6 ms·

> Where could you possibly go where (a) there are three monitors, a mouse, and keyboard waiting for you, and (b) none of those devices have a built-in USB hub

> Where could you possibly go where (a) there are three monitors, a mouse, and keyboard waiting for you, and (b) none of those devices have a built-in USB hub That describes my workplace. (But with two rather than three monitors.) Standard monitors that operate over HDMI/DVI/etc don't have USB hubs without a separate USB connection, most keyboards are the same way. > Either you're mobile and need the USB ports, or stationary and there's a hub there. What use case am I missing? Sure, you can work around the lack of IO by buying a hub, but the point was that previously you would not have needed yet another dongle.

colanderman 10y ago
So buy the USB-C hub/dock/whatever and leave it at work. No need to carry it around with you. This isn't really any different than the case of a traditional laptop with a dock, except instead of some weird giant proprietary connector, you have a small standardized connector.
- merb 10y ago
  > USB-C hub/dock/whatever There aren't that many good one's. What I would need would be one which handle's at least, 4-6 USB, two HDMI, Ethernet and charging would be a bonus.
  - exhilaration 10y ago
    That would be pretty cool actually, so only a single connection for everything? Like a docking station! Why isn't Apple making one?
    - Bud 10y ago
      Because Apple does not NEED to make every single necessary object in the universe. LG is making them, they are 5k, they have wide color gamut and 3x USB-C out, and they are in the Apple Store. That's good enough. This enables Apple to focus on what they are good at.
      - dictum 10y ago
        If we stretch this approach, Apple will become good at making the iPhone and nothing else. The display was the soul of the desktop Mac. It's easier to perceive your Macbook as another PC when your window into it is another mostly generic-looking LG display, even if the panel in the Apple branded display was manufactured by LG. Perhaps they want to focus on the iMac again and don't want the MBP + display combo to cannibalize it. But again, with extreme focus soon they'll be abandoning the iMac for good. (I still love macOS and I enjoy how the new MBP looks)
    - henrikschroder 10y ago
      They already did, it's called the Thunderbolt Display.
  - lmm 10y ago
    Can I tempt you over to the Microsoft side? The Surface Dock has exactly those connections - I leave everything connected to the dock as my "workstation", and carry my Surface Book travelling when need be.
    - douche 10y ago
      If you're being tempted over to the Microsoft side, you might as well just buy a Dell or HP or Thinkpad or whatever, and get Mac-level specs at half the price, and usually a good collection of today's standard ports.
      - lmm 10y ago
        It's hard to match the Surface Book on specs, at least if you care about the size and weight and resolution and touchscreen. I went shopping 6 months ago with requirements of: thin and light (13" or smaller), available in the UK, NVidia graphics, 12gb or more of RAM, reasonable processor, and touchscreen; I wasn't expecting to walk out with Microsoft hardware but the Surface Book was the only laptop I saw that (more-or-less - it's 13.5") matched up to that.
      - ocdtrekkie 10y ago
        I think the Surface Pro is still pretty competitive, though the Book and Studio are really out there on price. But that's the great thing about the Microsoft side... You have choices like buying the HP it the Dell.
