At a Glance

Expert’s Rating

Pros

• 18 top-end ports
• 2.5Gb Ethernet
• 230W energy
• Dedicated DisplayPort
• Flexible design

Cons

• DisplayPort means simply two downstream TB4 ports

Our Verdict

It’s obtained all of the top-end ports you can want for (greater than another), tremendous energy provide (bigger than another) and charging power, and a compact and versatile design.

Price When Reviewed

$399.95

Best Prices Today: CalDigit Thunderbolt Station 4 (TS4)

$399.99

$495.87

The successor to the favored TS3 Plus docking station, Caldigit’s TS4 Thunderbolt Station 4 dock has quite a bit to dwell as much as—and, with a mess of high-end ports and design flexibility, it succeeds by not altering an award-winning components.

In some ways, the TS3 redefined the docking station and was our long-time favourite Thunderbolt 3 docking station.

Caldigit has waited longer than most to launch a Thunderbolt 4 dock, however we’re not disenchanted as this one is one of the best we’ve examined. Later, we’ll talk about the variations between Thunderbolt 3 (TB3) and Thunderbolt 4 (TB4) and whether or not TS3 Plus homeowners ought to improve to the brand new TS4.

A docking station permits a laptop computer proprietor to create a busy desktop setup with only a single USB-C/TB connection between laptop and dock.

All the exterior units are related to the dock: from exterior displays to quick SSD drives, printer, webcam, reminiscence sticks, keyboard and mouse (in case you haven’t caught up with Bluetooth, after all). Many docks additionally embody a card reader so you’ll be able to add cheap transportable storage playing cards, often SD or microSD.

A dock additionally frees you from the vagaries of Wi-Fi with a wired Ethernet Internet connection.

You simply stroll up, plug in and begin working, and unplug while you wish to take your laptop computer elsewhere. Your most well-liked setup is ready for you while you return.

Thunderbolt 4 works with the newest Thunderbolt 4 and USB4 computer systems and can be backwards suitable with Thunderbolt 3 and USB-C.

It works with macOS 11.4 (Big Sur) or above, Windows 10 (20H2) or above, Chromebook, iPad Pro/iPad Air/iPad mini, and Windows Tablet. All will need to have both Thunderbolt or USB-C.

Specs and options

The TS3 had 15 ports, and the TS4 goes three higher with a mighty 18.

• One upstream Thunderbolt 4 port (40Gbps, 98W)
• Two downstream Thunderbolt 4 ports (40Gbps, 15W)
• One DisplayPort 1.4 video port
• Five USB-A ports (10Gbps, 7.5W)
• One USB-C port (10Gbps, 20W)
• Two USB-C ports (10Gbps, 7.5W)
• 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet
• UHS-II SD and microSD card readers (320MBps)
• 3.5mm combo audio jack (entrance)
• 3.5mm Audio In and Audio Out ports (again)
• 230W energy provide

That’s as spectacular an array of recent ports as we’ve seen on a docking station.

Thunderbolt 4, USB-C and USB-A ports: All the USB ports are not less than 10Gbps (twice the bandwidth of the TS3’s USB ports), and there are eight of them!

You can daisy-chain as much as six Thunderbolt units, together with further TB4 hubs. However, keep in mind that the laptop computer has a 40Gbps connection to the dock, so the entire units related are sharing that that bandwidth.

Aside from its 40Gbps bandwidth, one of many benefits of Thunderbolt 4 is the flexibility for a tool to incorporate as much as 4 TB4 ports, so some may be shocked that Caldigit has included simply three (one upstream to the pc and two downstream to units).

The firm determined that switching one TB4 for a DisplayPort video port made sense as practically all dock customers join not less than one exterior show to their laptop computer and so having a video port merely is sensible.

Dual show dock

Of course, you’ll be able to join shows by way of Thunderbolt—both on to a monitor with a USB-C connection or utilizing a USB-C-to-DisplayPort or USB-C-to-HDMI adapter.

