Apple added Thunderbolt 5 connectivity to its social customs M4 Professional and M4 Max machines, and corporations are beginning to launch Thunderbolt 5 docks appropriate with Apple’s Thunderbolt 5 Macs. Earlier this yr, Anker got here out with the Anker Prime TB5 Docking Station, a 14-port dock with a novel design and a high-end characteristic set.
Docks are helpful as a result of they broaden the out there variety of ports that you should use at one time, and add legacy ports like USB-A that Apple has discontinued. Thunderbolt 5 offers 80Gb/s symmetric knowledge, which is double that of Thunderbolt 4, plus there’s a bandwidth enhance choice as much as 120Gb/s when shows are linked. You are capable of join extra with out working into bandwidth limits.
Design
The Anker Prime TB5 Docking Station might be my favourite dock I’ve used up to now because of the design. It is surprisingly compact for a 14-port dock, with a sq. form that spreads the ports throughout three of the perimeters.
One of the best half in regards to the Anker Prime is the shortage of a cumbersome exterior energy provide. The 232W energy provide is within the dice, so there’s only a slim cable that must be plugged into an outlet, after which a cable to attach the dock to a Mac. The dock comes with each of the cables, and I do have a minor cable criticism. At $400, I want the cables that got here together with the dock had been nicer, maybe with a braided design.
I just like the sq. type issue as a result of it would not take up a lot area on my desk, and it is good to not should cope with positioning a cumbersome energy provide. I tuck my cables inside bins that preserve them out of sight and out of my cat’s mouth, and it is at all times a trouble making an attempt to get an influence provide and a number of cables to suit.
The Anker Prime has an influence button on the entrance, a few quick access USB-C and USB-A ports for charging gadgets, and a headphone jack. Different ports are on the again and the perimeters, and I believe the port structure is properly designed. The ports I have to entry usually are on the entrance or the aspect, whereas issues I do not want as often, like Ethernet or HDMI, are on the again. I do want at the very least one of many downstream TB5 ports was on the entrance although.
The enclosure features a fan, and it is constituted of aluminum for warmth dissipation. I can hear the fan, but it surely’s a refined sound that I am unsure would register with different noises within the room. I am sound delicate and it does hassle me as a result of the dock is correct by my shows, however I can not hear it listening to music, carrying AirPods, watching TV, or when the AC is on. A decibel measuring app means that it’s round 32 decibels, which might be round whisper stage.
Measurement-wise, the Anker Prime is 4.6 by 4.6, and it is three inches tall. You probably have a Mac mini, it is round that dimension, however not fairly as extensive, and it is about an inch taller. The colour is a grey aluminum. It is not as darkish because the Area Black aluminum of the M4 MacBook Pro fashions, neither is it as mild because the silver aluminum, so it is sort of an in-between shade.
There’s blue LED lighting across the high of the dock when it is powered on and in use. The sunshine is not brilliant sufficient to be bothersome, and it may be turned off by urgent the facility button.
With the fan, the enclosure would not get sizzling. It barely feels heat in any respect, which is a departure from docks that depend on warmth dissipation with out energetic fan cooling. I might be stunned if the Anker Prime may overheat, given how cool it runs with a number of peripherals plugged in. In comparison with different docks just like the CalDigit TS5 Plus, it is considerably cooler.
Ports
On the entrance of the dock, there is a headphone jack, two USB-C ports, and a USB-A port. The USB-C ports provide a mixed 45W of energy for charging different gadgets. 45W is sufficient to cost a MacBook Air, or an iPad and an iPhone at full pace. One port will get the complete 45W when only one machine is plugged in. With two ports in use, the cut up is 30W to the primary port and 15W to the second port.
The 2 entrance USB-C ports additionally assist knowledge switch, however shows have to be linked on the again. The entrance ports provide energy to equipment even when a Mac is not plugged in, which is handy.
There are not any ports on the precise aspect, however there’s a “Prime” emblem. The left aspect has an SD card slot and a microSD card slot (labeled TF). The cardboard slots are UHS-1 and restricted to 104MB/s, so photographers will not get UHS-II switch speeds.
Nearly all of the ports are on the again. There’s an AC-in for the plug, an upstream Thunderbolt 5 port for connecting the Anker Prime to a Mac (with as much as 140W charging), and two downstream Thunderbolt 5 ports with 15W bus energy for SSDs and different Thunderbolt/USB-C equipment. Earlier Macs had been restricted to 100W charging except MagSafe was used, however that isn’t a limitation on Thunderbolt 5 Macs.
