Why no docking architecture in laptops?

[janstett]

good god people, take the extra 5 seconds to plug everything in!

I don't want to worry about wearing out the plugs or even worse bending a pin. Plus I think the nest of cables should be hidden behind a dock (isn't
Apple supposed to be in to this whole aesthetically pleasing appearance thing? I thought I had heard that once). Heck the iPod has a smarter docking strategy than the Mac notebooks.

BTW my Macbook Pro shipped, I'm so excited!!!

 

[janstett]

That reminds me, one more observation about poor port layout on the Apple laptops.

Usually a powered USB port can handle an external 2.5" notebook drive. Of course, not on the Powerbook. To handle that, some manufacturers give a USB cable that supplements power off a 2nd USB port. Of course, on the Powerbook, the two USB ports are on opposite sides of the machine, making use of the cable impossible.

 

[gekko513]

I guess all 8 people in the world who want a docking station found this thread.

At work we have Dells with docking stations. No one uses the dock. Not one single person.


Edit: I was wrong. One person uses the monitor stand from the docking set to protect his car stereo amplifier in the back of his car.

 

[plinkoman]

good god people, take the extra 5 seconds to plug everything in!

i have a power cable, a cat6 cable (even though i have wireless, i always plug in because i have a file server and a gigabit network) and audio cable going to my sound system, an s-video cable going to my tv, my iPod via firewire, airclick usb dongle, and my keyboard, midi keyboard, and mighty mouse. all the usb stuff is through the hub on my keyboard, but thats it, the rest of that i have to plug in and unplug everytime i go somewhere. guess what happens the minute i unplug stuff? the cables go everywhere, some fall behind the desk, others get tangled etc...

my point is, yea, it doesn't take to long, and when i need to bring it somewhere, i deal with it, but this is a major deterent for me to actually use this as a laptop. i could be using this in bed right now, or maybe on the couch, etc... but i'm not, i'm using it sitting at a desk, because i just don't feel like dealing with it. right now this is basically a desktop computer, and not worth the extra $1000.

if this had a dock, and with the push of one button i could pick it up and go, i would actually do something with my laptop every now and then. i would consider it to be well worth the money, and the truth is, it really wouldn't add that much weight or money to it.

 

[AJBMatrix]

Nope, don't like it. Don't like it at all.

I really do not use docks and it would just give a little more that could mess up. My mother had a Dell Lappy that had a dock for her work and she liked it at first but it ended up breaking the port and she had to get the laptop fixed. So and since I do not have to connect but a monitor to my computer and use the BT mouse and keyboard, I just decide not to worry about silly things like that. That leaves me with only one thing to plug and unplug.

 

[chaos86]

i agree with whoever had the problem with the usb drives needing 2 ports and the powerbook not allowing that without an extension cable. though i do think that the power problem exists on all computers because the usb standard carries less amperage than the firewire standard. but yeah i had that problem too. I ended up replacing the usb enclosure with a FW one. i do think that the ports should be moved back to the rear of the powerbooks, ibooks, and macbooks and there should be about 4 usb ports and two firewire ports, and either one or two usb ports should be on the sides, along with an audio out jack front and back. i know that would make for an ugly ass notebook, but if anyone can do it and make it look good it's jonathan ive.


to the rest. a docking station is a gimic. same with the ipod dock. costs a lot, just to be a little tidier and save a few seconds. theyre cool, but to me, a college student, theyre outrageous in the price:usability ratio. personally, I have a velcro cable strap tying the cables together that stay on my desk, and a piece of tape supporting the cables' weight at the back of the desk so they dont fall down. so thats a dollar of velcro and a couple of cents of tape, 5 seconds a day for plugging/unplugging, and the incredible mental torture of having the cables visible (gasp!). you can have your $250 docking stations, but dont make me and the other 98% pay extra to have that pointless connector in my next computer.

 

[janstett]

I guess all 8 people in the world who want a docking station found this thread.

Right, so because YOU don't find something useful, it is therefore useless. Typical.

