Review: IOGEAR's Thunderbolt 3 Dock Does the Job, but Comes Up Short on Charging Power

August 24, 2014

thunderbolt 3 docks continue flood market, , today i'm taking @ iogear's thunderbolt 3 quantum docking station. iogear's dock offers many of same features typically seen on other thunderbolt 3 docks, including multiple usb ports, gigabit ethernet port, headphone , microphone jacks, displayport port, , pair of thunderbolt 3 ports allow daisy chaining, in familiar horizontal design used many other docks.

notably, iogear thunderbolt 3 quantum docking station looks identical caldigit's ts3 lite reviewed few months ago, exception of color , finish. while caldigit's dock has enclosure of brushed aluminum , black matte plastic, iogear's has more of satin matte finish that's lighter in color, paired white matte plastic. in size, shape, , port layout, however, these 2 docks identical.

caldigit's ts3 lite (left) vs. iogear's thunderbolt 3 quantum docking station (right)

iogear dock looks decent, aluminum finish coming close silver color apple uses on notebooks. unobtrusive iogear logo printed on top of dock, , comes external power brick , 0.5-meter thunderbolt 3 cable connecting host computer @ maximum speeds.

meeting standard thunderbolt 3 docks, iogear's version supports single 5k display on thunderbolt 3 or dual 4k displays on combination of thunderbolt 3 , displayport. experienced no hiccups connecting lg ultrafine 5k display @ 60 hz through 1 of dock's thunderbolt 3 ports.

in line every other dock i've reviewed exception of owc's thunderbolt 3 dock, iogear's dock includes 3 usb ports, iogear opting go 1 type-a on rear , 1 each of type-a , type-c on front easy access.

3 ports run @ 5 gbps usb 3.1 gen 1 speeds, , inclusion of type-c port nice benefit peripherals start move in direction. usb ports operate @ expected speeds once overhead accounted for, caldigit tuff ssd running @ 325 mb/s write , 350 mb/s read on both type-a , type-c, in line other thunderbolt 3 docks featuring 5 gbps usb ports.

ts3 lite, 1 of main limitations iogear's dock supports 15 watts of charging power on thunderbolt 3/usb-c, meaning won't able power macbook pro on same cable used data , video , you'll need hook computer's power brick.

attempting power 2016 15-inch macbook pro solely through dock merely slowed rate of battery life decrease, under light usage. depending on setup such willingness use mac's power brick or having monitor higher charging power connected, might not deal breaker, many other thunderbolt 3 docks offering 60 or 85 watts of charging power it's unfortunate limitation.

real deal breaker, however, price, unless you're careful in shopping around. iogear's dock carries list price of $299.95, in same range docks better features such higher charging power, , full $100 more identical ts3 lite caldigit. can find cheaper prices on iogear's dock such current $225 pricing @ amazon, still higher ts3 lite.

authorized reseller provantage currently has $178, shipping starting @ $27, deal isn't quite first appears. deals, it's disappointing how hunting need try find price on dock.

result, it's hard recommend thunderbolt 3 quantum docking station unless can find @ great price. ts3 lite cheaper identical features, while other docks owc's thunderbolt 3 dock more usb ports , sd card slot or elgato's dock or caldigit's ts3 more features @ same list price offer better values.

note: iogear provided thunderbolt 3 quantum docking station macrumors free of charge purposes of review. no other compensation received. macrumors affiliate partner amazon , may earn commissions on purchases made through links in article.

article link: review: iogear's thunderbolt 3 dock job, comes short on charging power