Having the built-in video port included saves you from shopping for a USB-C adapter in case you want one as a result of your required monitor has a USB-C connection—though you’ll after all nonetheless require a DisplayPort cable.

DisplayPort and Thunderbolt 4 show connections are just about an identical in functionality, so leaving three downstream TB4 ports might need made extra sense than swapping one for the built-in DisplayPort for the sake of comfort.

If you favor to attach an HDMI show you will have the selection to both join an Active-DisplayPort-to-HDMI adapter to make use of the video port or use a USB-C-to-HDMI Adapter with one of many TB4 ports.

Caldigit selected DisplayPort 1.4 over HDMI on the TS4 as a result of DP is native to the Thunderbolt design and it’s extra versatile than HDMI—with an adapter, you’ll be able to convert to any monitor you need akin to HDMI, DVI or VGA. It may help larger resolutions and refresh charges, whereas with HDMI it may be capped.

HDMI 2.0 is proscribed to supporting 4K shows at 60Hz, whereas DisplayPort 1.4, as discovered on the TS4, can deal with 8K at 60Hz. DP additionally beats HDMI on pass-through audio. For extra particulars, see our characteristic on the difference between DisplayPort and HDMI.

You’ll want to make use of one of many TS4’s two downstream TB4 ports if you wish to add a second show.

Windows customers with a TB4 or USB4 laptop can join a single 8K show at 60Hz or 2x 4K at 60Hz; Mac customers, a single 6K show at 60Hz or 2x 4K at 60Hz. Macs packing an M2 Ultra chip can help a single 8K show, or 2x 4K at 60Hz. Older Intel Macs and newer M1 Pro and M1 Max MacBooks can join two 4K shows at 60Hz, though plain M1 MacBooks are sadly restricted to simply the one exterior show—Apple’s, not the dock maker’s fault.

The dock will help a single 4K show at as much as 144Hz, 3440×1440 at 180Hz and 2560×1440 at 240Hz; observe that some refresh charges require DP.14 HBR3 and DSC 1.2 help from the host, GPU and monitor.

Super-fast Ethernet

One of the standouts is the super-fast 2.5Gb Gigabit Ethernet, which, as you’d count on, has the potential to be 2.5 instances sooner than commonplace Gigabit Ethernet. You should purchase 2.5Gb adapters for different docks however these will add on an additional $30-50 (£30-50) and take up one in every of your USB-C ports, leaving the 1Gbe Ethernet unused. So, kudos to Caldigit for together with it as commonplace.

Note that to reap the benefits of the highest velocity, you want a related system that’s 2.5GbE or above. It could be a router/community swap that has a 2.5GbE port or larger, or you’ll be able to join a NAS storage system that has a 2.5GbE port or larger.

The 2.5Gb Ethernet port is backwards and forwards suitable with different speeds of Ethernet.

Super energy

With a 230W energy provide, the TS4 is probably the most powered docking station we’ve ever examined.

It wants all that energy as a result of it may possibly cost a laptop computer at 98W—greater than sufficient for many even giant laptops—in addition to energy related units. Apple’s 16-inch MacGuide Pro (2021) can deal with 140W over MagSafe however 98W ought to maintain even that power-hungry laptop computer glad.

Each USB port has a minimal charging energy of seven.5W, and the downstream TB4 ports can supply 15W.

One of the front-placed USB-C ports can cost at a beneficiant 20W – good for Apple’s MagSafe Charger, for instance.

One factor we recognize on different docking stations is an influence swap, as seen on some Anker and Kensington docks. Caldigit omits one as a result of it turns into some extent of wear-and-tear failure that would render the entire dock unusable if damaged. So, simply disconnect on the finish of the day if you wish to protect your laptop computer’s inside battery.

Helpfully, there’s a downloadable software program utility that permits you to disconnect all your related exterior drives with only one click on.