    - xenadu02 10y ago
      Who wants to run Windows?
  - edwinjm 10y ago
    Apple's idea is that your monitor will be the hub. See the new LG Ultrafine Display. Just connect your Mac with one cable and you're ready to work.
    - monkmartinez 10y ago
      Can we say that, at this time, Apple's idea here is a bit dumb/half-baked/incongruent/silly/frustrating and it will materially hurt them in the longer term?
      - threeseed 10y ago
        None of what you said is remotely true. Betting entirely on USB-C as the one true connector is not half baked and is quite reasonable. And by using it solely it will force accessory manufacturers to build the docks, monitors etc. This has all happened before with the original iMac. And it was universally seen in the long run as one of the best decisions they made.
      - matwood 10y ago
        It's the short term where the pain will be felt if there is any. The long term is clear, USB-C throughout which I think is a good thing. What I'm confused about is why the iPhone7 was also not USB-C. I fully expect to see the next iPhone switch over.
        bwilliams18 10y ago
        while I 100% agree the next iPhone SHOULD switch over to USB-C I'd be very surprised if it actually does...Apple isn't going to want to go through a second port transition in such a short period of time (30 pin to lightening) and certainly won't want to change anything after the headphone port this year. Especially b/c next year is the 10th anniversary, and it's understood that they really want it to be something special,
        scottmf 10y ago
        I agree they won't change so soon, but I just realized there have been as many lightning models as 30 pin models.
  - bwilliams18 10y ago
    Look at Thunderbolt 3 docks instead, theres a better selection of options...and I'm sure in the next few weeks there will be even more.
  - phonon 10y ago
    http://plugable.com/products/ud-ultcdl/ http://plugable.com/products/ud-ultcdl/ came up in a quick search. Looks good to me!
    - merb 10y ago
      not available in my country tough.
wlesieutre 10y ago
> That describes my workplace. (But with two rather than three monitors.) Standard monitors that operate over HDMI/DVI/etc don't have USB hubs without a separate USB connection, most keyboards are the same way. But your run of the mill Dell office monitors do have a USB hub, most often 2 ports on the back panel for keyboard/mouse and 2 ports on the side for flash drives and other transient accessories. colanderman's point is that you should get a USB cable and use that hub instead of individually plugging everything into the laptop. Three video connections and one hub connection gets you all the connectivity you need at a desk. If you're mobile, you'll certainly need less.
- vacri 10y ago
  My run-of-the-mill Dell monitors at work don't have USB ports.
  - colanderman 10y ago
    I have a Dell U2410, which, while not exactly run-of-the-mill (it is wide-gamut), isn't that fancy yet does have all the ports wlesieutre mentioned. (Granted, they require a separate USB connection, but it is an older monitor.) At work I have an Apple monitor that has multiple USB ports and an Ethernet port on the back of it. I think it has speakers too. All that and the display run across the mini-DP connection. Again, not exactly run-of-the-mill, but well within the price range of Apple's target market, and given Apple's push in that direction, it's liable to be commonplace in a couple years anyway.

