Whether you take your laptop everywhere or always leave it in the house, you want to have the best possible experience when your machine is sitting on your desk, especially if you don't have enough ports. With a universal dock, you can attach your system to multiple monitors and a wide variety of peripherals with extra USB ports.
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We just recently reviewed the new MacBook Air, which happens to only have two Thunderbolt 3 ports. You can save $100 on the MacBook Air during B&H's current Black Friday sale.
Depending on your needs, you can find budget docks that will output to dual HD monitors over standard USB, or more expensive docks that have support for USB Type-C and for 4K monitors that will work not only with your current laptop, but also your next one.
Laptops such as the MacBook Pro and the Surface Pro skimp down on the ports, but don't worry — we've got you covered. And if you only need a few extra ports, consider a USB Type-C hub. Also, take a look at our ports guide to learn about all of the ports out there and which ones you need.
Best Cheap Dock - Plugable UD-3900 Dual Display Universal Docking Station
They say you get what you pay for, but Plugable's UD-3900 gives you a lot of performance for under $100. It supplies full-HD support to two monitors, and has all the ports that the vast majority of users need. If you don't have a 4K monitor on your desk or a USB Type-C port on your laptop, this will support everything you have today at a low price.
Top Dock Overall - Plugable USB-C Triple Display Dock
Using the Plugable USB-C Triple Display Dock (UD-ULTCD) feels a bit like living in the future. It works with all of the newest standards, including USB Type-C for charging and external displays, along with support for a 4K monitor. It's oriented in a vertical position, so you can't keep the dock under your laptop or monitors, but its performance and support for three displays simultaneously makes the Triple Display Dock our top choice.
Plugable UD-3900H Dual Display Universal Docking Station
The Plugable UD-3900H dock is seemingly identical to the UD-3900, except that it is horizontal, making it easier to slide under dual monitors. Like the other one, it packs an HDMI port, a DVI port and VGA port (up to two displays for 1920 × 1200 or 1920 x 1080 resolution). It also has an RJ45 port, two USB 3.0 ports, four USB 2.0 ports, a headphone jack and a microphone line-in port.
The Humanscale M/Connect 2 is something you're more likely to see in your office than your home. It's a full-scale ergonomic solution with USB Type-C for charging (and a USB Type-A adapter, if you're not ready for the new standard just yet) and supports dual 4K monitors. It's clamp design allows you to keep the majority of your cables under your desk, allowing for a neat workspace. It starts around $300, though you'll have to pay more for a monitor arm to attach to it.
The one downside to a dock is that it takes up space on your desk, but Targus' DV1K-4K docking station is easy to tuck away. The small, well-built dock is designed to fit under your laptop, sporting a nonslip surface to keep your system from sliding down. The dock is also small enough to fit under your monitors, if you prefer. The DV1K-4K supports one 4K monitor and has a ton of USB 3.0 ports, making it a strong choice for power users.
Most businesses have USB 3.0 laptops now, but will want something with USB Type-C for the future. Look no further than Dell's new D6000 universal dock, which has a built-in adapter to easily switch between the standards, so you can connect it to just about any laptop. It can go up to 5K on a single screen or handle up to three 4K screens over USB Type-C.
Considering Plugable's other offerings, we weren't surprised that its Thunderbolt 3 Docking Station is excellent. It's the best we've tested so far, with a reasonable price, the ability to be used both vertically and horizontally and a DisplayPort to HDMI adapter in the box. It charges a laptop while powering up to two 4K displays or a single 5K monitor and has a few extra USB 3.0 ports for legacy peripherals.
HP's Thunderbolt Dock with Audio is perfect for managing a ton of ports as well as having group conference calls due to its echo-canceling microphone and dedicated speakers. The ports include: one Thunderbolt 3 port, three USB 3.0 ports, a male power jack and USB Type-C leading out of the bottom, a headphone jack, a security lock slot, one USB-C DisplayPort (data and power out) port, two DisplayPort ports, one VGA port, two USB 3.0 ports, an RJ45 port and a power jack. Due to its Thunderbolt 3 (USB Type-C) male output, it's compatible with more than just HP devices.
New and Notable: Kensington SD7000 Dual 4K Surface Pro Docking Station
Surface Pro owners are getting some love with Kensington’s newest SD7000 Dual 4K docking station. This dock works with the Surface Pro (2017) or Surface Pro 4 and comes with two video ports that support 4K, an HDMI 2.0 port and a DisplayPort v1.2 port. It opens up a wide range of ports for the Surface Pro, including an extra headphone jack, one USB Type-C port, four USB 3.0 ports and an RJ45 port. It also has a magnetic connection for the Surface Pen. It's slated to release on Nov. 15, and is currently available to pre-order on Amazon for $349.
First, big fan of the site. Unfortunately I just had a disappointing experience with the Plugable UD-ULTCD. When it worked it was fantastic. But then the unit would crash and recover, but not recognize connected devices until a hard reboot. The folks at Plugable where great and offered what help they could but we couldn't find a solution. This followed a previous experience a few months back with a number of difficulties using a Dell WD15. Both were running off a Dell XPS 13 9350. Still looking for a dual monitor dock with 4K capability. Thanks for the article.
