Kensington’s first Thunderbolt 5 dock, the future of PC I/O, is here! Unfortunately, it’s right one half of the equation.
The Kensington SD5000T5 EQ Thunderbolt 5 Triple 4K Docking Dwelling is the first Thunderbolt 5 dock I’ve considered inside of PCWorld’s lab. Kensington will begin up promoting the dock on the present time on Amazon for $399.99, a colossal top charge to the majority of Thunderbolt 4 docks already in the marketplace. (One exception is Kingston’s SD5800T, a top charge Thunderbolt 4 dock).
Thunderbolt 5, however, affords significant advantages compared to Thunderbolt 4 docks, which accept offered the an analogous 40Gbps throughput as the older Thunderbolt 3 docks. Thunderbolt 5 boosts that to 80Gbps, and in definite cases even up to 120Gbps in a single route. That equates to two 8K, 60Hz displays, or three 4K displays at 144Hz. TB5 must mute also enable laptops to join to external GPUs, a characteristic that Thunderbolt 4 disregarded, and USB-C charging up to 140W.
The converse is that notebook computer docking stations admire the Kensington SD5000T5 are half of an ecosystem. It’s not adequate to grasp right a Thunderbolt 5 docking region; you’ll want to a notebook computer with Thunderbolt 5 make stronger and with out doubt high-coast map to join to. Set up simply, Thunderbolt 4 lets in connections to a pair of 4K displays at 60Hz; Thunderbolt 5 can join to two 4K displays at 144Hz, which might maybe maybe well be severely dearer. Those pieces are what I’m lacking here, and what prevents me from writing a “staunch” evaluate at verbalize.
Extra reading: Take a look at out our suggestions for the finest Thunderbolt notebook computer docking stations for extra knowledge. Kensington has a solid recognition, and the Kensington Thunderbolt 4 Twin 4K Dock (SD5780T) at verbalize ranks 2nd in our list of finest picks.
Thunderbolt 5 is backwards-admire minded with Thunderbolt 4 and Thunderbolt 3, however, so you can settle on this dock even must you don’t accept a Thunderbolt 5-capable notebook computer or peripherals. Incidentally, as Kensington’s documents display cover, that is a Dwelling windows-easiest dock; Apple has not committed to Thunderbolt 5 make stronger at press time. Kensington also says that its dock is officially licensed by Intel.
Designate Hachman / IDG
Designate Hachman / IDG
Designate Hachman / IDG
The SD5000TS falls into what I’d most often name a “hub” class. As an more than just a few of dedicated display cover ports, the dock contains three upstream Thunderbolt 5 connections, which is difficult to be weak for display cover, storage, and extra. You don’t must grasp a display cover with a dedicated Thunderbolt port to roar it with this dock. Kensington equipped a 4K/8K HDMI to USB-C cable to be used with this dock, though you may maybe maybe accept to steal something an analogous.
Otherwise, the front of the dock incorporates a downstream Thunderbolt 5 port to your notebook computer, which is difficult to create up to 140W for notify-introduction PCs or for mild gaming. To receive 140W, your notebook computer must make stronger what’s acknowledged as the USB-C PD3 3.1 EPR — you’ll must dive deep into your notebook computer’s specs to substantiate that’s the case. Otherwise, there’s an additional upstream Thunderbolt 5 port (supplying 60W for charging and DisplayPort 2.1), a 10Gbps USB-A port, and a microSD and SD card slot supporting up to UHS-II/SD 4.0 speeds. There’s also a headphone jack.
On the rear of the dock, there are two extra Thunderbolt 5 ports, two extra 10Gbps USB-A ports, 2.5Gbps Ethernet, and a vitality button that lights a tiny LED on the front of the dock when on. The dock itself measures a slightly elephantine 8.9 inches by 3.8 inches by 1.6 inches, and must lie flat on the desk. At 2.15lb, it’s not going anyplace either. The Thunderbolt cable extends by right over three toes.
