass base are always acting up. New ones with the finicky usb-c wire are also the same.

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gt@reddit

motherfucking PREACH. Dell docking stations, especially, have been notorious for issues.

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catroaring@reddit

Switched to dongles that have multi HDMI and USB ports years ago. Users have to plug in power separately. No issues aside from some dying but at $20-30 a pop that's fine with me.

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mmmeissa@reddit

So true. Even buying the OEM ones that are on the compatibility list we still have tons of random issues.

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Quadgie@reddit

Thunderbolt docks have worked well for my users. Cheaper USB-C port replicators? Bad times.

It got much more confusing with the recent ports looking the same.

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gadget850@reddit

And that's because nobody prints anymore.

HaHaHaHaHaHaHaHa

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Denis63@reddit

we have maybe 500 lenovo docks here and except for user damage, they're bulletproof.

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AnotherTall_ITGuy@reddit

Ha! We've learned to only use the Dell docks with the appropriate 180W power supply and to make sure they have the latest firmware. Even still there's the occasional issue here and there.

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XanII@reddit

They have always been horrible. Every now and then comes some decent thing and next version you expect to be good is again a horrible mess.

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indigoataxia@reddit

We're all Dell and have not had any issues with any of the models (WD19, WD22) aside from the lack of USB ports (3!) and no audio jack. But we've been dealing with a ton of USB-C ports that aren't working correctly. I suspect just the constant plugging and unplugging of the cable and maybe the cable getting pulled on is just wearing the ports out. At least the xx40 series and newer have 2 USB-C ports for failover 😆

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Creepy-Editor-3573@reddit (OP)

Unless you are using precision workstations and discrete graphics and you need both for power.

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davidm2232@reddit

I miss the ones that you snapped the laptop into. They seemed so much more reliable than the USB C ones.

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malikto44@reddit

Docking stations are so random. They can work perfectly and provide zero issues, actually damage the laptop they are attached to, and everything in between. I have heard of USB docking stations which after a few months, eventually resulted in the laptop losing a USB port, or not POSTing.

I wish we had the old school docking stations that used a proprietary port back, and where the laptop would either push back in, or drop on it. I remember the antediluvian IBM docks with a ton of little latches, as well as the Dell docks. You just plopped the laptop on the dock, and now you had access to a faster GPU, all your network stuff, Windows would change to a different docking profile (I think that was removed with Windows 11), and just work with the monitor and other setups. Those are what would be nice to have because it makes life easy to just plug in, and the dock would "just work", and at the end of the day, a lever pull would pop the laptop off.

Now, it is at best hit or miss when it comes to docking stations, because the dock could be USB, it could be Thunderbolt, maybe it has video going over the cable, maybe it has power... who knows.

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Creepy-Editor-3573@reddit (OP)

All of this.

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pratik7664@reddit

I recommend buying the wavlink WLAM2C-UG69PD2 docks, rarely any issues and has everything you need

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Lady_Lisbeth@reddit

We use the WD series docks (19s-latest) and the U2424HE hub monitors generally. We're mainly a Dell shop with Macs in the mix. We'll use display link docks for the Mac users demanding dual setups. We find that keeping up on the firmware updates goes a long way towards keeping the problems at bay. People call with the stupid problems, we check for firmware updates and yep...there is one, we install it, and the problems go away.

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p90rushb@reddit

Please don't compare them to printers... HP might be reading this thread and may introduce HP Dock+, a subscription-based dock service where you pay a one-time cost to purchase the dock, an account provisioning fee, then ongoing monthly subscription costs based on how much the dock is used.

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Phate1989@reddit

4k HDMI output is $5/month, but you cAn get the premium package that unlocks all features including screen mirroring and USB C PD

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Low_Grass_4772@reddit

We have a problem where if a power storm rolls through OR we have a long 3 day weekend our dell wd19s will just not work until you unplug them and hold reset button down for 15 seconds and then plug back up. Not all of them just random users and never the same user. I have maybe 300 of them. I can always count on 3 or 4 tickets about this to be in the queue after one of these two events.

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secret_configuration@reddit

Yes, I can agree. I never had much issues with printers over the years but docking stations on the other hand...