Audio ports back and front

There are three audio ports inbuilt. At the entrance is a 3.5mm combo jack for both wired headphones or a microphone, and on the again are separate 3.5mm jacks for attainable audio system, headphones and mic. Only entrance or again audio ports can be utilized at one time.

The older TS3 Plus included a professional-level Digital Optical Audio (S/PDIF) port on the again, however that is omitted from the TS4, because it’s a comparatively area of interest requirement.

SD and microSD slots

Having each SD and microSD card readers provides flexibility, whereas some docks provide you with simply SD.

MicroSD is clearly smaller however no extra transportable. However, some telephones embody a microSD slot, so it’s a extra versatile resolution.

These reminiscence playing cards aren’t only for skilled customers akin to photographers and video producers who use them to shortly switch recordsdata. Anyone can choose up a top quality 512GB card for round $60/£50, they usually supply an affordable method of upping the storage in your laptop computer and are tremendous transportable, too.

Both card readers can be utilized on the identical time.

Apple’s newest MacGuide Pro fashions boast their very own SD card slot. However, though rated as 312MBps UHS-II, Apple has throttled the velocity to 250MBps. So for max velocity, the TS4’s full-speed UHS-II beats Apple’s. Plus you don’t want an adapter for microSD because the TS4 has a devoted slot for the smaller reminiscence card.

Design

Docking stations are available two completely different codecs: horizontal or vertical. I desire vertical because it saves desk area however horizontal can supply a cleaner look.

Caldigit’s design with the TS3 Plus and now TS4 dock is extra versatile, as it may be laid flat or stand upright, and not using a particular stand required of some docks. It comes with two rubber toes that may be fitted both method.

Which method you angle the dock to face you is much less optionally available, as the ability provide is related to the again.

Every different TB4 dock or hub (excluding Caldigit’s personal Thunderbolt 4 Element Hub) positions the upstream computer-connecting TB4 port on the entrance, which at all times strikes me as an unsightly place to place it. Who desires a cable protruding the entrance when it might be hidden across the again with the also-essential energy cable?

Yes, plugging in on the entrance is simpler and faster however it’s a must to dwell with the cable flapping round your desk on a regular basis you’re related.

On the Caldigit Thunderbolt 4 Station, the upstream port is positioned on the again, and I’d award it an additional star only for that tidy determination.

Aside from that, the TS4 continues the good-looking appears to be like of the TS3 Plus. It’s neither smooth nor shiny—it’s grilled to help warmth dissipation—however it has useful magnificence.

Thunderbolt 4 compatibility

Aside from the additional ports, energy and a couple of centimeter in top, the principle distinction between the TS3 Plus and the TS4 is the inclusion of the newest licensed Thunderbolt 4 know-how.

For Apple customers, the variations between TB3 and TB4 are fewer as a result of Apple at all times gave them every part that TB3 may supply. Manufacturers of Windows computer systems, then again, may choose and select which options they preferred, so that you needed to test your specs to see what advantages had been bestowed in your machine. It would possibly, for instance, not even attain the utmost 40Gbps bandwidth or not help twin shows.

Thunderbolt 4 is stricter. To label a pc Thunderbolt 4 or USB4 suitable, producers should observe all the principles. So Windows customers with a TB3 laptop computer may be higher off with a TB4 laptop, whereas Mac customers have many of the fundamental advantages already.

New to Thunderbolt 4 for everybody, nevertheless, are just a few benefits over Thunderbolt 3.

With TB3 you can daisy chain Thunderbolt units however solely in a linear method the place you needed to take away units backwards from the top of the chain. With TB4, you’ll be able to take away any system with out breaking the chain in a characteristic known as ‘Hubbing’.

TB4 can be a extra data-safe know-how, because it requires Intel VT-d-based direct reminiscence entry (DMA) safety, also called DMA remapping.

TB4 requires PCIe (peripheral element interconnect specific) at 32Gbps for storage speeds as much as 3,000MBps—double the minimal TB3 necessities.

