Plugable
$169.99 Price may change
21 videosE-Dog20
Very easy to use and setup, the software needed for it to function was not necessary for me but I did it anyway just to make sure every works. The connectivity has had no issues, however I am using high speed HDMI’s to ensure the greatest image and performance. It’s compact size fits right onto my desk and keeps most of the wires hidden, it’s a little pricey but does the job.
Adam Hickson
Pleasantly surprised at ease of use and true plug and play functionality. Very happy with my multimedia setup.
Russ
I was ready to return this, but I decided to follow the instructions first. I am glad I did.
I recently bought a MacBook Pro and already owned this docking station for a dual monitor setup. At first, the second monitor would not work on my Mac. After watching the video and installing the required driver, the dock worked.
One important step is missing from the instructions. After installing the driver, you must click the new icon in the top menu bar. Until you do this, only one monitor works, even after reboots. I almost returned the dock before realizing this.
Once I clicked the icon, the second monitor turned on immediately. Both displays worked perfectly.
The dock works seamlessly on Windows. On Mac, follow the instructions carefully and make sure to click the menu bar icon after installing the driver.
Build quality feels solid. The dock charges the MacBook through a single cable. Another nice feature, you can close the MacBook lid and keep both external monitors running without issues.
abby
I love the fact that it had a lot of ports for all my peripherals! All the USB A/C ports works however the 2nd and 3rd HDMI ports do not work for me unfortunately. The 2nd doesn’t recognize my monitor at all, and the 3rd one recognizes but does not display anything unfortunately. My laptop is an HP laptop for reference. I end up using my laptops HDMI port for my second display. The first HDMI port works fine though? So kind of odd.
Aishani Patil
I love the product so far. I have been using it for almost 2 weeks now.
I have extended my display for upto 3 additional screens and the integration is seamless.
Matthew S
I am having a constant & persistent issue with HDMI port 3. The only resolution I can find is every morning having to unplug the 3 HDMI cables, the 2 USB-A cables, the primary USB-C input cable and the power from the Docking Station, wait 30 seconds and then plug everything back into the Docking Station. Then reboot the laptop and then HDMI port 3 starts working. 2 different laptops (one is literally 10 days old from the factory), 7 different HDMI cables used, updated drivers and lots of swear words have not worked. I will be returning this as soon as I can get another docking station to replace it. Disappointing as this was the brand that was recommended by my IT friends
Jason
Why did you pick this product vs others?:
I replaced a full tower gaming pc with my MacBook and this gave me all my screen space back with a simple plug and play after installing their driver.
stacy j.
I work a hybrid schedule so I work from home a few days a week and I'm in the office a few days a week, so I frequently unplug / plug my laptop to go back and forth.
I got a new dock for my home office because I have 3 monitors. The dock I had, had 1 HDMI port and 2 DVI ports, one of which I was running an HDMI monitor using a DVI adapter. The old dock began having an issue where on start up, whatever monitor I had set to primary wouldn't turn on.
So I bought this dock with 3 HDMI ports and that issue seems to have been resolved.
Unfortunately, now when I plug my laptop in at home and start up, I get a message on my screen that says I've plugged in a low power charger and do I want to continue. It won't power up any of my monitors until I his OK so I have to leave my laptop open and use that keyboard to accept before my monitors will work. So slightly easier issue to work around, but still a PITA.
JasonB.
I needed it to get a third monitor on my M1 MacBook Pro. I presently have one monitor fed from the HDMI port on the laptop, while the other two monitors are fed from the Plugable DisplayLink docking station.
On weekdays my monitors are filled with live updating stock charts and tables, one video feed, a programming IDE and an active YouTube video. The USB ports have two unique Logitech Receivers (one 'Bolt' and one 'Unifying') and a Yubico 2FA fingerprint reader (seen on the front of the dock in my included photograph)
None of what I do is exactly graphics intensive, but a previous dock - which I should mention was powered solely by the laptop - was prone to choppy graphics and rare drops of my Logitech receivers. Suddenly losing my mouse/KB at the wrong time can be devastating.
Thus far, this dock has been perfect. There have been no problems with graphics, attached peripherals/devices and it doesn't get too warm. My only wish was that the power cable that extends from the power brick to the wall outlet be a little longer.
Note: I use cordless headphones, so I can't comment on the headphone jack.
Nicko
It works!! My wife got me a new MacBook Pro M4 and thought I needed to upgrade the laptop to carry all 3 external monitors. ( was even told by Apple support I will be MacBook Pro M4 Max). I said let me try this docking station. Saved me from spending an additional $1700. Thank you!!
Gym Loomis
1) outstanding support…sent email…got nearly immediate response and help from a fellow in America who gave me every indication he gave a rip. Well done.
