One of my primary goals for the Express Dock was driving an external display from a 13-inch MacBook Pro. In fact, it can support two 4K displays – one from the DisplayPort, the other from a Thunderbolt 3 port – or a single 5K monitor. I plugged in a Samsung WQHD display running at 3440 x 1440 @ 100Hz, and had no issues whatsoever.What’s not so goodThunderbolt 3 devices aren’t cheap, and the Express Dock is no different.
Indeed, at $349.99 it’s as much as an entry-level laptop by itself.For the money, I’d not argue with some extra ports, either. DisplayPort is flexible, but plenty of monitors and projectors have HDMI, so having both would be preferable. Just the three USB 3.0 ports seems limiting too, and while I appreciated having a USB 3.0 on the front, along with the combo audio in/out jack, it seems a missed opportunity not to put an SD card reader there too. Of course, with one of the Thunderbolt 3 ports taken up with connecting to whatever laptop you’re using the Express Dock with, that only leaves one for peripherals or daisy-chaining. For the latter, you can hook up a further five additional Thunderbolt devices from the dock, should you have them.
Arguably more useful for most people is the ability to plug in a USB 3.0 hub and connect more peripherals that way.Wrap-UpThe real joy of a dock, of course, is the single-cable convenience. Being able to hook up a whole desk-full of peripherals and devices with just one Thunderbolt 3 connection. It’s the big promise the port has made, and the future Apple is betting on with its latest notebooks. In reality, the Thunderbolt 3 life means generally living “that dongle life”; the accessories that Apple and others have been counting on have been slow to appear. That’s likely to change over time, not least because Intel has for Thunderbolt 3 device-makers, but for now you’re paying top dollar. Elgato will crank up the pressure when its own Thunderbolt 3 dock arrives: same port selection,.Still, Belkin’s Thunderbolt 3 Express Dock gets its core features right.
It’s easy to use, stable, and makes pulling together a set of accessories single-cable straightforward. With no SD slot and limited ports there’s obvious room for improvement, but for the moment the Express Dock is one of the more convenient ways to get your MacBook Pro up and running with everything else on your desk.
The Belkin Thunderbolt Express Dock, first announced in January of 2012, is now available for purchase for $299, more than a year after the Mac accessory was unveiled.