Thunderbolt 4 cables could be as much as 2m lengthy and nonetheless deal with the total 40Gbps bandwidth; the place TB3 cables needed to be a most 0.7m until boosted with costly energetic know-how.

The TS4 comes with a 0.8m Thunderbolt 4 cable.

Above: Caldigit TS3 Plus (left) vs Caldigit TS4 (proper); entrance view

Should you improve from Caldigit TS3 Plus to TS4?

The TS4 is a superb docking station in case you are shopping for for the primary time, however what about upgrading from an current dock?

If your present dock has USB-C solely, then upgrading to 40Gbps Thunderbolt is a should for suitable computer systems. As TB4 is backwards suitable, shopping for a future-proof Thunderbolt 4 dock makes probably the most sense at the moment even when your older laptop computer is Thunderbolt 3 or USB-C.

The Caldigit TS3 Plus dock used to put on the docking station crown however its newer sibling the TS4 has stolen its crown. So ought to TS3 Plus homeowners improve, too?

The two docks are bodily and stylistically comparable, with the TS4 a bit taller and deeper and a smidge wider.

Although TB4 is backwards suitable, Thunderbolt 3 MacGuide or Windows customers don’t have any apparent must improve as they received’t profit from Thunderbolt 4’s smarter options. Windows TB3 homeowners would possibly do higher upgrading their laptop computer to a completely licensed TB4 laptop if their present TB3 PC is characteristic restricted, as some are. Apple’s TB3 MacBooks already embody most (however not all) of the TB4 advantages; see above.

That mentioned, everybody will profit from the TS4’s extra quite a few, sooner and extra highly effective USB ports, and, if they’ve the best setup, the two.5 Gigabit Ethernet too. The TS3 Plus had simply an SD card reader, whereas the TS$ has each SD and microSD slots.

And the dock’s 98W charging is an enormous plus for homeowners of larger-screen laptops; the TS3 Plus had a formidable however nonetheless lighter 87W max charging energy.

Thunderbolt 4 is backwards suitable, so even in case you personal a USB-C or TB3 laptop computer or pill now, shopping for a TB4 dock just like the TS4 will work along with your present laptop and be prepared to your improve to a Thunderbolt 4 or USB4 machine sooner or later.

If you favor pro-level digital audio, the TS3 Plus’s Optical Audio (S/PDIF) port didn’t make the minimize to the TS4.

Above: Caldigit TS4 (left) vs Caldigit TS3 Plus (proper); again view

Price

The Caldigit Thunderbolt Station 4 prices $399.95, £439.99 or €410. On launch the really useful pricing was a lot decrease—$359.95, £324.99 or €324.99—which reveals that tech element and delivery prices are rising quick.

Expectedly, that is dearer than the TS3 Plus and likewise places the TS4 on the high-end of the value vary for Thunderbolt 4 docks.

See our roundup of all of the best Thunderbolt docks.

If a TB4 hub—often simply 4 TB4 ports and a number of USB-A ports—isn’t sufficient for you, you want a dearer full docking station.

There are cheaper alternate options, akin to Anker Apex Thunderbolt 4 Docking Station with its two HDMI ports or the Kensington SD5700T, which can be really useful.

But none supply the vary of top-end ports, energy and versatile design of the TS4, which is price the additional outlay in case you can afford it.

As you’ve spent a great deal shopping for one of the best docking station, you would possibly wish to use the lock to safe the TS4 to your desk.

Verdict

While some could grumble concerning the built-in DisplayPort at the price of one of many downstream TB4 ports, the Caldigit Thunderbolt Station 4 is a wonderfully outfitted and well-designed dock.

It’s obtained all of the top-end ports you can want for (greater than another), a beneficiant energy provide (bigger than another) and charging power, and a compact and versatile design (higher than another).

The Caldigit TS4 replaces its Thunderbolt 3 predecessor, the TS3 Plus, as one of many prime docking stations for homeowners of recent laptops and tablets.

This article initially appeared on techadvisor.com,