A docking station is a base used to expand the functions of a laptop. Through interfaces and slots, it can connect a variety of external devices, such as drives, large-screen monitors, keyboards, printers, scanners, etc.
Currently, there are docking stations on the market with varying numbers of interfaces from two to 12. These ports cover functions such as charging, audio, USB, HDMI, SD card, network port, etc., and multiple interfaces can be used at the same time without affecting each other. Generally speaking, nine ports can basically meet daily office needs.
1. USB3.0: Expand peripherals
Mainly realizes the need to transfer data between U disks and mobile hard disks, as well as connect mice, keyboards, and MacBook mouse buttons.
2. USB2.0: data transmission
The maximum transfer rate of USB2.0 is 480Mbps, which is 60MB/s. However, in most cases, the maximum actual transmission speed of usb2.0 is only 30MB/s.
3. Type-C interface
Supports data transmission from mobile phones, hard drives, disks, etc. Now the speed of USB 3.1 Gen2 has reached 10Gbps, and the design standards can also meet the transmission of both video and data.
Applicable to Apple Macbook, Huawei Mate Book, Xiaomi notebook, Huawei P40, Mate30, Samsung S20, S10 series mobile phones.
It should be noted that USB 3.1 Gen1 is USB 3.0, and USB 3.1 Gen2 is the real USB3.1.
4. USB-A: connect keyboard and mouse
The USB-A port is also used to connect the keyboard and mouse, because the keyboard and mouse have very low performance requirements for the interface.
So regarding the connection of keyboard and mouse, you only need to pay attention to whether the number of interfaces is enough when purchasing. Don’t worry about performance issues.
5. Thunderbolt interface
The interface uses Thunderbolt technology and meets both PCI Express and DisplayPort communication protocols.
Among them, PCI Express is used for data transmission, DisplayPort (also known as DP interface) ultra-high-definition video and up to eight-channel audio.
Thunderbolt 3 interface, 40Gbps theoretical transmission rate. Only when the host port, connecting cable, and terminal equipment comply with lightning specifications can the best transmission performance be achieved.
It is often used on notebooks, and notebooks with this interface are more compatible with the docking station! However, products that support Thunderbolt 3 are currently very expensive.
6. HDMI: external large screen
The current mainstream versions are HDMI1.2, HDMI1.4, and HDMI2.0. Different interfaces support different resolutions, color depths, and refresh rates.
The HDMI interface is an interface used to transmit video and sound signals. It is common in smart TVs, set-top boxes, projectors and other equipment. Its interface is in the shape of an inverted trapezoid. In business, projectors/monitors are used for meetings, PPT presentations, etc., and a corresponding HDMI cable is required to achieve screen projection.
The HDMI interface was proposed in 2002. With the development of the industry, the HDMI 2.1 standard has been able to support 4K@120Hz and 8K@60Hz, supports high dynamic range imaging (HDR), can be optimized for scenes or frame numbers, and is backward compatible with HDMI 2.0, HDMI 1.4. The most important thing is that it transmits video and audio simultaneously.
7. VGA interface
Can be connected to projectors, etc., VGA supports the highest resolution: 1080P/60Hz.
The VGA interface is also called the D-Sub interface. VGA uses an analog protocol. The VGA interface adopts a 15-pin pin structure, which transmits components, synchronization and other signals. It is an interface used by many old graphics cards, notebooks and projectors.
Due to a series of problems such as wire and signal interference, VGA can generally only reach 1080p resolution when used. At high resolution, fonts are easily blurred. If the signal line is long, the image will have tailing.
8. DP interface
It is mainly installed on gaming laptops, which have larger bandwidth. It needs to be distinguished that some gaming laptops are equipped with mini DP interface. When purchasing a connecting cable, you need to convert mini DP to DP standard interface.
DP interface (DisplayPort) is an image display interface that not only supports full HD display resolution (1920×1080), but also supports 4k resolution (3840×2160), as well as the latest 8k resolution (7680×4320) .
9. SD/TF card slot
Connect mobile phone cards and camera cards. Large and small cards are plug-and-play, solving the problem of card reading on MacBook/ultrabooks without card slots.
Based on appearance, SD cards can be roughly divided into three types: SD card, mini SD card, and Micro SD card (formerly known as TF card).
SD card: a new generation of memory device based on semiconductor flash memory. Suitable for cameras, camcorders, e-books, MP3, AV equipment, etc.
TF card: alias microSD, mini version of SD card. A very small flash memory card. In view of the advantages of small size and large capacity, it is suitable for compact storage devices such as GPS devices, music players, flash memory disks, and mobile phones.
10. 3.5mm audio interface
The 3.5mm standard audio port is compatible with most audio equipment on the market, supports simultaneous audio input and output, and supports easy connection of headphones/microphones/speakers.
11. Ethernet port: connect the network cable
Connecting to a wired network is mainly to ensure a stable network. There are 100M and 1000M on the market. Try to choose 100M, with a transmission rate of 1Gbps and a theoretical download speed of 125M/s. Needless to say, just choose the network connection Orally speaking, that’s basically it.