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noitanj@reddit

Anyone have any experience with monitors with built in dock?

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RCTID1975@reddit

I've been using one of the Dell curved since the end of 2020. No issues at all, and I have multiple machines connected to it.

Bonus that the curved monitors are so much nicer to use

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f1photos@reddit

Don’t get me started of the crappy Lenovo ones which blat the network with broadcast packets.

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way__north@reddit

We've been using 4 or 5 types of lenovo docks since 2016. 95% of our dock issues is when using dual monitors, losing 1 or both monitors and refuse to connect to them again. Usually need to unplug the monitor cables and plug them in one by one.

The remaining 5% are broken usb-c cable or outdated firmware.

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Chunkycarl@reddit

Stuck with Lenovo thunderbolts and so far (touching all the wood) had maybe 2 failures out of 100. Flashing firmware is however a common required fix. I agree, they are the new printers though, they grind about the same level of anger in me lol.

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Nick85er@reddit

Power cycle that thang

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Mantly@reddit

Deskphones are my docking stations.

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stiffgerman@reddit

Our biggest issue with USB-C/TB docks are the dolts that filch the short TB4 cable for something (like for charging their phone in their car) and then trying to replace that with a craptastic cable they got at the 7-11.

We have the replacement cables listed in our internal office supply catalog for their department to purchase, on their dime.

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iker42@reddit

I logged in today to make a post asking for dock suggestions. We have been using WD15, WD19, and DS1000's for the past few years. The DS1000's have the least amount of issues but all 3 suffer from cable issues.

It is NICE to have a dock that uses the laptop charger and no frills, but I am tired of replacing them every time a cable goes bad (or replacing the cable on the 15/19s but that gets almost as expensive as the dock itself).

Lenovo looks to have the best business type dock with a removable USB C but is anyone using others?

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SenTedStevens@reddit

Our Dell USB docks are very problematic. They only fall into 2 categories:

1) Reliable, plug-n-play units that don't have any issues. This is the outlier.

2) Spastic, disconnecting, screen flickering, loses USB functionality that even with frequent disconnect/reconnects, driver and firmware updates, and BIOS updates just doesn't fix it. Dell sends us a new one and MAYBE we're good.

I miss the days of the old Lenovo T series docks that you clicked them into. They had more functionality and almost never had an issue that didn't get fixed by ejecting/connecting back in.

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hells_cowbells@reddit

We've had a couple of different Dell docks, and the USB-C/Thunderbolt docks have all been terrible. The old school models we had that used the special dock connector that you just dropped the laptop on were great.

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Transresister@reddit

Visiontek enters the chat, looks around, makes a hasty exit.

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Wolfram_And_Hart@reddit

I’d just love for my HP G4 to work with my HP Zbook

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what_dat_ninja@reddit

We just switched to nice new USB-C hub monitors. Not that much more expensive than docking stationd for decent 4k monitors from Dell.

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SilentMaster@reddit

I am surprised how often I have to reboot them. Never had to do that in the last generation of Lenovo docks.

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jtbis@reddit

Just buy the OEM dock for whatever laptop brand you use. They will die once in a while, but no weird driver or compatibility issues.

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Fireguy9641@reddit

Agreed, they can be a pain, especially with people who connect and disconnect a lot during the day, there's often issues with wireless disconnecting and reconnecting.

Windows 11 has made it better for some.

I've also had more success using the Montior/Dock combos vs the stand alone docking stations.

It's also insane how they only put like 3 USB ports on docking stations.

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slparker09@reddit

I have tried at least 8 different models/brands and all of them are fucking garbage. Nearly every teacher we have that uses one has some kind of display issue or power issue with them.

So far, the only one that has held up has been the Satechi ones.

We've used Dell, HP, Kensington, and some off brands recommended by CDWG. All junk.

It shouldn't be difficult for a dock to 1) run 2 displays, 2) charge/PD a laptop, and 3) provide a nic.

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SpotlessCheetah@reddit

I have had good success with the Lenovo USB-C Gen 2 Docking Station (P/N 40AS0090US). These are fairly priced as well.. \~$150.

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deramirez25@reddit

Never had any issues with dock stations :o