Kensington SD4600P USB-C Universal Docking Station Review

Introduction So you just bought a new laptop, ultrabook, or similar that only comes with a USB Type-C connector, but none of your current peripherals and other devices have this type of connector. This could mean that you either need to purchase completely new peripherals or you could simplify it all and get a docking station that connects to this type of connector and also adds a lot more functionality to your portable unit. While mobile devices feature all sort of wireless connections from network to Bluetooth, those kinds of connections aren't always optimal. Kensington is without a doubt one of the leaders in this field and their SD4600P USB-C Universal Dock with Power could be a really great choice. Today I'm taking a closer look at this universal docking station and will put it through the paces in my test lab. The dock works with Windows, Mac OS, and Chrome OS devices which makes it compatible with pretty much any portable device out there. It allows you to plug in a single cable to your laptop and in return it delivers 4K video, charges your laptop and offers high-speed data transfer. Plus, you get instant access to all your peripheral desktop accessories with older connections. Best of all, it is also Thunderbolt 3 compatible, so you aren't even limited to devices with USB 3.1 Type-C connectors. A truly universal docking station for the latest generation of portable computers. The Kensington SD4600P isn't your everyday docking station, it comes with the latest connections, making sure that you can connect all your modern and high-end equipment to your portable computer too. Through its single connection, it can deliver 4K Ultra HD resolution (4096x2160) to single monitor at 60Hz via HDMI or DisplayPort, or should you prefer more display area then it also supports the use of both ports at the same time for a dual monitors setup, although that will limit each monitor to 30Hz. Three USB 3.1 Gen1 (5Gbps) type-A ports provide plenty of connectivity for your peripherals and other default USB devices while the USB Type-C port allows for normal usage as well as charging. It can provide up to 2.1A for fast charging of your smartphone or tablet too. But USB and video aren't all that this cool docking station can do, it also provides Gigabit Ethernet LAN connectivity and 3.5mm headphone and microphone jacks for your headset. Overall, a complete solution that's rounded off with a Kensington security slot that offers a convenient way to attach a cable lock from the industry leader in physical security. One of the big advantages of USB is that it plug and play, at least in 90% of the cases and this is one of them. There is no need to manually install drivers or downloads with the Kensington SD4600P docking station. Well, that's almost true at least. Mac OS users need a one-time ethernet driver download for the LAN port, but that's it. The included USB-C cable isn't the longest you'll find and that's a bonus when it comes to a device like this. You don't want a meter or two of rolled up cable lieing next to your laptop that you'll never need. It is also a very sturdy and thick cable as you can see in the picture below. The bottom of the unit features four small rubber feet to make sure that it stays where you place it, that is if you want it standing at all. You might notice the two screw holes in the middle of the unit and that is for its zero-footprint function. Zero Footprint mounting makes it ideal for workstations with limited space (mount sold separately) The Zero-footprint allows the docking station to be mounting on the back of a VESA-compatible monitor with the optional dock mounting bracket (K33959WW), but that is however sold separately. When Kensington contacted me and asked if I would like to review this unit, I also asked for the bracket to show this feature and they naturally were as eager to provide it as I was to test it. But more on that on the next page. Features USB-C connectivity provides up to 60 watts of power delivery to charge a laptop, 4K video and data transfer in a single cable Plug & Play installation without need for drivers or downloads (Mac OS requires one-time Ethernet driver download) Zero Footprint mounting allows the dock to be placed on the back of a VESA-compatible monitor (Dock Mount K33959WW sold separately) 4K Ultra HD resolution (4096x2160) to single monitor at 60Hz via HDMI or DisplayPort, or dual monitors at 30Hz Three USB 3.1 Gen 1 ports and one USB-C port to connect up to 4 accessories One of front USB 3.1 ports can also be used as a 2.1A fast charge port to power up a tablet or smartphone Gigabit Ethernet port for wired network connectivity Kensington Security Slot™ offers convenient way to attach a cable lock from the industry leader in physical security 3.5mm headphone and microphone jacks Thunderbolt™ 3 compatible Compatible with Windows® 10, 8.1; Mac OS® X 10.10 or later; Chrome OS® Package and Accessories The SD4600P comes in the simplest of packages possible, a plain white cardboard box with a sticker on the top that shows what's inside. I like this because why more. It saves costs and you'll most likely never give it a second look after you unpacked your new docking station