2) contrary to half the reviews and forum posts and folklore, this unit DID power both of my additional extended displays from my MacBook Air with the M2 processor running 15.2. It’s tricky…but it’s just mouse clicks and a driver download from Plugable. It will work. Don’t give up.
Thrilled with the purchase. Highly recommend.
Eric K
I'm a nursing school student and I needed a lot of screen space because I have to research, reference and write papers simultaneously which is easier to do if I can see everything at once. I purchased a small single non-HD monitor to help and was using a j5 Create dongle to connect to the monitor, but still didn't have enough space. So I decided to make a significant upgrade and purchased a 27" 4k HD monitor from a local computer store and purchased another j5 Create dongle as they said it would work. So I plugged both dongles in, but unfortunately my laptop was incapable of running both monitors at the same time!
So, just a heads up, you can't simply download the software and try to run two j5 Creative dongles at the same time or even a single dongle from J5 Creative that has 2 or more HDMI inputs, it doesn't work that way. Also, people are freaked out when you install the software and it asks for permission to "RECORD YOUR SCREEN," well, the module and software need to do that because it's grabbing that info and sending it to to module with a super short delay that's virtually unnoticeable unless you decide to play video games, but I just need this for papers and such. Your computer isn't transmitting your screen data to DisplayLink, it's capturing your screen info, processing it and sending it to the module to do all the splitting and to do its thing.
I purchased the cheaper module out of the three options as I'm running one 4k HD monitor and 21" SD monitor in addition to my laptop screen. So the end result is 3-screens, all with different desktop images, and you're NOT stuck with a "mirrored" screen, you get the true 3-screen experience!
It works perfect with my laptop. I can also stream music videos from YouTube and watch them in 4k on the one monitor while running a bunch of programs at one time and moving from one monitor to the other and have no skips or weird things going on with the video. The only thing I think I could ding against this product is that if I try to run the video full screen on the 4k monitor it might lose some resolution, but considering how much work this software and module is doing, that's pretty amazing!
I would highly recommend using this product if you're planning a setup like mine, but if you have two 4k HD monitors, you'll probably need to go to the second or 3rd more expensive optional modules to run those displays. I'm very happy with this purchase and it works perfect for my needs!
Bob Carver
Second day with my first docking station (at left under riser). Why did I wait so many years? Easy install. Connected 3 HDMI displays, 1 Ethernet (to a home internet device), 1 laser printer, iPhone charger. Will use USB port for external optical drive when needed. My cord chaos has been eliminated.
Bell
I brought this station because I work remotely and sometimes I stay at my mom’s for a few days and I wanted the exact setup, I have at home. The setup was easy. Hassle free. I’m using a Dell laptop and three Dell screens.
ANGELO A.
I am using a 2023 Macbook Air M2 along with three Samsung curved displays.
I had been looking at different display docks. I purchased one that my computer didn’t even recognize. I returned that one.
I saw that this product had great reviews and said could support 3 monitors. Which I was highly doubtful of because I kept reading that macs only support up to 2 extended displays. But after purchasing this item, it is true as you can see in the pic. Just had to do some easy downloading/installing. It was not hard to do at all.
I will say that I had to rotate one of the displays within the display settings on my macbook and could not find the option to change the rotation on the other 2 within the macbook’s display settings. But then I saw that I had the ability to rotate the other 2 within the display manager that you have to download. As you can see in the pictures.
The picture quality isn’t quite as nice as I got with my old laptop and dock. But definitely not complaining, as I am just happy to have all 3 displays working.
I will say that the dock itself seems a bit cheap feeling. I think they should upgrade the plastic they use to make it feel more durable.
With all that being said, as long as this keeps working, I would recommend.
Sara
The docking itself is very nice. It has 3 HDMI cords and 5 USC ports. I have some issues with the first docking station I receive and they even sent me a brand new replacement promptly. The customer service is excellent and I highly recommend this product!
B-Diddy
1. So the docking station works great with my newer Mac book that uses a USB-C (Thunderbolt) but did not work at all with my 2015 MacBook Thunderbolt 2 outlet… so that was frustrating considering that’s my tried and true.
2. The driver install went well the second time. I initially did not allow the “this device wants to record your screen” prompt and it did not complete the set up. It was a hassle uninstalling because there’s no uninstall feature on the MacOS 12/13 installer, I found it on the 10/11 installer. I allowed the record the second time and set up went smooth, I assumed the record was strictly for the installation so I allowed it…
3. The problem! It never stops recording the screen (see photo), I am so uncomfortable with this I’m afraid I might be sending this back. If I don’t allow it to record, the docking station will only work as a hdmi connector for one additional screen. I’m going to say buy at your own risk.
