CalDigit TS4 Thunderbolt 4 Dock Review
Is the CalDigit TS4 Thunderbolt 4 Dock worth buying? It makes the most sense for buyers prioritizing USB hubs that fit their specific use case and budget.
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CalDigit TS4 Thunderbolt 4 Dock
View on AmazonOur verdict
The CalDigit TS4 is expensive. The expense buys a one-cable desk setup with genuine 40Gbps bandwidth and 98W laptop charging that no USB hub can match. For users with Thunderbolt 4 laptops, it is the right long-term desk investment.
What 18 Ports Actually Gets You
The TS4's port count is not marketing padding: 3x Thunderbolt 4 downstream (daisy cha in devices, secondary docks, storage) 5x USB-A 3.2 Gen 2 (10Gbps each) 3.5mm audio in + out (separate jacks, not combined) In daily use: keyboard, mouse, webcam, external SSD, phone charging, ethernet, and two 4K monitors all connected.
The laptop connects to the dock with one cable.
Disconnecting the laptop to take it to a meeting takes 2 seconds and one cable.
Bandwidth: Where Thunderbolt 4 Matters
40Gbps total bandwidth eliminates the contention that limits USB 3.0 hubs.
A USB 3.0 hub sharing 5Gbps between all devices cannot do this.
For users with high-bandwidth workloads, this is the functional difference that justifies Thunderbolt pricing.
Charging Performance
98W passthrough charged the MacBook Pro 16-inch M3 Max while running Final Cut Pro export.
Battery level held steady at 78% through a 45-minute export session.
During idle, the laptop charged from 20% to 100% in under 2 hours, the same as Apple's wall charger.
Verdict
The CalDigit TS4 is expensive.
The expense buys a one-cable desk setup with genuine 40Gbps bandwidth and 98W laptop charging that no USB hub can match.
For users with Thunderbolt 4 laptops, it is the right long-term desk investment.
For users with standard USB-C laptops, a well-specced USB-C hub is more appropriate.
Verdict
The CalDigit TS4 is expensive. The expense buys a one-cable desk setup with genuine 40Gbps bandwidth and 98W laptop charging that no USB hub can match. For users with Thunderbolt 4 laptops, it is the right long-term desk investment.
View on AmazonFAQ
Common questions
Does the CalDigit TS4 work with USB-C laptops that don't have Thunderbolt?
Yes, but at reduced capability. Without Thunderbolt 4, the TS4 operates at USB 3.2 speeds (10Gbps). This still provides the ports and charging, but limits display output to one screen on most non-Thunderbolt hosts, and maximum bandwidth drops from 40Gbps to 10Gbps.
Is the CalDigit TS4 compatible with Windows laptops?
Thunderbolt 4 is platform-agnostic. Any Windows laptop with a Thunderbolt 4 port gets full TS4 capability.
Does the TS4 charge a MacBook Pro 16 fast enough?
The 98W passthrough charges MacBook Pro 16-inch M3 Max at the same rate as Apple's 140W adapter during normal workloads. Only sustained extreme workloads (4K export while gaming) draw above 98W.
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