and placed it where you need it. Inside the box, you'll find a power adapter brick that can deliver 20V 4.5A which should equal to 90 watts, plenty for a device like this with something to spare. It also comes with both US, UK, and EU power connectors, so it doesn't matter where you're from, you can connect it without adapters. There's of course also a high-quality USB Type-C connection cable that you'll need to connect the docking station to your portable system. Naturally, there's also a warranty guide and quick start guide included in case you should need either one, but I doubt many will need these. It's so easy to set up by nature. Zero Footprint Mounting Bracket If you're one of the people using an external monitor for your portable system when you're at home, then the zero-footprint mounting bracket might be just the addition that you are looking for for your docking station. It allows you to mount the docking station via the VESA mounting holes on your monitor and thereby having it both tucked away safely behind your monitor while also keeping your desktop clean. In itself, the mounting bracket is really simple. It's a piece of sturdy metal that fits both 75x75mm and 100x100mm VESA mounts and it is also compatible with other docking stations besides the SD4600P that I'm testing today. You can mount it sideways and have the docking station look to the side of the monitor, or if you prefer it also top wise and have it look out the top. VESA mounting is square and as such the options are yours to choose the direction that fits your needs best. This may be left, right, upside, or downside. The mounting bracket comes with all the screws you need, so you don't need to worry about having the right ones at hand already. You can also choose the position of the docking station relative to the mounting position due to the lengthy cut holes for this part. There is a sticker on the bracket on one side and a Kensington logo on the other side, but else it's just plain black. Package and Accessories Just as the docking station, the VESA mount accessory comes in a simple white box with a sticker on top. Inside is a quick start guide that will tell you how to mount it to your monitor and a warranty guide besides the bracket itself and four screws. A Closer Look It is time to take a closer look at this cool USB-C docking station, starting with the front. To the right, there is a power LED that lets you know when the docking station is being powered. To the left is a USB Type-A port as well as the two audio ports for your headset and microphone. Moving on to the sides, only one of them comes with a feature and that is the physical security lock. Moving on to the rear side and we first have the power connector followed by the system-connection USB-C port and the 2nd port for charging and other type-C devices. Next up is the DisplayPort connector that as previously mentioned supports 4K 60Hz output. Next up is the HDMI port which also supports 4K output. Last but not least, we have the Gigabit Ethernet port and two more type-A USB ports. The power adapter can deliver 20V and 4.5A. Zero Footprint Mounted Usage The time has come to put all this to use. First thing is to mount the bracket on the docking station and that's quickly done. Two screws and we're done with this step. Next up is to mount it to the back of the monitor in the VESA mounting holes available. The bracket is also easily slim enough to fit between the monitor and possible mounting solutions such as stands, arms, and wall mounts. The most likely ports for hotplug usage will face one side while the more static ports will face backward, allowing easy access to what you need and keep what you don't need all the time tucked away. As mentioned before, you can choose the direction you want to mount it and depending on your monitor size, you can even make it reach over the side. It all depends on where in the slots you placed the docking station. Testing & Methodology The graphic part of this docking station works straight out and as such isn't anything to benchmark here. The USB and LAN abilities, on the other hand, is something that I can test and compare. I will be connecting my trusted Angelbird SSD2go Pocket 512GB USB 3.0 SSD to the docking station and test how it is performing there. Then I'll disconnect the docking station and connect the drive directly to the same USB connector on the motherboard that previously connected the docking station. This will give us a great view on performance impact, if any, happening from the docking station. We should expect a minor fluctuation, but it is to be seen on the next pages how it will hold up. The network connection is the second thing that I can test and compare, and in a very similar way to the USB testing. Naturally, I won't be using my SSD here but rather connect the system through the LAN port on the docking station and run both TCP and UDP network benchmarks there. When those are done, I'll connect it my onboard LAN controller instead and run the same benchmarks. Again, this will give us a great comparison of performance impact through the conversion via USB 3.0, if any. Test system: Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming 7-EU Intel Core i5-6600K EVGA GTX 