Docking station for Lenovo X1 extreme

[Janaka]

Hi, I recently bought a Lenovo X1 extreme laptop. Now I want to purchase a suitable docking station for it. I was researching on the internet but it's hard to find good information regarding this.

 

My use case is, I would like to

1. Use 3 monitors where one monitor is 4k, and two 2k monitors.
2. Should have gigabit Ethernet port.
3. Couple of USB 3 ports and USB c ports.
4. I would like to utilize Thunderbolt 3 ports on the laptop for this.

There are few options on the market like pluggable, star dock, Lenovo official dock etc.

 

Lenovo 170w thunderbolt dock looks promising but Amazon reviews are quite bad for this docking station despite the very expensive price tag.

 

 

I would like to know if there are any recommendations from you guys.

 

 

Thanks

[Chiyawa]

Well, I don't use thunderbolt myself, so I have no idea, but I think you can search the Internet for suggestion. I come across some websites which give a good review of a few Thunderbolt 3 dock. Hope that helps.

 

https://www.gearhungry.com/best-thunderbolt-3-dock/

https://arstechnica.com/features/2019/11/guidemaster-how-to-navigate-the-tricky-world-of-thunderbolt-3-and-usb-c-docks/

https://thunderboltlaptop.com/best-thunderbolt-docking-stations/

[Janaka]

Hi @Chiyawa, thanks for the reply. Yes I already checked those articles but the problem is that, they merely review those items based on spec sheets and not with extended usage. I was hoping to get some personal opinion and their experience from a person who use a dock with their daily driver

 

Again, thanks for your input.

[Chiyawa]

8 hours ago, Janaka said:

Hi @Chiyawa, thanks for the reply. Yes I already checked those articles but the problem is that, they merely review those items based on spec sheets and not with extended usage. I was hoping to get some personal opinion and their experience from a person who use a dock with their daily driver

 

Again, thanks for your input.

Oh, I see.

 

Here's through my experience though, try to get a dock with detachable Thunderbolt 3 or USB-C cables, and make sure the cable is good length (about 50cm) so you can manoeuvre a bit. I have some friends burnt their device because the cable to the dongle is too short, and accidentally yanked the thunderbolt cable from the port, damaging the port.