Plugable’s UD-6950PDZ is a great docking station for those committed to USB-C peripherals

By Diane Turpin

The $250 Plugable UD-6950PDZ, a pluggable USB-C Triple 4K HDMI and DisplayPort Horizontal Docking Station, is an excellent product for  those who need more ports for their Macs.

It’s a plugable USB4 and Thunderbolt 4 Hub with 60W host charging and a USB 3.0 port. In the box is the hub itself, a power cord, one Thunderbolt4/USB4(40Gbps) USB-C cable, and one USB C-to-HDMI adapter.

Features of the UD-6950PDZ

Here are the features of the UD-6950PDZ:

° The 12-port USB C Docking Station supports 3x 4K monitors—HDMI and DisplayPort, an Ethernet port, 6x USB 3.0 ports that provide room for peripherals, and an audio jack.

° Triple 4K—With 3x HDMI ports and 3x DisplayPort ports, this laptop docking station allows you to connect three screens up to 4K 60Hz with USB4 /Thunderbolt 4 hosts via Alt Mode

° Connected to a Thunderbolt 3/4, USB4, or full-featured USB-C port and macOS 11 or higher (or Windows 10,11, if you must), this triple display docking station lets you connect up to 3 monitors, even if your laptop only supports one.

° If your laptop supports USB-C PowerDelivery, 60W charging provided by this USB C dock will supply the power your laptop needs to keep you working for the whole day (96W laptops may need additional power).

Impressions

This is a compact hub with one host charging USB-C port and 1 USB 3 port on the front and three USB-C ports and the power port on the back. It has four rubber feet that hold it securely on the table without shifting too much.

I plugged the included cable into my MacBook Pro, then the host charging port. The UD-6950PDZ did indeed charge the laptop as promised,

The USB 3.0 port opened up a flash drive quite quickly and operated as I would expect. I also connected my Epson Artisian 725 via the USB port and it worked quickly as well with no problems recognizing the printer.

I used the enclosed HDMI adapter and attached a second display. I attached it to my 4K Vizio and it worked well as either a mirrored display or extended desktop. The quality was great making it a good option for a portable way to mirror a presentation.

Overall, it’s exactly what it claims to be. I love the quickness of its performance. The UD-6950PDZ stands up to the name”Plugable” by responding instantly to everything I plugged into it.

This unit s for someone who has committed to USB-C peripherals. The one USB 3.0 is nice for the flash drive or, as in my case, older printer that you might need to connect. However, if you are still transitioning all your peripherals and not completely committed to USB-C, you would likely want to carry an adaptor to give you that extra connectivity. 

Apple World Today Rating (out of 5 stars): ★★★★★