At about $330, the Orico Thunderbolt 5 Desktop Workstation adds fast storage, multiple display support, and 140W charging to your new Mac. It's pretty nice, but not perfect.
It was Apple's choice to switch to (almost) all USB-C in 2016. They really haven't reversed course on this, other than conceding that MagSafe was pretty good, and so is native HDMI.
So, if you're a regular AppleInsider reader, you know there's a dock for everybody. Orico is relatively new to this game, but to date, what we've seen from them in the Thunderbolt 5 Dock is pretty solid, with a good price point to boot.
The dock uses an aluminum alloy body with plastic accents. It is compact and light at 0.85 pounds.
It is built to sit on a desk beside a Mac. The silver finish suits an Apple setup.
The M.2 slot sits inside the enclosure. A drive installs without extra cables.
Orico Thunderbolt 5 Desktop Workstation review: Front port view
The problem with all this is that it is very, very hot. While running with the SSD, the unit's surface temperature hits about 111F. This is not enough to burn, but it's also not comfortable to the touch.
We didn't have any connectivity problems, but we're concerned about long-term stability. This is an odd one where we get to keep the product after review instead of returning it to the vendor, so we'll get back to you on this.
One Thunderbolt 5 port connects to the host Mac. It runs at up to 80Gbps, delivering up to 140W of power to the host computer. In our testing that is enough to supply a 16-inch MacBook Pro under load, and supply a very small charge to the battery while getting hammered.
Two more Thunderbolt 5 ports face outward. They connect peripherals or daisy-chain up to six devices.
Older Macs still work, but slower. A Thunderbolt 4 or 3 Mac drops to its own ceiling, and monitor support will change based on the host, and the available bandwidth.
Speeds are about as you'd expect. We didn't see any issues with external peripherals here. Power is sufficient for external drives, and so forth. It is not enough for Apple's SuperDrive, through.
The dock's standout feature is its internal drive bay. It takes one M.2 NVMe 2280 SSD, which is not provided.
Orico Thunderbolt 5 Desktop Workstation review: The M.2 compartment
Orico says the slot supports PCIe 5.0 drives. It measured speeds up to 6000 megabytes per second. We got about 5200 megabytes per second, which is close enough.
Real speed is gated by Thunderbolt bandwidth, not the drive. Even so, that is fast storage.
The dock offers several ways to add displays. There is one HDMI port and one DisplayPort.
Each does 8K at 30Hz on its own. Together they drop to 4K at 60Hz.
The two Thunderbolt 5 outputs handle displays too. They reach 8K at 60Hz or 4K at 240Hz.
Orico lists support for up to five monitors. This is where Mac buyers must be careful.
Orico Thunderbolt 5 Desktop Workstation review: From above, with the power brick.
Apple Silicon limits how many external displays a Mac drives. Base chips support far fewer than Pro or Max chips.
For example, the M4 MacBook Air drives only two external displays. The five-display figure needs an M4 Max or better.
So check your Mac's display limit before buying for multi-monitor use. This is not a DisplayLink driver dock, so you're limited by the host.
The remaining ports cover everyday needs. There are three USB-A ports at 10Gbps. A single USB-C data port adds another 10Gbps connection. A 2.5GbE jack handles wired networking.
An SD 4.0 and TF 4.0 reader round things out. Both can be read at the same time, which is a nice touch.
A 3.5mm combo jack covers headsets. The bundled adapter supplies 180 watts.
