Need a docking station that can handle my entire desk without breaking a sweat

Posted by Super-Turn-1124@reddit | buildapc | View on Reddit | 3 comments

I’m finally ready to go all-in on a proper docking station. But the market is overwhelming and I don’t want to drop €300–600 on the wrong thing.

My setup:

• Two MacBooks with Thunderbolt 5 (a 16” M4pro and a 14” M5 pro), I swap between them daily, so one cable plug-and-go is the dream

• Two monitors: one is a 4K 144Hz gaming monitor (DisplayPort input, no USB-C) and the other is a 1080p office monitor (HDMI input, also no USB-C)

• A ridiculous number of things that need USB-A: iPhone charger, Apple Watch charger, Android phone charger, plus wireless mouse and keyboard dongles. That’s 5 USB-A ports before I’ve even started

What I care about:

No performance drop when everything is connected. This is the big one. I’ve read horror stories about docks that charge your laptop at full speed until you plug in a monitor and two phones, then suddenly you’re at 60W and your MacBook is draining while “charging.” I want a dock where the PSU can actually handle the full load
Dual monitors working properly on macOS — extended, not mirrored. I know Mac + multi-display has historically been painful

Thanks!

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Hi-Tech-Monkey@reddit

A kvm, possibly an active hdmi to dvi cable or two, a usb3 port replicator. This way you don’t need to keep plugging and unplugging your cables to wear out the ports. Also 2 usb dongles (these will be what goes directly into your laptops from the kvm. I bet it will be cheaper than the caldigit it would need some cable management to make it clean tho.

InvaderJ@reddit

Answer is almost always a CalDigit dock. Get a TS4 or TS5 and it’ll last like forever.

editsthepopo@reddit

/thread tbh. Just save yourself the agonising over all the different options available and get a Caldigit.