Customer Reviews

HP Quickdoc Docking Station

5 star:		(23)
4 star:		(15)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

First off, I agree with the other reviewers - this should have come with a power supply. I shouldn't have to use the same one that came with my laptop, since the intention for most people is to be able to carry one with you as needed (it's not like these HPs are rated highly for battery life). And once I have the quickdock set up and everything plugged in, like everyone else I'd prefer to just leave it connected and plug/unplug my laptop as needed for instant access. Fortunately, in my case, I bought an extra power supply which was part of a package deal from HP that included a laptop case and usb mouse. Still, HP should have included this with the quickdock, although the recent price drop to $79 compensates for this somewhat.

That being said, I hooked this up to a new HP DV2210US laptop and it worked like a charm. No issues with pass-through video, and the laptop quickly recognized every device I attached to the dock, including an external cd/dvd drive, external hard drive, printer, keyboard, and mouse. Based on what I had read, I was expecting something to go wrong, but the only issue I encountered was getting video output, and that was a matter of adjusting Windows to recognize an external monitor and nothing at all to do with the Quickdock. I also like the fact that one cable on the dock provides everything - particularly power (recharging my laptop battery as well), along with video and access to all the quickdock ports. And as soon as I disconnect, the unit goes to sleep until I connect later. This is exactly what I was looking for, since my goal was to eliminate a larger desktop pc. At the same time, it doesn't require any quirky connections like older docking stations or take up any excess room on the desk. In fact, considering what you get it's smaller than I had expected. Since I just received this recently, I'll continue putting it through the paces and test the audio and s-video options as well. Beyond that, I think this is a worthwhile purchase for anyone looking for a quick and easy solution.

My HP computer has side USB ports, great for convenience but made a mass of wires. This docking station resolved the problem and then some. Now I have even more USB ports, a convenient disconnect, and a more useable system.

Some complain about the lack of an included power cord (and brick). I can see the problem if you travel with a lot. I don't need the computer to travel often, so I just set the power cord up so it is easy to detach.

I bought this docking station to simply interface with my television, stereo, external hard drive, and Gyration wireless mouse and keyboard. The plug is a little difficult at times to line up, but the dock successfully interfaces with all of the above devices without any trouble - and gives a home to the myriad cords and connections. As has been implied in other reviews, HP's tech support seems to know nothing about this device or its capabilities (I contacted them to try to resolve a few questions I had before I purchased it). It does not come with a power supply, which would make it it even more useful, but doesn't require power except from the laptop for the tasks I am using it for. I simply leave the laptop plugged in on its own power supply or run it on battery.

I have 2 HP laptops, an older 17" model and a brand new dv6500t, this quickdoc comes with an adapter that works with both of them. It is very easy to connect, and works very well. The connector for video is only HD15, not DVI, but that is acceptable for the monitor connection I use. I will be using it for my theatre room, as a quick connect for a laptop to use on the theatre wall, and it is very sleek and hi tech looking. Small in size, it doesn't look out of place with my receiver or HD cable box. Great product. Recommended highly.

BRIEFLY, THIS DOCKING STATION IS NOT GREAT.

It does not have or come with a power supply and you must use your laptop AC plug for power. That means you will have to lug it back and forth with you if you use this at work and use your laptop at home too or vice versa. Unless you want to spend another $50 to buy an additional AC adapter!!! Another great HP screw over!!! After all, isn't the point of a docking station to make it easy for you to use your laptop in multiple places and by not having to plug and unplug multiple cables???

Do you have a DV4000? This dock does not pass video through that model either, as well as on some other models even though HP says it does. HA!

I think the universal dock with video by Kensington would be a better choice and you can find it cheaper.

This docking station works well and acommodates my flat-screen monitor just fine. And you cannot beat the Amazon price! My only gripe is that this does not come with a power cord (what is it with HP selling products that never come with the needed cords/cables???)

The entire purpose of a docking station, in my opinion, is to be able to quickly connect your computer to other peripherals without having to continuously plug in power. Since this unit requires you to use a separate power adapter, it is tedious to use, since you will still need to plug and unplug your adapter into this in order to use it. You will need to have an extra adapter (i.e., spend more money), in order to "quickdoc." Right now, I have to crawl under my desk to retrieve my power cord when I need to carry my computer, which means I am doing this at least twice a day. I just want to plug in and plug out the computer and be done with it. I am not happy.

I bought this in order to -
clear desk space
gain additional USB ports
move the audio jack which is on the front of my laptop
make it easy to disconnect so I can use my laptop elsewhere.

It has accomplished all 4. The docking station is smaller than I expected so it takes little desk space. I have definitely gained several USB ports. In order to disconnect you squeeze the plug on both sides and it pops off. Lack of a power cord is somewhat annoying but not a deal breaker. I have been using it for a month and there have been no issues.

I'm generally very pleased and this dock has eliminated our need for desktop PC. Yes, the dock is missing a power supply, but an easy work around is to run a 3 prong extension cord up to the docking station so that you can easily unplug the laptop's original power supply when you need to take it with you. The dock has worked great for us except that the computer will not go to sleep automatically. It's mysterious and the settings say it should shut itself off, but you have to explicitly power off the computer each time.

I picked up a TouchSmart TX2 on clearance for a great price just after one of my excess desktop computers (which I kept in the family room) went kaput. Instead of fixing/adding another desktop, I got this dock so I can just hide my new laptop in the cabinet where the computer was and use the peripherals from the old computer instead (and keep my little ones away from my precious new toy - they don't know it's at touchscreen and I intend to keep it that way). The doc connects easily (though I wish the connector was a bit more obvious about which side is up - I plan to mark mine so I don't have to fuss with it as much). It worked nearly perfectly on the first try, there was a slight flicker on my LCD monitor when using Vista Ultimate's default settings upon detecting it, but that went away when I adjusted the refresh rate from 75 to 70. Non-tech-savvy folks might not know to to that, it's in your display properties - right-click on the desktop screen, chose customize, then display properties, then advanced settings button, Monitor tab, drop down box under screen refresh rate - set it to a lower number than whatever it's at then hit apply. If flicker doesn't stop, keep stepping down to a lower number until it does. Also make sure you're adjusting on the external monitor not the laptop's display when making these adjustments!).

Very happy with the purchase and especially with the price. Amazon indicates that there's a newer model available, but from looking at the pictures the newer model seems to actually have fewer outputs. I'm looking forward to using this as a TV pass-through when visiting family and we want to share home movies and such without having to burn a DVD.

One thing to note, it doesn't include a power cord - you're expected to use the one that came with your laptop. I picked up a 90watt Targus universal charger from MicroCenter for $30, the one suggested here from the same seller would do you well if you don't want to constantly fuss with taking the power cord off when you need to have it with you and the laptop away from the dock. I went for a universal one since we have other laptop brands in the household, so it's nice to be able to just switch the tip if someone else needs it for a different brand (we have more computers than humans in the house due to work machines and hand-me-downs to the kids, including old laptops).

Overall, I'm enjoying this enough that if I wind up with a desk & monitor somewhere else, I may well consider picking up an additional one. I love not having to worry about getting a bent or stuck pin from a monitor cable in my laptop, plus it charges the battery while it's attached.

The only annoyance is I can't figure out how to get the laptop out of sleep mode with my wireless keyboard plugged into the dock without physically opening the laptop (which is annoying as I've stowed it in a cabinet at some distance so it's behind a babyproofed latch). Not sure if there's a workaround or just something I'll have to deal with, and wouldn't be an issue if it was closer to the user.