As a tech reviewer, I’ve had years of smartphone reviews. I nearly feel bad, because I loved getting the latest phones in to test. It was such a novelty. Until it wasn’t and they got really boring. You know what excites me now, here in my late thirties? Docking stations. Anker has sent over it’s new Anker Prime TB5 docking station and I absolutely love it. It’s a beast.
Disclosure: This product was gifted to the author. This means it was provided free of charge to be reviewed but the brand supplying it did not insist on a review, nor do they have any control over the content within this review.
Design and Build
Straight off the bat, I’m going to call out that the Anker Prime TB5 is not cheap. However, what you get for your money is probably the best all-rounder dock on the market. This is Anker’s first Thunderbolt 5 dock. While Thunderbolt isn’t exclusive to MacBook users, the overall design and spec of the Prime TB5 gives strong suggestions that MacBook users are that target. You could argue this takes down that price tag a little further towards the realm of reasonable, too given MacBook users typically spend a little more on their hardware (I’m one of them by the way).
The Anker Prime TB5 has an aluminium alloy chassis and a Applesque Space Gray finish that won’t look out of place next to your MacBook (assuming you have the same colour). It’s a weighty enough unit too, weighing in at just over 1kg. As someone who once bought a mic filled with concrete thinking it “felt decent”, I won’t let that sway me too much. The spec sheet I go into later will do that instead.
It’s a tidy little unit though, and sits neatly on your desktop with a massive array of connectivity made available to you. From a usage point of view, a single cable from the dock to my MacBook is all I need. And even better, the dock has a built-in power supply. Why does that matter? It means no massive power supply on the floor or desk. That means not bit box on the power cable going into the wall. It’s just neater.
Because of the internal power supply and that this dock is a general work horse, it does have a fan to keep it cool. This usually means noise, but I’ve never noticed the device making any noise, let alone getting overly noisy.
To add a little flair, Anker has added a power light to the dock too. You can turn this on or off by hitting the “power button” on the unit.
Before I go into the I/O of the dock, I just want to speak about the positioning of it all. With USB-C x 2, USB-A x 1 and a headphone jack, all on the front of the dock, you have you’re daily plug and play sorted. But on the rear, there’s even more I/O for the bits and pieces you typically leave plugged in 24/7.
So, let’s talk about connectivity.
Connectivity: All the Ports You Need (and Then Some)
There is a mind-blowing amount of connectivity on the Anker Prime TB5. Anker describes this as a 14-in-1 dock.
The I/O includes three Thunderbolt 5 ports. One upstream to connect to your laptop with charging up to 140W, and two downstream ports that support high-speed accessories or external displays. To be clear, this means one suitable cable from the Anker Prime TB5 can charge your laptop and handle display. I’m using the cable Anker recommends with the dock, which is a paid extra rather surprisingly – but it’s a lovely cable I guess.
Each downstream port can handle up to 8K resolution at 60Hz. Most people using this dock with a MacBook will connect either one or two monitors, depending on their chip. Standard M1 and M2 models are limited to one, while Pro and Max models can handle two. Using three displays is technically possible in some Windows setups, but it’s not something Mac users should expect from this dock.
You also get both HDMI 2.1 and DisplayPort 2.1 connections, though only one of these can be used at a time. For those using a laptop that supports multiple external displays over Thunderbolt, the two downstream ports cover that need.
I’ve tested this with a single HDMI-powered monitor from both an M3 MacBook Pro and M4 MacBook Pro with no issues.
Day-to-day devices are well-supported too. As I’ve alluded to, the front of the dock includes two USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 ports offering 10Gbps speeds and up to 45W of shared charging, perfect for phones, tablets or portable drives.
Around the back, there are three USB-A 3.2 ports, also at 10Gbps, for connecting older accessories. For anyone dealing with large files or video calls, the inclusion of a 2.5Gb Ethernet port ensures stable, high-speed networking.
If you work with media, you’ll be glad to see both SD and microSD card slots on board. These are compatible with UHS-I and UHS-II cards, but speeds are limited to 104MB/s, which matches UHS-I performance. That’s usually more than enough for photographers, content creators, or anyone regularly transferring files from a camera or drone. There’s also a standard 3.5mm audio jack for headphones or mic input.
I’m sure there are plenty of edge cases where individuals won’t be able to achieve something with the Anker Prime TB5. Whether it be powering 17 monitors or transferring media at UHS-II speeds to an SD card. But for 98% of users, this dock presents itself as a great value way to get this level of connectivity.
Goosed Verdict: Anker Prime TB5
The Anker Prime TB5 will set you back £399 which is about €470. It’s a sizeable purchase to say the least. One that most won’t understand the value of. And that’s absolutely fair enough. Alone, the dock doesn’t do anything. It needs to be powered by another machine, such as a MacBook.
However, if, like me, you have a MacBook that you sometimes use on the go, but also sometimes like as a desktop machine, this dock is worth it’s weight in gold.
One single cable is all I have to plug in, and my MacBook connects to my entire work station. My keyboard, mouse, monitor, webcam and phone charger, all work with one connection. It’s neat and tidy on the desk too. And, because it’s Anker I expect this to work for a very long time, given the company’s experience in the charging and power space.
So if you’ve read this review and wondered why anyone would buy a dock, let alone pay that kind of money for one – this isn’t the item for you.
If you are sick and tired of your work day starting with plugging in items and trying to get everything working – you’ve found your answer. Keep an eye out on the Anker website to see if there’s a discount though.
