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I have 3 dongles and one power plugged into my macbook pro right now (ethernet could be optional, external monitor, USB, power). Maybe there will be a nice doc

I have 3 dongles and one power plugged into my macbook pro right now (ethernet could be optional, external monitor, USB, power). Maybe there will be a nice docking station sometime, but for now, it's dongle city, and picking up the laptop a bit to connect/disconnect each one every time I transition between mobile and desktop-replacement. Maybe something like https://nerdtechy.com/best-usb-c-docking-stations https://nerdtechy.com/best-usb-c-docking-stations, though they currently are biased toward providing many USB-A ports.

epistasis 8y ago
There are many many single-connector dongles that act like docking stations. The docking stations in your link look really really big. It's easy to find something that does 2x USB-A, ethernet, HDMI, and power on Amazon, for $60-$70 dollars. This will let you have a single cable to plug into to get your monitor and everything.
colejohnson66 8y ago
> picking up the laptop a bit to connect/disconnect each one every time I transition between mobile and desktop-replacement. Am I missing something? You’d have to do that even if there weren’t dongles.
- kbutler 8y ago
  I notice it more with the USB-C MBP, probably because of the thinness of the device, the number of the cables I have to dis/connect, and the fact I have to do it for both sides of the laptop.
reaperducer 8y ago
Maybe there will be a nice docking station sometime, but for now, it's dongle city, and picking up the laptop a bit to connect/disconnect each one every time I transition between mobile and desktop-replacement. That's not unique to USB-C. My MacBook has no USB-C ports, just the previous gen. But right now has power, external hard drive, headphones, HDMI and a mouse plugged into it. When I transition to mobile, I'll have to unplug all of those, too. As you note, a docking station would be the best solution, but it's just another piece of gear I don't want on my desk.
- lopmotr 8y ago
  What if there was a dongle that securely clipped/glued onto the bottom of the computer so it feels like it's part of it? You'd never remove it and it would simply become a bigger computer with all the ports you want. Just like if the computer maker had put all those ports there in the first place. I used to use a 3rd party battery that had double the capacity of the factory battery but stuck out the bottom. It doubled as a small tilt-stand. No cables or ever removing it like you would an external battery pack.
  - reaperducer 8y ago
    >I used to use a 3rd party battery that had double the capacity of the factory battery but stuck out the bottom. It doubled as a small tilt-stand. No cables or ever removing it like you would an external battery pack. I have something like that now for my MacBook Air. I think it's called a Chug Plug, or something like that. Instead of using Apple's ever-changing computer-side plug, it has the very-stable-so-far electrical socket end connection. So you pop the little regional adapter off your laptop's wall wart and attach the wall wart to the portable battery so it works with every laptop Apple's made this century. Heavy as hell, but works well.
Eugr 8y ago
For MacBook Pro with USB-C ports (that are also Thunderbolt 3) you should look into Thunderbolt 3 docks instead. They are pricey, but do the job really well. Just look for ones that support 85W charging - not all of them do, some are limited to 60W. I use CalDigit TS3 at home and Kensington SD5200T at work - both work really well.

epistasis 8y ago

There are many many single-connector dongles that act like docking stations. The docking stations in your link look really really big. It's easy to find something that does 2x USB-A, ethernet, HDMI, and power on Amazon, for $60-$70 dollars. This will let you have a single cable to plug into to get your monitor and everything.

colejohnson66 8y ago

> picking up the laptop a bit to connect/disconnect each one every time I transition between mobile and desktop-replacement. Am I missing something? You’d have to do that even if there weren’t dongles.

kbutler 8y ago
I notice it more with the USB-C MBP, probably because of the thinness of the device, the number of the cables I have to dis/connect, and the fact I have to do it for both sides of the laptop.

reaperducer 8y ago

Maybe there will be a nice docking station sometime, but for now, it's dongle city, and picking up the laptop a bit to connect/disconnect each one every time I transition between mobile and desktop-replacement. That's not unique to USB-C. My MacBook has no USB-C ports, just the previous gen. But right now has power, external hard drive, headphones, HDMI and a mouse plugged into it. When I transition to mobile, I'll have to unplug all of those, too. As you note, a docking station would be the best solution, but it's just another piece of gear I don't want on my desk.

lopmotr 8y ago
What if there was a dongle that securely clipped/glued onto the bottom of the computer so it feels like it's part of it? You'd never remove it and it would simply become a bigger computer with all the ports you want. Just like if the computer maker had put all those ports there in the first place. I used to use a 3rd party battery that had double the capacity of the factory battery but stuck out the bottom. It doubled as a small tilt-stand. No cables or ever removing it like you would an external battery pack.
- reaperducer 8y ago
  >I used to use a 3rd party battery that had double the capacity of the factory battery but stuck out the bottom. It doubled as a small tilt-stand. No cables or ever removing it like you would an external battery pack. I have something like that now for my MacBook Air. I think it's called a Chug Plug, or something like that. Instead of using Apple's ever-changing computer-side plug, it has the very-stable-so-far electrical socket end connection. So you pop the little regional adapter off your laptop's wall wart and attach the wall wart to the portable battery so it works with every laptop Apple's made this century. Heavy as hell, but works well.

Eugr 8y ago

For MacBook Pro with USB-C ports (that are also Thunderbolt 3) you should look into Thunderbolt 3 docks instead. They are pricey, but do the job really well. Just look for ones that support 85W charging - not all of them do, some are limited to 60W. I use CalDigit TS3 at home and Kensington SD5200T at work - both work really well.