MakeBuildDad
Setting up the home office just got much better! I was using a cheap dock for awhile and it didn’t charge the laptop and was always disconnecting or just giving me headaches. This docking station has one usb-c cable that brings everything to your computer and is great for a two screen setup! Not as convenient as a KVM switch if you have two computers (work and personal) but it’s literally just plugging into my other laptop and we are off to the races! It works just as well as the Targus ones I’ve used in our office but at a lower price! My only issue is that the audio jack is in the front and makes that slightly awkward with everything else near the rear of the unit. I would have preferred it placed there but it’s not a deal breaker whatsoever. Extremely happy with it and would buy this again if I ever needed another docking station
West Coast
I have tried three docking stations, J5create, Basnus (or whatever it is called) they all CLAIM to support three monitors, usually with two HDMI ports and one DP, but none of them worked. I tried everything, but the DP port never worked, even when connecting to the DP port on the monitor. I purchased this because it had three HDMI ports (also CAT-5, USB etc) and as soon as I plugged everything in, it ALL WORKED PERFECTLY. Thank you Plugable, I wish I had bought you first.
Brandon Moore
I bought this docking station because the mac mini I just got with an m2 chip only supported 2 monitors natively. I was just trying to hook up a 3rd monitor. After about 5 minutes of setup I had my 3rd monitor up and running and realized I could hook up another 2 for a total of 5 monitors.
Super easy to install. No lag. Screen quality crystal clear and runs at the native resolution for the monitor.
The screenshot attached shows 3 monitors running at 1080p and a main monitor running at 4k.
Definitely worth the money
Anthony T
Macbook Air M2 running OS Ventura 13.0.1, and two Acer XF251Q monitors.
First, I downloaded DisplayLink Manager - very easy and fast. Next, I plugged the dock into the outlet and the monitors into the dock. Boom! Both monitors worked exactly how I wanted them, with solid and clear displays. One is mirroring my Mac and the other is a second screen (see pic). I could also have three displays if I didn't mirror - (1) Mac screen, (2) monitor A, (3) monitor B, but I only need two screens. I couldn't be happier with it. Fingers crossed it holds up over time. No heat or weirdness so far.
Honest reviewer
This product worked perfectly to set up 3 HDMI monitors. I also connected external speakers through the headphone jack, an external camera/mic through a USB jack.
It connects to my PC laptop through the USB-C jack, and it is able to charge the laptop through that jack as well. Very convenient that I don't need to separately have the laptop charger.
Pat at Plugable support was incredibly helpful -- I sent some questions in advance just to confirm my laptop was compatible. Setting it up was easy. A piece of cake.
Shon P'e
Docking station worked with MacBook Air (M2 Chip, MUST download Display Link to MB Air first). I tried about 4 different hubs and docking stations, none worked. This Plugable worked FIRST TRY! A bit pricey….definitely could be about $75-$100. The plastic of the box feels flimsy, lightweight and cheap.
Steven Dorvil
This product didn’t charge my laptop, i have a Lenovo flex 14 with usbc port but no charging, and the hdmi in alt mode won’t work for me just the other two, good thing i only need two monitors, other than that everything works as expected
Edit
I recently just bought a MacBook Air M1 which is the whole reason why I bought Plugable triple monitor dock and everything works flawlessly all three HDMI ports all the USB ports the charging everything
Robert Todd
Dell laptop with USB C power. Three 32” HP monitors connected via HDMI. Plugged device in, immediate success. No configuration was required. A bit pricey, but it works perfectly, and I needed the three HDMI ports.
Abhishek
The Best.. if you are like me struggling with a new M1 mac fighting to connect two monitors to it.. this is THE product you need. The set up and the experience has been butter snooth and I now have three displays, mouse, keyboard, bluetooth headset hooked to my M1 macbook pro with just one single Thunderbolt connected to the laptop itself...
Gunnar Vogtmann
I’m satisfied with the quality and its usefulness to get three screens going at once. I waited until I was sure I could set it up that way before getting another flatscreen. Four Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️!!!
The Happy Lad
Works with my 2020 HP Omen 15 and 2020 MacBook Air 13.
A huge plus for being able to have dual screen connectivity. Both are running at 4K 60 and I have all of my peripherals connected (monitor speakers, condenser mic, SSD external drive, audio interface, mouse, keyboard, etc.)
My only complaint is that I wished there was a kill switch (ON/OFF) because the docking station will run even if the laptop is off. Not a big deal, and not a deal-breaker for me.
Overall, pretty solid docking station for any college student or productive junkie looking for a "cleaner" office set up.
JaMon
I had been searching for a dock to connect my work laptop for a few months. I needed something that would allow my I connect to monitors by HDMI, offered more USB ports, and could charge my laptop all through USB. This device offers all that and it is compact so it does not take up a lot of space on my desk! I highly recommend this product if you are needing the same things i am.
Sean McGill
Great docking station works flawlessly as expected!!!!
$169.99
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