Plugable Thunderbolt 5 Dock: Dual HDMI 2.1 Up to 8K 60Hz / 4K 144Hz, 140W (Amazon)

Requesting an explanation: Is there a reason why most powered USB-C/Thunderbolt docks (hubs) come with a max of 3 Thunderbolt ports, and a 4th usually labeled as "Power Delivery?" This Plugable dock from Amazon is the only one I've found that truly has the number of ports I would like. My use cases would be for keeping 5-6 2TB SSDs connected simultaneously, as well as a Thunderbolt display and several devices for charging.

Eagle-eyed viewers will notice the stark limitations of some of the ports. Is this a limitation overall of running off of 1 TB port? Are there docks that can increase this by running off of 2 TB ports (on your computer/laptop)?

https://preview.redd.it/sqx0n8nc0juh1.png?width=1500&format=png&auto=webp&s=7f14efcfa46b2ac63d401fad1c3bb7f53519344c

I have a ThinkPad P14s G5 on CachyOS, a Plugable USB4-HUB3A and a Macbook M4 connected to a downstream port for Thunderbolt networking. This works until I undock and dock again. Then I need to unplug the Mac and plug it again. Then it works again. (I also have some plain USB hubs chained but hopefully this doesn't change anything.)

Here's what journalctl says: https://termbin.com/xhiwp Linux is 7.2.6.

When I unplug the dock and plug it back I see:

1. the PCIe hierarchy comes back,
2. the USB4 hub comes back,
3. the retimer comes back,
4. the USB Mac device comes back,
5. and only the MacBook Thunderbolt router is missing

The docking starts at 11:15:11 and finishes at 11:15:14, I unplug the Mac at 11:16:58 and replug at 11:17:04.

enp0s20f0u1u3 and enp0s20f0u1u3i2 are Apple Ethernet adapters using cdc_ncm. The real, missing interface is thunderbolt0.

This is a reproducible failure.

Hey everyone!

I've recently been a little bit disappointed in the transfer speeds I get through my cheapo "5Gbps" USB-C hub I've got hooked into my 2020 Razer Blade Advanced, and want to take full advantage of it's Thunderbolt 3 port to try to remedy this.

Unfortunately, however, Thunderbolt is a horrible abomination of a "standard", and I'm having a frustrating time trying to figure out what the best price to performance dock I can purchase on the used market might be.

I'm currently utilising the USB C port on the right side to drive my 3440 × 1440 display at 144hz - would I be right to think that the Thunderbolt 3 port on the left side would not be able to output an equivalent DP Alt Mode ***AND*** offer Thunderbolt 3 capability at the same time? As far as I can tell, most Thunderbolt 3 docks do not allow for sufficient display data throughput to achieve this.

If I were to keep the display driving my monitor through DP Alt Mode, what would be some good suggestions for popular, ex-office supply, decently performing Thunderbolt 3 docks? My only other IO requirements are Gigabit Ethernet and decently fast USB A and C ports able to supply a decent amount of power for my peripherals. I'm in Australia and will likely be buying on eBay.

Any help or suggestions are appreciated!

Thank you! :))

I often work at my desk with my MBP, and I'd like to connect it to my two monitors via HDMI/DP using just a single USB-C cable, while also charging it at the same time. Since I want to hide the dock under the desk and most cables are quite short, I'll also need an extension cable.

What do I need to look out for in order to connect two separate displays through a single port?

I have the MacBook with the M3 Pro.

Hi all, Amazon prime day is here and I’m in the market for a thunderbolt to have an extended dual display for my new m5 MacBook Air

I know caldigit is the top recommended thunderbolt, but the price is a bit high for me. I’m looking for under $200

UGreen, Plugable, Wavlink and Anker all seem decent. It’s hard to tell which is the best

Does anyone have a setup with any of these above options using an m5 dual monitor extended display?

Also note, I’m looking for a plug and play option, not one that I have to download displaylink

I appreciate any guidance offered!

I’m looking for feedback from anyone using the Dell WD25TB5 Thunderbolt 5 dock, especially with multiple monitors.

My system is a Dell Pro Max 16 Premium MA16250 with 64 GB RAM, RTX PRO 2000 Blackwell graphics, Windows 11 Pro, 3840 x 2400, 120 HZ, and the Dell WD25TB5 dock.

The important part is this: only three monitors are connected through the WD25TB5. Four other displays in the workstation use a separate Plugable USBC-7400H4 connected directly to another USB-C/Thunderbolt port on the laptop.

For about a month I have been dealing with intermittent problems where the three monitors connected to the WD25TB5 can suddenly flash, go dark, or temporarily disappear and then come back.

When this happens, it does not look like a single-monitor problem. Our monitoring has shown that several things associated with the Dell dock can change at the same time:

• The WD25TB5 USB4/Thunderbolt connection can temporarily disappear from Windows.
• The three monitor identities connected through the dock can disappear together.
• The dock Ethernet connection can reset.
• The dock USB audio device can disappear or switch.
• Windows records USB4 monitor enumeration activity.
• Then the dock reconnects and the monitors come back.

The four monitors connected through the separate Plugable DisplayLink adapter can remain working while this happens.

We also did an important isolation test. The entire Plugable adapter and its four monitors were physically disconnected from the laptop, and the WD25TB5 problem still occurred. Plugable support reviewed the diagnostic package and agreed that their adapter is not required for the Dell dock problem to occur. They also found the Plugable side currently operating normally.

The WD25TB5 normally drives:

• Dell S2721QS 27" — 3840×2160 @ 60 Hz
• Innoview 14" — 3840×2400 @ 60 Hz
• Deco Gear 40" — 5120×2160 @ 60 Hz

All three are intentionally running at 60 Hz.

We then ran a second isolation test with only the Deco Gear 40" connected to the WD25TB5 and the other dock-connected monitors removed.

During that Deco-only test, the system remained stable. We did not reproduce the full dock failure. The WD25TB5 stayed present, the Deco remained detected, and we did not see the same combination of display loss, dock audio fallback, Ethernet changes, or USB4 event activity that appears during the larger failure.

That makes the problem more interesting, because it suggests the instability may depend on having additional monitor endpoints attached to the WD25TB5, a particular display path or adapter, multi-display enumeration, or some interaction that only appears with the fuller configuration.

I’m not assuming the dock is defective, and I’m not trying to blame Dell, Windows, NVIDIA, Thunderbolt, or any particular firmware yet. I’m trying to isolate the problem properly before drawing conclusions.

Dell also has upcoming WD25TB5 firmware changes, so I want to document the behavior before changing the dock firmware and then compare what happens afterward.

I’d be interested in hearing from anyone who has seen anything similar with the WD25TB5:

• Multiple dock-connected monitors flashing or disappearing together
• USB4/Thunderbolt devices briefly disconnecting and reconnecting
• Dock Ethernet or USB audio resetting at the same time as the displays
• Problems that only appear when two or three monitors are attached
• Problems involving HDMI-to-DisplayPort active adapters
• Monitors still being detected by Windows but showing no picture
• Problems that started or stopped after a WD25TB5 firmware update
• Any fix or workaround that actually made a difference

I’m especially interested in real-world experience from other WD25TB5 owners, even if your setup is much simpler than mine.

If anyone has seen the same kind of behavior, please let me know what system you are using, how many monitors are connected to the dock, how they are connected, and what firmware or driver changes helped or did not help.