 

[janstett]

i agree with whoever had the problem with the usb drives needing 2 ports and the powerbook not allowing that without an extension cable. though i do think that the power problem exists on all computers

Actually, I've been able to use this same drive on several other computers with just the one single USB connection. Perhaps it is a defacto gentlemen's agreement that they make increased power available somehow.

you can have your $250 docking stations, but dont make me and the other 98% pay extra to have that pointless connector in my next computer.

I find it interesting that all of a sudden Apple fans are all about minimalism and eliminating unneccessary hardware. Let's start by losing the glowing Apple on the lid, the most pointless thing in the universe. How much battery power and/or LCD brightness gets lost by that? How about the iSight, a completely pointless toy. Front row and the IR remote? What a gimmick. Mag safe? A gimmick -- especially if you don't actually use your laptop as a laptop. Optical audio in/out? Who the heck needs that. (Actually I do but I'm being consistant for the argument). A back-lit keyboard, what a waste, how much cost does that add! Motion sensing, who needs that gimmick? All those things are useless. Take them away and spare me the cost of these pointless expenses. Or better yet, I'd pitch them all in exchange for a dock.

 

[mac 2005]

Those were exactly what I was thinking of when I stated the that they would break the smooth design. Look at the bottom of a Thinkpad. It's a mess of spring loaded doors, screws etc. Look at the bottom of a Powerbook. It has the battery and a single screwed door for RAM. That's it.

In addition those sort of things do add weight and complexity to the design. You need additional logic chips to control the dock function. You need to split the external monitor port out to the dock when it's in use and the DVI port when it's not (and the same for other ports)...

Personally I like the way it is now. I accept for people using their laptops in an office docking stations can make a lot of sense but that's not really a market that tends to by Apple (although I suppose this could be true because of a lack of office oriented functionality like docks).

It's an old quote but one worth repeating here, I think.

Form follows function.

Apple puts so much emphasis on "form" that it frequently overlooks "function." Given the cost premium for an Apple, the design team should be able to come up with a docking architecture that works and is attractive to the eye.

If the likes of Mercedes-Benz and Jaguar can find a way to put cupholders in their cars, then I tend to think Apple can manage a docking architecture.

 

[mac 2005]

I guess all 8 people in the world who want a docking station found this thread.

At work we have Dells with docking stations. No one uses the dock. Not one single person.


Edit: I was wrong. One person uses the monitor stand from the docking set to protect his car stereo amplifier in the back of his car.

When I worked in an office with a Dell laptop, I used my docking station. Every. Single. Day. So did everyone else with a laptop. (The corporate staff consisted of 3000+ employees.)

 

[NeuronBasher]

When I worked in an office with a Dell laptop, I used my docking station. Every. Single. Day. So did everyone else with a laptop. (The corporate staff consisted of 3000+ employees.)

I have had a couple of laptops with docking stations over the years, and I found the docking station INCREDIBLY useful. It's makes life much simpler when you have multiple things to connect. With my MacBook Pro, I'll have DVI, USB, FW, and power to connect/disconnect every single time I want to move my laptop. That's an unnecessary hassle, and I also wish Apple would have made the decision to support one.

It didn't impact my buying decision, but it would definitely have been a nice bonus. A dock would certainly have been more useful than the iSight.

 

[katie ta achoo]

I find it interesting that all of a sudden Apple fans are all about minimalism and eliminating unneccessary hardware. Let's start by losing the glowing Apple on the lid, the most pointless thing in the universe. How much battery power and/or LCD brightness gets lost by that?

from what I can tell on my own PowerBook, it's just extra light from the LCD. When I dim the screen, it dims. if you don't like it so much, put a post-it note over it.

How about the iSight, a completely pointless toy.

Makes videoconferencing easier. I've known of soldiers taking their laptops overseas and using it to keep in touch with friends and family.

Front row and the IR remote? What a gimmick.

It's just an easier, neat way to watch your stuff. Set it up across the room, and bam. Instant entertainment. Baby sitting and want the kids to **** and sit down? Give them the remote, and let them watch a folder full of downloaded kids shows from iTunes.

Mag safe? A gimmick -- especially if you don't actually use your laptop as a laptop.