There are two extra 10Gb/s USB-A ports, a 2.5Gb/s Ethernet port, an HDMI 2.1 port, and a DisplayPort 2.1 port. With the HDMI and DisplayPort, just one can be utilized at a time, so preserve that in thoughts whenever you’re dock purchasing.
I do not use an Ethernet port, however it’s disappointing that the Anker Prime would not have a 10Gb Ethernet port for many who want or need that connectivity.
Shows
Anker says that the Anker Prime helps as much as two 6K shows at 60Hz, so you possibly can run two Professional Show XDR shows, two Studio Shows, or another mixture of 6K/5K/4K shows, relying on the decision (just one 4K show at 240Hz is supported on the Mac). On PCs, the Anker Prime helps three complete shows, however Macs have a two show restrict over a single Thunderbolt 5 port.
The M4 Max chip helps as much as two 8K shows at 60Hz, in accordance with Apple, whereas the M4 Professional helps one 8K show at 60Hz. Anker doesn’t record 8K show assist for the Mac and I haven’t got 8K shows to check, but it surely ought to work.
Anker says that the HDMI and DisplayPort ports cannot be used collectively, which implies two shows could be linked via the Thunderbolt 5 ports, or one could be linked utilizing TB5 and the opposite could be linked by way of HDMI or DisplayPort, leaving a Thunderbolt port free for an SSD or different accent.
I used an M4 Professional MacBook Pro with the Anker Prime, and I examined it with the 5K Studio Show over Thunderbolt and a 4K 144Hz show from Samsung that I linked by way of DisplayPort. I had no issues with connectivity over a number of days of testing and with numerous mixtures of equipment plugged in. The shows and the ports labored as supposed.
Although this can be a Thunderbolt 5 dock, it’s backwards appropriate with earlier variations of Thunderbolt, which implies it’s appropriate with older Macs. M1, M2, and M3 Professional and Max machines and all customary M4 machines with Thunderbolt 4 chips assist twin 6K 60Hz shows when paired with the Anker Prime.
The aforementioned two show setup additionally ran high quality on an M1 Max MacBook Professional. In comparison with Thunderbolt 4, Thunderbolt 5 has extra complete bandwidth for shows and equipment, so you may want a Thunderbolt 5 machine for the most effective efficiency and to max out the capabilities of the dock.
There may be some high quality print with the Anker Prime, which you are going to wish to learn if in case you have a 5K Thunderbolt 3 show. Twin 5K Thunderbolt 3 shows or a mix of a 5K show and Thunderbolt 4 show will not work with display screen mirroring mode.
SSD Pace Assessments
I used a Thunderbolt 5 SSD from OWC with the M4 Professional MacBook Professional and the Anker Prime. The SSD guarantees 6,000MB/s speeds, however I did not fairly hit that. Write speeds with the Anker Prime maxed out at about 4,675MB/s, whereas learn speeds had been round 5,140MB/s. When plugged immediately into the Thunderbolt 5 port of the M4 Professional MacBook Professional, the SSD’s write speeds had been as much as 5,250MB/s and browse speeds had been at 5,350MB/s. Actual world speeds can range primarily based on the load a Mac is underneath, so precise switch speeds range.
Write speeds had been persistently barely decrease, however Thunderbolt 5 switch speeds are fast sufficient that it did not hassle me in day-to-day use. Transferring 50GB of photographs took round 20 seconds, which is fast sufficient for my use.
Software program
Anker has Dock Supervisor software program that can be utilized to ship firmware updates to the Anker Prime, or to tweak dock settings like disabling the sunshine.
Backside Line
The Anker Prime is likely one of the extra reasonably priced Thunderbolt 5 docks in the marketplace, and its compact design, port array, and options make it very best for the common person. You probably have a Thunderbolt 5 Mac and wish to get a dock that’ll allow you to run shows, plug in SSDs, and use different peripherals, I do not assume you may remorse the Anker Prime.
If you do not have a Thunderbolt 5 Mac, it would nonetheless be price selecting up. It is appropriate with Thunderbolt 4, and it operates the identical manner a Thunderbolt 4 dock would, however you even have the longer term proofing for Thunderbolt 5 when it is time to improve.
Whereas I believe the dock has the precise ports for most individuals, this is not the dock I might advocate for skilled use or for many who need the most effective efficiency and connectivity. It is restricted to 2.5GbE, there is not UHS-II assist, and there are solely two USB-C ports along with the 2 Thunderbolt ports, which could not be sufficient for some customers.
How you can Purchase
The Anker Prime TB5 Docking Station could be purchased from the Anker website or from Amazon for $400.
Be aware: Anker supplied MacRumors with an Anker Prime for the aim of this overview. No different compensation was acquired.