980 SC Kingston Fury DDR4 2400MHz 32GB Samsung SM951 NVMe 256GB in RAID 0 be quiet! Dark Power Pro 10 850W Thermaltake Water 3.0 Ultimate Software Anvil's Storage Benchmark AS SSD Benchmark ATTO Disk Benchmark CrystalDiskMark Benchmark PassMark PerformanceTest Suite Windows 10 Pro Wired LAN Performance PassMark PerformanceTest Suite For the network tests, I'll be using Passmark Performance Test's Advanced Network Test which allows me to set a lot of variables and test both TCP and UDP connections. As a baseline comparison, I will be using my onboard KillerNIC E2400 Gigabit Ethernet. In both cases, the target system is running with 10Gbps setup which eliminates any bottleneck on that end. TCP Performance UDP Performance USB 3.0 Performance As previously mentioned, testing the USB performance of a hub is an easy task. What we're interested in here isn't the maximum possible speeds, but rather if it has any impact on the transfers speeds compared to using a direct connection. First, the drive is connected to the USB hub and tested with several applications after which it will be connected to the same onboard USB port instead of the hub for a second test. Below you'll find charts showing you the comparison in any easy way. Anvil's Storage Benchmark ATTO Disk Benchmark AS SSD CrystalDiskMark Final Thoughts Pricing At the time of writing, the Kensington SD4600P USB-C Universal Docking Station can be yours for $189.99 at NewEgg, £197.54 at Amazon UK, and starting from €201.99 through Geizhals. The zero-footprint mounting bracket, also known as the Docking Station VESA Mounting Plate, won't cost a whole lot extra to get and it's fully worth it in my opinion. At the time of writing, it can be yours for just £7.93 through the official Kensington shop. Conclusion Having a docking station for your portable computer is an awesome thing and one that you'll miss immensely once you have had it. However, technology becomes outdated and you upgrade to newer generations and you don't necessarily want to get the same type and brand again. That could easily render your old docking station useless unless it is a universal one like the Kensington SD4600P that I took for a spin in my testing area today. And that is the first benefit of this device, it will work for any system no matter the brand, as long as it has the right connector type available. The Kensington SD4600P features all the latest technology, starting with the way it connects. The USB-C connector is the latest generation of USB connectors and it is also the same used by Thunderbolt 3 to which this docking station also is compatible. So it doesn't really matter whether it's a Windows based system, a ChromeOS-based one, or a Mac OS based one - you're covered. The connections on the docking station itself support the latest generation of hardware too, from USB 3.0 devices over DisplayPort and HDMI with 4K 60Hz output and it also comes with charging abilities. On top of that, it also features Gigabit Ethernet LAN for the places where there is no Wireless signal or you just want something better. The SD4600P has one little downside that might not be a downside at all, it depends a bit on what you need. When you connect it to a power source, AKA turn it on, it will automatically select one of two modes depending on what you have connected. 4K 60Hz video output, for example, requires a lot of bandwidth and when a monitor is connected, the USB ports will only deliver USB 2.0 performance and the LAN port will only deliver a 100Mbps connection. This is plenty when you use the USB ports for peripherals such as printers, keyboards, mice, and game controllers. If only USB devices and LAN are present when you power it on, the USB ports and LAN port will work at their full speed and the monitor port will only support 2K resolution. You might see this as a downside, but it's actually very clever and it allows one device multiple modes depending on what you actually need while it uses the available bandwidth the best possible way. Performance wise, we saw a small impact compared to the baseline, but it's also a strong competition to put it up against. The numbers we saw in the benchmarks were very good and nothing the SD4600P should be ashamed of. The setup is also extremely easy as it's all plug and play. What more could you want? I also took a look at the zero-footprint mounting bracket at the same time, one that is compatible to more than just this Kensington docking station. It allows for an invisible mounting behind your monitor or on any other VESA-compatible mounting bracket. This is awesome. It's also thin enough to fit between mounting your normal mounting solution and monitor, so it isn't a trade-off between mounting your monitor on an arm or using the zero-footprint mounting solution. Pros 4K and Dual-Monitor support USB 3.0, Type-C, and Gigabit LAN Plug and Play Thunderbolt 3 compatible Zero-Footprint mounting solution Cons Tradeoff between high-resolution and USB Neutral Price "Would I own a modern laptop with USB-C connector, the Kensington SD4600P would be the docking station I'd get for myself. No doubt." Thank You Kensington for providing us with this sample

Wired LAN Performance

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