And what about those who do? My brother killed 3 power adapters because they got yanked out at a weird angle.

Optical audio in/out? Who the heck needs that. (Actually I do but I'm being consistant for the argument).

A back-lit keyboard, what a waste, how much cost does that add!

it's freaking hard to type in the dark on a laptop keyboard sometimes.
ifixit.com says they're the same price for backlit and non backlit.ifixit.

Motion sensing, who needs that gimmick?

Mmm... when you drop your laptop and the platter gets hit by the arm, and I drop mine at the same angle and distance, and I can still read my HD? Tasty treats.

All those things are useless. Take them away and spare me the cost of these pointless expenses. Or better yet, I'd pitch them all in exchange for a dock.

Go get a stripped down Dell? No one is forcing you to buy all these superfluous items.

IMO, they just show that Apple puts a little more thought into their products. The Attention to detail is amazing.

and look at what you said a few posts ago:

Right, so because YOU don't find something useful, it is therefore useless. Typical.

I'll be taking the built-in iSight, Front Row, and Sudden Motion sensor and going home, thankyouverymuch.
(well, actually going to calculus. Same thing.)

 

[mpw]

...I'll be taking the built-in iSight, Front Row, and Sudden Motion sensor and going home, thankyouverymuch....

I think janstett was just making a point that pretty much any item not CRUCIAL to a laptop is going to be useless to some people while others will use it all the time and never consider buying a laptop without it.

For some people a dock would be more of a boon than iSight but of course Apple have to appeal to the widest market they can, and to a price. The addition of a dock would cost very little and many people would use it.

Also the argument made before about Apples form being all about 'simple' is damaged somewhat by additions like the IR port and iSight.

 

[gekko513]

When I worked in an office with a Dell laptop, I used my docking station. Every. Single. Day. So did everyone else with a laptop. (The corporate staff consisted of 3000+ employees.)

Then there are more than 8 people who want docking stations.

I still don't want one, though. I think Apple would've added one if the demand was big enough to justify the extra cost, bulk and holes.

 

[janstett]

I think janstett was just making a point that pretty much any item not CRUCIAL to a laptop is going to be useless to some people while others will use it all the time and never consider buying a laptop without it.

Thank you for saving me from a long rebuttal. I'm glad somebody got it.

 

[electronboy]

We use BookEndz because the end users request this functionality. We have had our share of problems with them. To dock or not dock is a matter of personal preference, but if Apple does not include the hardware to make this easier then the user does not have a choice. Many PC laptop users or sys admins will not recommend PowerBooks becuase they lack docking capability.

 

[electronboy]

I guess all 8 people in the world who want a docking station found this thread.

At work we have Dells with docking stations. No one uses the dock. Not one single person.


Edit: I was wrong. One person uses the monitor stand from the docking set to protect his car stereo amplifier in the back of his car.

Each person in our office with a docking station for Mac or PC uses it and would not be without it. More than 8 people.

 

[chaos86]

if apple could make a dock connector, about 1.5-2 inches wide, magsafe, in the middle of the back (not the bottom) of my powerbook, that carried every connection my powerbook's side ports carry, and it didnt add significantly to the cost, i'm all for it. if the hub that it connected to cost $50 now, or $100 later in my life when I'm not a student, i might even go for that too. right now though, the PCs that have dock connectors have big ugly holes in the bottom of them, and the dock costs upwards of $250.

I dont see why anyone who isnt rolling in money, and isnt in an environment where clients would frown upon a smattering of cable clutter, would pay that much for (essentially) a bunch of extension cords hidden from view in a pretty box.

 

[chaos86]

but if a corporation wants to buy me one, it's their money and i'm all for it.

 

[TheMasin9]

Aaaaaaamen

good god people, take the extra 5 seconds to plug everything in!


every day i come home and put my powerbook on my desk and it takes a few seconds to plug in power, 2 usb (hub and ipod), 2 firewire (2 HDs), ethernet, audio out, and dvi. I dont need a $100-$275 dock to save me 4 seconds.

thank you for putting the gripers to rest.