Designate Hachman / IDG
Designate Hachman / IDG
Designate Hachman / IDG
How the Kensington SD5000T5 performs in the lab
Unfortunately, my grasp take a look at mattress is decided up for Thunderbolt 4 devices. I if truth be told accept a single display cover in a position to 4K144 output, however my multiple displays are primarily 4K60. Despite the truth that this will indubitably swap, Kensington representatives suggested me that there are right two laptops that they know of, as of press time, with the “Barlow Ridge” Thunderbolt 5 chip inside of; a version of the Razer Blade and the Maingear ML-17. I if truth be told accept neither, however hope to soon. Nor can I take a look at the more than just a few key characteristic that Thunderbolt 5 affords, the capability to join to an external GPU.
At closing I am hoping so as to put in writing a extra formal evaluate, which this will expose. But for now, we’ll accept to name it a palms-on and hope for greater in the extinguish.
Kensington didn’t predict me to set up any drivers to roar the SD5000T5. My existing displays (one 4K60, and the more than just a few 4K144 capable) took a minute bit longer to illuminate than favorite, though that isn’t distinctive.
The finest error I observed was as soon as that as soon as, after resuming from sleep, my 4K144 display cover glitched badly, with an indecipherable mess of an image.
That occurred on my everyday system, which includes a pair of Thunderbolt 4 ports. I was as soon as ready to join my assorted take a look at laptops, with Thunderbolt 4 ports, to the dock and to the two displays — with the 4K144 display cover lights up at 144Hz, as anticipated. (One of many laptops wouldn’t create so till after a Dwelling windows replace). These all ran stably.
An Acer Swift Edge with an AMD Ryzen 7000 chip inside of wouldn’t join to the dock at all, however. That notebook computer makes roar of a USB4 interface, which must mute be admire minded with Thunderbolt 5 and its USB4 V2 underpinnings, however it no doubt didn’t work. Future updates might maybe maybe swap this.
My laptops create not make stronger the USB-C PD3 3.1 EPR spec, so whereas the Kensington SD5000T5 might maybe maybe make stronger 140W vitality transport, my notebook computer recorded 92W — that’s mute not depraved at all, especially for mild gaming. I recorded the dock offering 56W from the more than just a few Thunderbolt ports, completely adequate for rapid-charging a smartphone. The USB-A port generated 2.5W.
I streamed 4K60 streams from YouTube and local recordsdata with out dropping a single frame, which was as soon as fun! (Effectively, that’s not thoroughly factual, I flicked the mouse and dropped one).
In my PCMark storage assessments utilizing an external SSD, the take a look at returned 131.36MB/s of write coast, or a rating of 860. Thunderbolt docks — even Thunderbolt 5 docks — are inclined to inch their DisplayLink counterparts by about 10MB/s, and that mute appears to be like to be the case here. The write rating fell to 126.32MB/s whereas a 4K video was as soon as being streamed on one other display cover. (For reference, the SSD writes at 160.67MB/s or a rating of 1,042 when today connected to the notebook computer).
Copying a folder with a bundle of multimedia recordsdata between the SSD and the desktop done in 1: 02.29 or 1: 05.40 whereas streaming in the background. That’s sooner than favorite, though not by considerable.
Kensington is one of just a few producers I counsel to associates, though their docks aren’t cheap. The SD5800T I reference above has a MSRP of $379.99, though it’s on sale at Amazon for $100 much less. I wouldn’t ask the first Thunderbolt 5 docks to hit the sale bin that fleet.
To this level, the Kensington SD5000T5 appears to be like solid, set aside for that one visible glitch. One of the significant dock’s killer aspects, will accept to wait. I are trying to come to a decision a see at to take a look at it with some extra high-resolution, high-refresh-charge displays soon and seemingly even an external GPU dock, too. All of those things grasp the Kensington SD5000T5 and Thunderbolt 5 an awfully tempting platform! Simply pick into tale that you’ll need bigger than right this dock.
Editor’s Ticket: The principle image has been altered to make stronger the Thunderbolt 5 logo.
