Satechi's new Thunderbolt 5 Cube Dock is made for the Mac mini M4 Pro but will work with any Thunderbolt-equipped computer.
SATECHI
Back in January at CES, San Diego’s tech and lifestyle brand Satechi announced the launch of the CubeDock, its first Thunderbolt 5 device. The CubeDock has an enclosure for an SSD as well as plenty of ports and connections to turn a Mac mini M4 Pro into an even more powerful and well-connected workstation.
The new Satechi CubeDock is powered by the latest Intel Thunderbolt 5 chipset, which offers double the bandwidth and speed of Thunderbolt 4 and is backward compatible so that, even if you have a regular Mac mini M4 or any other Thunderbolt 4 computer, it will work just fine.
Because Thunderbolt 5 is the latest version of the interface’s standard, your next Mac will probably include Thunderbolt 5 ports. Currently, the new higher speed ports are only available on the Mac mini M4 Pro model and MacBook Pro laptop. That could change soon and Thunderbolt 5 may become the standard with its 80Gbps bi-directional bandwidth and 120Gbps turbo bandwidth for external graphics, including full support for high-resolution, multi-monitor setups.
At the front of the Satechi CubeDock are USB-C and A ports with 10Gbps speeds and charging capability for smartphones. There are also memory card slots and a front mounted audio jack with input and output capability.
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The Thunderbolt 5 CubeDock positively bristles with connections so let’s dive in to see what Satechi has included in this innovative connectivity hub. The CubeDock comes with a 180W smart power supply that provides 140W host charging for your laptop as well as up to 30W PD to power and charge other accessories like smartphones, tablets or small notebooks like the MacBook Neo.
On the base of the CubeDock is a snap-open compartment cover that reveals a bay for an M.2 2280 NVMe SSD. The bay supports 2230/2242/2260/2280 M.2 NVMe SSD sizes with PCIe 4×4 with a maximum capacity of 8TB and a top speed of 6000MB/s depending on the SSD used in the bay. There’s enough space in the compartment for a substantial silicone thermal pad, which also comes with the CubeDock.
Thunderbolt 5’s maximum 120Gbps bandwidth can support multiple displays up to 8K resolution. All the power, data, audio and video signals are transmitted down one Thunderbolt cable running from the host computer to the CubeDock. Satechi includes a cable in the box to get you started.
On the underside of the CubeDock is a bay for an M.2 NVMe SSD.
SATECHI
Bear in mind, if you want Thunderbolt 5 speeds then any cable you plug into one of the three Thunderbolt ports at the rear, it must be a Thunderbolt 5 to achieve the full speed. However, you can use older generation Thunderbolt cables, you just won’t get the maximum speeds and bandwidth.
The CubeDock can support up to three 8K/60Hz or 4K/144Hz displays using the three Thunderbolt 5 downstream ports. There are no HDMI or DisplayPort outputs, so if you need either of those, you’ll either have to get a USB-C adapter or a display with a USB-C input.
At the rear there of the CubeDock is a 10Gbps USB-C and a 10Gbps USB-A port. For networking, there is a 2.5Gb Ethernet port which is becoming increasingly common on the latest routers and necessary for anyone with a multigigabit fiber internet connection.
At the back of the CubeDock there are four Thunderbolt 5 ports, USB-C and A ports, Ethernet 2.6Gb port and the input for the 180W smart power supply.
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Moving round to the front of the CubeDock, there are a couple of slots for UHS-II SD and microSD cards, as well as 10Gbps USB-C and USB-A ports, plus a 3.5mm audio jack. To keep everything at an acceptable operating temperature, the CubeDock includes adaptive active cooling that uses an ultra-quiet fan which spins up when things begin to get a little toasty .
Milled from a solid block of aluminum, the CubeDock matches the look and size of Apple’s Mac mini M4. If you are lucky enough to own a Mac mini M4 Pro, you’ll probably know it has Thunderbolt 5 ports, so will work at full speed with the CubeDock. Even if you don’t have a Mac with Thunderbolt 5, it’s worth buying something like the CubeDock for when you eventually upgrade. Until then, it will work perfectly with computers with Thunderbolt 3 and 4 ports.
Thunderbolt 5 is a big leap forward and I can foresee Thunderbolt 4 replacing it over the next year or so. Thunderbolt is in a transitional phase now but if you don’t own a Thunderbolt dock yet, it’s worth considering something like the Satechi CubeDock or the Ugreen’s Maxidock Thunderbolt 5 dock.
To keep everything running cool, the Satechi CubeDock has a fine grid of venting for the built-in fan to draw in air.
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Satechi’s Thunderbolt 5 CubeDock is available now from Satechi.net and is priced at $399.99.
Even when connected to a Thunderbolt 4 port, the CubeDock will deliver good read and write speeds depending on the SSD used.
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