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Review by Erik VlietinckCompany: CalDigit Inc.Price: $199.99Rating:Hot: Ability to connect two 4K displays; free
100-W capable Thunderbolt 3 cableNot: USB ports 5 Gbps onlyMacBook Pro 2016 users need a dock to hook up their “old” gear
that isn’t Thunderbolt 3 compatible. The most efficient and prob-
ably cheapest way to get back legacy ports is to buy a dock like the
CalDigit TS3 Lite or TS3. The TS3 Lite, available now, is inexpensive,
feature-complete, and offers fast ports.
CalDigit’s Thunderbolt Station 3 Lite unit has a design that
reminds me of the Elgato Thunderbolt docks, although a bit
squarer. It’s made of a sheet of aluminum wrapped around a
plastic front and back bezel, and has a blue status LED, two
Thunderbolt 3 ports, and can be daisy-chained. It also comes
with two USB-A 3.1 ports, one USB-C 3.1 port, Gigabit Ethernet,
a full-size DisplayPort, and audio in/out ports. In the box you’ll
find the dock, a large power adapter, and a 50-cm Thunderbolt 3
cable that offers 20-V 5A, which is exceptional.
The TS3 Lite has charging capabilities; however, it’s limited to 15
W. This isn’t enough to charge the MacBook Pro, but the stand-
alone charging function charges your USB-A devices even when
the dock isn’t connected to a computer. And when you hook up
one 5K monitor or two 4K monitors, the 15-W power slows down
the power drain experienced by your MacBook. I didn’t have a 5K,
60-Hz monitor with which to try it, but I did have two 4K monitors
at my disposal. Neither supported DisplayPort or USB-C, but it all
worked without a flaw despite the HDMI adapters I needed.
What also worked well was connecting a Thunderbolt 2 device
using Apple’s Thunderbolt 2 -to-3 adapter to the TS3 Lite’s sec-
ond Thunderbolt 3 port. I was less enthusiastic about the USB
ports, which are limited to 5 Gbps throughput. Nevertheless, they
worked great with a Tuff drive. nThe Solution for MacBook Pro Owners
in Need of Legacy Connections