Dockingstation needed for MacBook Pro 2017

BGV652
New Contributor II

Hello guys,

at the moment I am searching for a dockingstation for the latest MacBook Pro that supports two external displays (1080p), gigabit ethernet and some USB ports.
I have figured out that I need a thunderbolt dockingstation for the use of two external displays.
It seems that USB-C dockingstations without thunderbolt support one external display only.

There are two possible dockingstations that could be used and that are already available:
1. Lenovo Thinkpad Thunderbolt Dock
2. Elgato Thunderbolt 3 Dock

Even if the Lenovo Dockingstation is not custom-built for Apple MacBooks our company would prefer them because we are using Lenovo devices next to our Apple environment.

Is there something that you could recommend to use?
How do you setup your MacBook Pro workplaces if you have two use two displays?
Has anyone already tested the Lenovo Thunderbolt 3 Dock?
Unfortunately our displays do not support thunderbolt 3.

Thank you for your help.

1 ACCEPTED SOLUTION

BGV652
New Contributor II

Thanks to all and your great feedback!
I should have enough information now to make a decision.
Especially the two lists above offer a nice overview.

View solution in original post

18 REPLIES 18

ifbell
Contributor

Have you looked at these?

https://hengedocks.com

BGV652
New Contributor II

Yes, I have already looked at them.
Those horizontal dockingstations are currently unavailable (even the preorders are sold out) and besides this they are pretty expensive.

Not applicable

We are currently testing the Belkin Thunderbolt 3 express dock hd but we waiting for the calidigit thunderbolt station 3 (TS3) and the Elgato Thunderbolt dock. I have been going off of the shared google doc provided by the MacAdmins (https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1jAYm3ePGdP052JSfIxWTOWpIl9P3bnssm8kImdK3rqE/edit#gid=0).

bpavlov
Honored Contributor

There's a few listed here that support multiple video inputs: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1wkPDr8hf9OGu-BjKRukdnUQ7tyEsabG4yAf1OmzekCg

donmontalvo
Esteemed Contributor III

3ea71cdc8bc041e693b2939f6fc835b2
Might want to call LandingZone to see if they have an ETA for the 2017 model MacBook Pros.

Hm...actually not sure if a revamp is needed from 2016 to 2017...call em?

--
https://donmontalvo.com

dmw3
Contributor III

We have had good success with Targus USB-C docks. There is a limitation on the macOS in that it will only support one external display via a single USB-C port. However we had worked around this using a USB-C to Display port cable on a second display. Everything else runs through the dock, USB-A, audio, ethernet, USB-C.

http://www.staples.com.au/main-catalogue-productdetail/targus-usb-c-1k-4k-dual-video-docking-station/25014438?feature=browse&feature_ident=ident%3Atechnology-accessories%2Fcomputer-accessories%2Fdisplay-accessories%2Ftargus%7Cposition%3A65dc9ff2fd2ec4c6096d276347f954bcb
5a9f0c5827cf497b9a03e5626adf2921

BGV652
New Contributor II

Thanks to all and your great feedback!
I should have enough information now to make a decision.
Especially the two lists above offer a nice overview.

andy_granger
New Contributor III

I just started using the CalDigit Thunderbolt Station 3 (http://www.caldigit.com/thunderbolt-3-dock/thunderbolt-station-3/) with my 15" Late 2016. So far it seems to work like a charm. I've had much better luck with CalDigit TB/TB2 docks than with any other brand.

Also, be aware that the OWC TB3 dock doesn't provide enough power for the new 15" MacBook Pros, only the 13". OWC, of all companies you should know better.

csa
New Contributor III

Also take a look at the Dell TB16 Thunderbolt docking station: http://www.dell.com/en-us/shop/dell-thunderbolt-dock-tb16-240w/apd/452-bcnu/pc-accessories
We use it and have not seen any issues with MacBooks and dual 4k video monitors. Only issues at this time is that you need a windows machine with USB-C port to update firmware as Dell has no Mac utility to do this.

bmagistro
New Contributor II

@csa, how did you get dual display working on the TB16? Is it dependent upon the firmware update? We have a handful of them and need to use tb3enabler and even then can only get a single display out. At the moment, I am looking at staying away from TB3 due to compatibility with with regular MacBooks.

csa
New Contributor III

@bmagistro We needed to update the firmware on the TB16 (only the 200+ watt model works) to get dual video to work. The firmware update can only be done from a Windows machine that has a USB-C port. Dell does not provide a way to update the firmware from the Mac. We also tried to do the update from a windows VM and BootCamp but no luck with those approaches. Generally TB3 docks have issues the MacBook Pros in my experience, the dock doesn't seem to be ready yet. I would wait till October when better docks are scheduled to hit the market. We are also currently evaluating pre-release ver of the M-Connect-2 dock from HumanScale and it works really well so far.

rich_thomas
New Contributor III

The Belkin dock is working well for us, display port for one screen and a usb-c to DVI adapter for the other. I will say however, connecting via HDMI adapters to anything is super unreliable. Projectors and meeting room displays just aren't working properly for us with the Apple Digital AV adapter.

andymcp
New Contributor III

I've been testing the Kensington SD5000T TB3 docking station (https://www.kensington.com/us/us/4491/k38239us/sd5000t-thunderbolt-3-docking-station). Seems to work well so far and has a built-in DisplayPort and two TB3 ports for additional displays.

nathansoz
New Contributor

@csa can you tell me where you got the firmware update you speak of? I don't see one for the dock on Dell's site, just a thunderbolt chipset upgrade for laptops.

nathansoz
New Contributor

@csa how did you update the firmware on the TB16? I've been looking everywhere for a firmware update for the dock and can't find anything.

macseb
New Contributor

@csa, can you tell us more about TB16 firmware update ? I've bought a TB16 dock and need to update firmware as you mentioned, but can't found the binaries on Dell Support site. Thx

bmagistro
New Contributor II

@nathansoz @macseb , One of the guys in our shop did try updating but we have not followed up on if it will drive two displays yet. He did mention that there was no utility to force the update and that eventually it noticed it needed an update and prompted him.

cwaldrip
Valued Contributor

Henge have a tethered docking station as an alternative to their vertical and horizontal docks. We just bought Kingston Thunderbolt 3 docks and I'm pretty happy with them.