Professional's Ranking
Execs
- A number of show prospects
- Tons of ports
Cons
- Complicated documentation
- Gradual SD card slot
- Quite a few high-speed ports can get clogged by the principle 10Gbps USB-C connection
Our Verdict
The Monoprice 13-in-1 Twin-HDMI + DP MST Dock gives good worth, although your expertise with this premium USB-C dongle actually depends upon your laptop computer.
Value When Reviewed
$54.99
Greatest Costs Right this moment: Monoprice 13-in-1 Twin-HDMI + DP MST Dock
$54.99
This Monoprice docks lands squarely in the midst of the messy actuality that's USB-C {hardware}: quite a few acronyms, ports, and options. What can this Monoprice 13-in-1 Twin-HDMI + DP MST Dock do? An honest quantity, although it depends upon your PC.
What the Monoprice 13-in-1 dock’s documentation implies is that you just’ll be capable to run a pair of 4K shows throughout this USB-C dock. (The “MST” within the product’s identify stands for “MultiStream Transport,” which signifies that it may energy a number of shows.) At an MSRP of $54.99, this would seem to supply a fairly inexpensive deal on the planet of USB-C hubs and docks.
What Monoprice doesn’t let you know is that this dock’s efficiency will rely on which laptop computer you personal: The rule of thumb is the newer, the higher. A Microsoft Floor E-book 2 with an Eighth-gen Core chip inside didn’t produce any output over its USB-C port; a number of latest Samsung and Floor laptops with Twelfth-gen and Thirteenth-gen Core chips inside labored effectively, although.
So what’s the most effective you'll be able to anticipate? Monoprice’s in-box documentation is complicated, however the precise product web page is considerably clearer: In case you’d like to make use of a single exterior show, you'll be able to run it at 4K, 60Hz. (Our checks verify this.) With two shows you'll be able to run one at 4K30, and the opposite at 1080p60. Three shows? All of them should be run at 1080p.
Mark Hachman / IDG
However even on paper, it’s muddier: One HDMI port helps 60Hz; the opposite, 30Hz. Which one? Pull out the documentation. And in actuality, once I linked two exterior shows — regardless of the configuration — one displayed 4K30, and the opposite defaulted to 1440p, at 60Hz. That’s higher than anticipated, however it’s nonetheless complicated.
Partially, that’s as a result of I had linked the shows, by way of the dock, to my PC’s Thunderbolt port, which makes use of DisplayPort 1.4 as a transport protocol. When you have a PC or a laptop computer with DisplayPort 1.2 (and few folks know in the event that they do, offhand) anticipate even slower speeds. With out your laptop computer’s documentation in hand, you’re rolling the cube.
Get previous that, although, and this Monoprice dock simplifies itself. The dock saves cash by not supplying an influence brick, however attaching your laptop computer’s USB-C charger to the enter port works wonderful — as much as 100W of energy supply. Simply understand that the dock and any bus-powered gadgets you may have hooked up will eat up a few of that energy, too.
Mark Hachman / IDG
What ports does the Monoprice 13-in-1 dock embrace?
In any other case, there’s a bunch of ports: 5 USB-A ports (three transferring knowledge at 5Gbps, and two at legacy 480Mbps speeds), SD and microSD readers (each transferring knowledge at a poky 104MB/s, or UHS-I speeds), an audio/mic jack, and gigabit Ethernet, plus the HDMI and DisplayPort ports.
Simply do not forget that every part is being transferred over the 10Gbps USB-C bus, so chances are you'll discover slowdowns or stuttering when downloading one thing over Ethernet, transferring knowledge on a tough drive, and displaying it on a number of displays. That’s not the dock’s fault.
Mark Hachman / IDG
Monoprice’s dock doesn’t undergo from any thermal points; the plastic chassis will get heat, however barely so. It measures 5.5 x 2.2 x 0.65 inches.
This 13-in-1 dock is priced pretty aggressively, too. We’re seeing 8-in-1 docks priced at about $25 to $35, relying on the configuration; the $54.99 feels acceptable. That is actually extra of a high-powered dongle than a real USB-C dock, anyway. You should purchase it from Monoprice direct, or from Goal. It isn’t obtainable within the UK.
For various choices, see our full roundup of the most effective USB-C docks.