Belkin Thunderbolt 3 Express Dock HDReview

For Mac owners, Thunderbolt 3 is one of the most powerful communication standards on the market. It allows just a single port to provide power, high speed data, video, and even audio to and from your peripherals.

在不久的将来，我们拥有的每个设备都将拥有一个雷电端口。但是目前，仍然有许多使用其他协议的设备。我们的监视器正在使用DisplayPort，我们的存储设备正在使用AUSB类型A，并且我们的网络在以太网上。此外，许多MacBook所有者发现自己只使用一个雷电端口就受到了限制。

也许你厌倦了收你之间做出选择r laptop and loading movies off an external drive. Perhaps you’re not interested in throwing out your old Cinema Display to buy a new Thunderbolt model. No matter which of these issues you’re experiencing, a Thunderbolt 3 dock can be the answer. This hardware allows you to convert one port into a whole plethora of connections. In most cases, the ports you get with a dock are significantly more complete than what you’d find on a standard laptop.

在这篇评论中，我们将看看Belkin Thunderbolt 3 Express Dock HD。我们将向您展示它可以做什么，并帮助您确定这是否是移动工作站的好补充。

First Look

Belkin Thunderbolt 3 Dock凭借符合MacBook的时尚设计，通常是您希望扩大计算机上端口数量的人的首选。Thunderbolt 3提供多达40 Gbit/s的带宽，使该码头可以提供大量功能，同时保持紧凑。您将充电器插入码头，然后将码头插入计算机。然后，它可以使您的笔记本电脑充满电，同时使您可以访问许多重要的数据，视频和音频端口。

Design

Apple is a very design focused company. For many people, their stylish look is one of the main selling points of their computers. There is no sense in buying something beautiful only to muck up your desk with a big ugly box, so we place a lot of importance on the material design of our peripherals.

In this regard, Belkin doesn’t disappoint. They made this dock out of the same aluminum frame that the latest Macbook computers are made from. In the front, you’ve got a small cutaway that reveals two ports. On the back, a large strip of metal appears to be peeled away to show the rest of the ports. This balance is important. The bulk of your cables are tucked away in the back where they won’t be obtrusive, but you still have convenient access to a few ports in the front. At only 1.1 inches thick, this dock is nice and compact. The face is left clean, with the exception of the Belkin logo, subtly etched into the lower left corner. Visually speaking, we have absolutely no complaints about the appearance.

连接性

So, what exactly can you connect to this dock? Belkin made sure that you can keep your options open. On the front, there are only two ports visible, but they are the ones you will most commonly use. You’ve got a USB 3.0 type A port for your flash drives or external hard drives, and a 3.5mm audio port. You can use this for full sized speakers, but it’s mainly intended for headphones – something you’ll want to insert and remove regularly.

On the back, you’ve got the ports you’re going to want to leave connected all the time. From the left, you start with a Gigabit Ethernet port, so you can connect to a wired network. Next, you’ve got a 3.5mm audio jack for your permanent speakers. This second jack is given last priority. When you’ve got heaphones plugged into the front, the rear jack is disabled. But when the front port is empty, all sound is sent through the port in the rear.

接下来，您有两个USB 3.0端口，然后是两个Thunderbolt端口。这可以用作分离器，因此您可以使用两个USB-C端口，只有一个端口。

最后，您有一个用于显示器的显示器，以及一个为计算机充电的电源适配器，并为计算机的其余部分提供电源。

视频输出

即使只提供了一个DisplayPort连接，该码头确实为双4K屏幕提供了视频输出。现代台式机将简单地连接双雷电兼容监视器。由于雷电监视器的设计为雏菊链，这甚至都不会占用两个端口。一个人插入码头，第二个监视器插入第一个。

如果您没有任何雷电显示器怎么办？仍然有选项。您可以获得廉价的USB-C来显示DisplayPort适配器，并连接两个兼容的显示器。
There are USB-C to HDMI adapters available, but unfortunately these are not compatible with this dock.

Bandwidth

One of the nice features of this dock is the fact that it doesn’t restrict your bandwidth at all. You get full access to the 40 Gbit/s offered by Thunderbolt, and it’s automatically distributed across all devices.

It is important to understand how this bandwidth is allocated. Older ports are prioritized, followed by the more modern ones. This means that you will always use more bandwidth when you’re using a display port monitor, as opposed to Thunderbolt monitors. Newer monitors support throttling the connection. This means that even if you were connecting two high speed SSDs that were using most of the bandwidth, the screen would still be able to display documents or text. But if you were using a DisplayPort monitor, they are always allocating the entire amount of bandwidth needed.

在现实世界测试中，这实际上会很重要吗？现在，不是真的。很少有设备需要超过40 Gbit/s的带宽。但是，如果您使用现代且昂贵的SSD系统，则可能需要考虑使用尽可能多的USB-C或Thunderbolt兼容设备来减少节流设备。

Charging

该码头的主要优点之一是它为您要插入的每个外围提供电源。但是与其他码头不同，您不会使用Apple笔记本电脑随附的USB-C充电器。Belkin为您提供了自己的充电器，可提供高达85W。这足以充电您的笔记本电脑，运行一系列硬盘驱动器，并为连接的所有USB外围设备提供电源。但是该系统存在局限性。85瓦不足以在阳光下运行所有​​东西。是否想以4K的速度运行两个30英寸的电影院？您仍然需要使用随附的电源，因为这些巨大的屏幕最多可以使用250瓦。

Disadvantages

该码头在市场上是新鲜的，并提供了大量的高级功能。但是，我们发现有点缺乏功能 - USB充电。大多数现代智能手机都使用涡轮充电器。他们画2.5安培以高速度充电。但是该码头每个USB端口仅提供1.5安培。如果您打算向手机充电，则应该知道该码头会比Wall-Wart AC适配器慢。如果您的目标是为手机充电，则最好将其插入另一个端口。

Final Verdict

Overall, this is one of the best Thunderbolt 3 docks on the market. You’re able to move past the limitations of a one-port system, and use all of your existing peripherals.

是个Belkin Thunderbolt 3 Express Dock HDright for everyone? Not necessarily. If you’re just looking to connect a single device, it is probably cheaper to just buy an adapter, and a port replicator if necessary. But for those of you who transition from mobile office to desktop regularly, this is the perfect solution.

We recommend that you leave this dock on your desk. You plug in your monitor, speakers, mouse, and keyboard. You leave the power supply attached at all times. When you sit down to get some work done, all you have to do is plug a single cable into your computer, and you’re ready to go. Your desk comes to life, and your laptop is charging. When it’s time to leave, it only takes a second to throw the laptop back in your bag. You don’t even have to remove the AC adapter.

Are you finding the price a little too high for your tastes? It’s true that this isn’t the cheapest dock on the market. However, models that are significantly less expensive often come with some pretty serious compromises. If you’re not willing to sacrifice features, you might want to check out our review of theElgato Thunderbolt 3 Dock。

Still not affordable enough? We did a roundup of theBest USB-C docking stations。You might lose a few features compared to the docks designed specifically for Thunderbolt, but these docks still provide much of the same basic functionality you’ll find here.