At a glance
Expert Rating
Benefits
- Powerful charging ports
- Fast data ports
- Up to two 4K at 60 Hz
- Compact and lightweight
Disadvantages
- No card reader
- Mac Limitations
Our verdict
The Anker Prime 14-in-1 160W USB-C Charging Dock is a great combination of a 10Gbps dual-monitor dock and a desktop charging station.
Best Price Today: Anker Prime Charging Station (14-in-1, Dual Display, 160W)
$249.99
Anker is known for its wide range of charging products, and this laptop dock is the most powerful we’ve seen for USB charging ports, as well as standard display and Gigabit Ethernet options.
If you need an extra display or two and plenty of charging ports for high-end devices and can do without storage card readers, this 14-in-1 docking station is a nine-USB powerhouse.
Windows users can run two extended 4K displays from the dock at 60Hz, while Mac users can mirror to two or simply opt for an extra display.
Power ports
Docking stations help you create a complete desktop setup from your laptop, which is connected to the docking station using a single USB-C cable.
This Anker USB-C docking station also works with Thunderbolt 3 or 4 laptops if your laptop has the fast connection standard, but will be limited to its own maximum data transfer speed of 10Gbps rather than Thunderbolt’s 40Gbps.
The Anker Prime 160W Charging Dock has an impressive 13 ports, plus the upstream USB-C port for connecting to the host (likely your laptop). It has USB data and charging ports, but also has most of the basics you’d expect from a docking station.
Foundry
Foundry
Foundry
- 100W PD 3.0 charging via upstream USB-C port
- Up to two external displays (2x 4K at 60 Hz)
- Two HDMI 2.0 ports
- Two USB-C ports (10 Gbps)
- Two USB-C ports (100W)
- One USB-A port (10 Gbit/s)
- One USB-A port (12W)
- Three USB-A ports (480 Mbps)
- Gigabit Ethernet port
- 3.5mm hybrid audio port
- Total output power of 160 W
This compact and sleek vertical dock relies on its charging prowess, but the three front-mounted 10Gbps data ports (two USB-C, one USB-A) should also be sufficient for most setups.
The power output surpasses all other docking stations. In addition to the 10Gbps data ports, there are two USB-C ports, each capable of delivering 100W, and an additional 12W is available via one of the USB-A ports. Note that the total power output is 160W, so you have that much power available when using multiple ports simultaneously.
The docking station does not have a separate power supply. Instead, it is equipped with an integrated GaN AC-DC power module. This space-saving design makes it potentially portable.
Its dimensions are 5.5 x 3.8 x 1.9 inches (14 x 9.7 x 4.7 cm) and it weighs 1.96 lbs (888 g).
It connects to a power source via its built-in 1.7 m (5.5 ft) power cable. If you need more reach to a power outlet, you’ll need an extension cord.
There’s a Smart Mode that automatically assigns the optimal charging power to each port based on the needs of the connected devices, as well as a Custom Mode that lets you prioritize individual ports as you wish. Ports can be set to “Power Priority” for higher power, “Power Saver” for lower power, or “Balanced” for even power distribution across ports.
This Anker docking station doesn’t have an SD or MicroSD card reader, while some docking stations have two. If you don’t need one, you won’t miss it, but these cards can provide affordable and highly portable access to external storage. If you choose one later, you can purchase an SD card reader adapter that will use one of the dock’s USB ports.
If you’re looking for a docking station with a wider range of ports, check out our recommended best USB-C laptop docking stations. If you want a powerful desktop charger instead of a docking station, check out what our reviews reveal to be the best PD laptop chargers.
If you need both a docking station and a desktop charger, keep reading because this Anker docking station is a great combination of the two.
Many newer docking stations offer super-fast wired networking with a 2.5Gb Ethernet connection, but most networks are still 1Gb, so the Gigabit Ethernet port will be fine for most. Again, you can upgrade later with a 2.5Gb Ethernet adapter plugged into one of the USB-C data ports.
The dock’s smart little display provides visual feedback on power levels and port connection status. This feature is becoming popular on chargers and power banks. Most people will never bother to look at it, but it’s there in case you want to monitor the power output.
It does not display data transfer rates between devices.
The Anker has an easy-access on/off switch on the top, which is a handy power-saving touch and prevents a laptop from having its battery continually recharged, which could degrade it if left unplugged.
It comes with a 3.3ft (1m) 100W 10Gbps USB-C cable.
Dual display potential (limited for Macs)
The Anker Prime 160W Charging Dock can connect to up to two external displays. For Windows laptops that support DisplayPort Alt Mode, the docks can run two 4K displays at a 60Hz refresh rate in extended mode via the dual HDMI 2.0 ports.
None of the dock’s USB-C ports support video output, so they can’t be used to connect a monitor.
Since macOS doesn’t support MST (Multi-Stream Transport), Macs can use the dock with one or two external displays, but both will be mirrored, meaning they’ll both display the same screen image, although it may be different from the laptop’s display. For more Mac options, check out Macworld’s list of the best docking stations for Mac.
Price
The Anker Prime 160W Charging Dock costs $249.99 / £199.99, which is a reasonable price for what is both a laptop dock and a desktop USB charging station.
Verdict
The Anker 14-in-1 Prime 160W USB-C Charging Dock is a great combination of a 10Gbps dual-monitor dock and a desktop charging station. There are USB-C docks with a wider variety of ports, but none offer premium charging ports alongside a set of 10Gbps USBs.
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