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What Happened To Laptop Docking Stations?

Computernaut
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The surface dock doesn't count, neither does a large dongle. Why are laptop docking stations no longer common? The modern only machine with one (that I can think of) is the Asus GX800 and that one used its dock for water-cooling and not more ports. They seems very convenient since you just put the laptop on it and there are no cables.

Dell-Latitude-E-Series-Laptop-Docking-Station-PX02X-0CY640-Front.jpg

What is actually supposed to go here? Some people put their specs, others put random comments or remarks about themselves or others, and there are a few who put cryptic statements.

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They have been replaced with Thunderbolt 3 and USB-C docks. Cheaper and universal. 

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1 minute ago, DrMacintosh said:

They have been replaced with Thunderbolt 3 and USB-C docks. Cheaper and universal. 

I know, I'm wondering why. Also, I'm not saying that they should be proprietary.

What is actually supposed to go here? Some people put their specs, others put random comments or remarks about themselves or others, and there are a few who put cryptic statements.

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USB3, not necessarily USB-C. The main point of a docking station was to provide power and port expansion to a laptop. They're big band bulky, and tied to a specific laptop model range. USB ones are universal, although for the ones I have power still had to be done separately as they're not C powered, and still use the older USB connectors.

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Because the problem they're trying to solve, getting everything connected in one action, has been resolved by USB-C. You can plug in literally one cable and get everything you need now. Though even then with older USB 3.0 or Thunderbolt ones, everything you need except power could be off one cable

 

Plus people tend to be mobile with their laptops, liking the option from going from one surface to another.

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4 minutes ago, Computernaut said:

I know, I'm wondering why.

Because they're much easier to carry around compared to heavy docks.

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23 hours ago, Geography said:

Because they're much easier to carry around compared to heavy docks.

The point of a dock is not it carry it around, it's to have more ports when you are at home/work so you can plug in peripherals, Ethernet, etc.

What is actually supposed to go here? Some people put their specs, others put random comments or remarks about themselves or others, and there are a few who put cryptic statements.

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2 minutes ago, Computernaut said:

The point of a dock is not it carry it around, it's to have more ports when you are at home/work so you can plug in peripherals, Ethernet, etc.

Ya, but the same thing can be done using lightweight dongles.

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1 hour ago, unclefarkus said:

You could make somewhat of an argument that eGPUs are the new docks

They can be. It would be cool if an eGPU could be built into a dock-style enclosure though.

What is actually supposed to go here? Some people put their specs, others put random comments or remarks about themselves or others, and there are a few who put cryptic statements.

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I actually love these old docks, and I hope they return, and not the crappy slide in thunderbolt kind, but this old kind. It makes day to day use for desk in offices clean compared to clunky, wired, dongle hell. 

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They block the underside of the system, and the designs of some also blocked some airflow out the side. Meaning the laptop ran warmer than normal when docked.

 

My current laptop is an old Lenovo W520. My current work laptop is a W540. I hate the docking station for the W540 (don't have one for the W520) because it blocks a lot of the bottom of the laptop and half blocks the side radiator exhaust as well when I have it plugged in. Meaning the fan screams when the CPU is under load.

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You still have these:

https://www.lenovo.com/us/en/accessories-and-monitors/docking/c/docking

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