colanderman 10y ago

So buy the USB-C hub/dock/whatever and leave it at work. No need to carry it around with you. This isn't really any different than the case of a traditional laptop with a dock, except instead of some weird giant proprietary connector, you have a small standardized connector.

merb 10y ago
> USB-C hub/dock/whatever There aren't that many good one's. What I would need would be one which handle's at least, 4-6 USB, two HDMI, Ethernet and charging would be a bonus.
- exhilaration 10y ago
  That would be pretty cool actually, so only a single connection for everything? Like a docking station! Why isn't Apple making one?
  - Bud 10y ago
    Because Apple does not NEED to make every single necessary object in the universe. LG is making them, they are 5k, they have wide color gamut and 3x USB-C out, and they are in the Apple Store. That's good enough. This enables Apple to focus on what they are good at.
    - dictum 10y ago
      If we stretch this approach, Apple will become good at making the iPhone and nothing else. The display was the soul of the desktop Mac. It's easier to perceive your Macbook as another PC when your window into it is another mostly generic-looking LG display, even if the panel in the Apple branded display was manufactured by LG. Perhaps they want to focus on the iMac again and don't want the MBP + display combo to cannibalize it. But again, with extreme focus soon they'll be abandoning the iMac for good. (I still love macOS and I enjoy how the new MBP looks)
  - henrikschroder 10y ago
    They already did, it's called the Thunderbolt Display.
- lmm 10y ago
  Can I tempt you over to the Microsoft side? The Surface Dock has exactly those connections - I leave everything connected to the dock as my "workstation", and carry my Surface Book travelling when need be.
  - douche 10y ago
    If you're being tempted over to the Microsoft side, you might as well just buy a Dell or HP or Thinkpad or whatever, and get Mac-level specs at half the price, and usually a good collection of today's standard ports.
    - lmm 10y ago
      It's hard to match the Surface Book on specs, at least if you care about the size and weight and resolution and touchscreen. I went shopping 6 months ago with requirements of: thin and light (13" or smaller), available in the UK, NVidia graphics, 12gb or more of RAM, reasonable processor, and touchscreen; I wasn't expecting to walk out with Microsoft hardware but the Surface Book was the only laptop I saw that (more-or-less - it's 13.5") matched up to that.
    - ocdtrekkie 10y ago
      I think the Surface Pro is still pretty competitive, though the Book and Studio are really out there on price. But that's the great thing about the Microsoft side... You have choices like buying the HP it the Dell.
  - xenadu02 10y ago
    Who wants to run Windows?
- edwinjm 10y ago
  Apple's idea is that your monitor will be the hub. See the new LG Ultrafine Display. Just connect your Mac with one cable and you're ready to work.
  - monkmartinez 10y ago
    Can we say that, at this time, Apple's idea here is a bit dumb/half-baked/incongruent/silly/frustrating and it will materially hurt them in the longer term?
    - threeseed 10y ago
      None of what you said is remotely true. Betting entirely on USB-C as the one true connector is not half baked and is quite reasonable. And by using it solely it will force accessory manufacturers to build the docks, monitors etc. This has all happened before with the original iMac. And it was universally seen in the long run as one of the best decisions they made.
    - matwood 10y ago
      It's the short term where the pain will be felt if there is any. The long term is clear, USB-C throughout which I think is a good thing. What I'm confused about is why the iPhone7 was also not USB-C. I fully expect to see the next iPhone switch over.
      - bwilliams18 10y ago
        while I 100% agree the next iPhone SHOULD switch over to USB-C I'd be very surprised if it actually does...Apple isn't going to want to go through a second port transition in such a short period of time (30 pin to lightening) and certainly won't want to change anything after the headphone port this year. Especially b/c next year is the 10th anniversary, and it's understood that they really want it to be something special,
        scottmf 10y ago
        I agree they won't change so soon, but I just realized there have been as many lightning models as 30 pin models.
- bwilliams18 10y ago
  Look at Thunderbolt 3 docks instead, theres a better selection of options...and I'm sure in the next few weeks there will be even more.
- phonon 10y ago
  http://plugable.com/products/ud-ultcdl/ http://plugable.com/products/ud-ultcdl/ came up in a quick search. Looks good to me!
  - merb 10y ago
    not available in my country tough.

wlesieutre 10y ago

> That describes my workplace. (But with two rather than three monitors.) Standard monitors that operate over HDMI/DVI/etc don't have USB hubs without a separate USB connection, most keyboards are the same way. But your run of the mill Dell office monitors do have a USB hub, most often 2 ports on the back panel for keyboard/mouse and 2 ports on the side for flash drives and other transient accessories. colanderman's point is that you should get a USB cable and use that hub instead of individually plugging everything into the laptop. Three video connections and one hub connection gets you all the connectivity you need at a desk. If you're mobile, you'll certainly need less.

vacri 10y ago
My run-of-the-mill Dell monitors at work don't have USB ports.
- colanderman 10y ago
  I have a Dell U2410, which, while not exactly run-of-the-mill (it is wide-gamut), isn't that fancy yet does have all the ports wlesieutre mentioned. (Granted, they require a separate USB connection, but it is an older monitor.) At work I have an Apple monitor that has multiple USB ports and an Ethernet port on the back of it. I think it has speakers too. All that and the display run across the mini-DP connection. Again, not exactly run-of-the-mill, but well within the price range of Apple's target market, and given Apple's push in that direction, it's liable to be commonplace in a couple years anyway.