Review: BookEndz Docking Station for MacBook

BookEndz Docking Station for MacBook
Review by: Katie
http://www.bookendzdocks.com/Docking_Stations-Docking_Station_for_13_MacBook_Black.html
Price: $159.00 with other options available

While at Macworld earlier this year, I had a chance to see first hand a lot of the Mac products that I had read about over the years. One of the products that I specifically sought out was the Docking Station for MacBook by BookEndz. BookEnds makes docking stations for most Mac portables, and since I regularly "dock" my MacBook to an external monitor, keyboard, mouse and USB hub while working at home, I've long been interested in the concept of an "all in one" dock in hopes of replacing the mess of wires that currently sits on my desk. The good folks over at Dr. Bott were kind enough to send me a BookEndz Docking Station for my Black MacBook for review.

Before trying the docking station, I had a 20" Apple Display connected through an ADC to DVI converter, into the Mini-DVI converter, and into my MacBook. I also had a standard 7-port USB hub connected to my 5G iPod, my iPod Shuffle, my iPhone, an external USB Mouse, external keyboard, digital camera and a few other miscellaneous devices that was then connected into one of the USB ports on my MacBook. I have a few FireWire drives daisy chained together and connected to my MacBook's single FireWire port, my AudioEngine A2 speakers connected through my headphone jack, the ethernet cable coming from my Airport, and of course my power connector. Although most of my USB devices went through the USB Hub and all of my FIreWire devices were connected together every time I wanted to move my MacBook I had to plug and unplug at least six different cables and we won't even talk about the spaghetti of wires that I had stuffed behind my desk.

The docking station replicates all of the connectors and ports from the side of the 13" MacBook and allows for all of the peripheral devices normally connected to the side of the MacBook - Ethernet, FireWire, Video, USB, Audio In, Audio Out to be plugged into the back of the dock, and remain plugged in, independent of the computer. The idea is that taking the computer from the office or the home, or moving it from one room to another, doesn't require disconnecting and reconnecting several devices but just the one device. Additionally, the dock includes a powered USB hub for a total of 5 USB ports rather than the MacBook's standard 2, along with a full size VGA and DVI port so you can loose the mini-connector as well.

When I plugged in my monitor, USB devices, firewire and ethernet the dock worked flawlessly. Because Apple uses the proprietary MagSafe power supply, the dock doesn't have one built in, but it does have a feed-through slot for your power cord. This isn't a big deal for me because I have a dedicated power cord at my desk and another on my travel bag, but you do have to plug in the dock, and then plug in the power cable.

The first problem I ran into is that initially I could not get my speakers to work with the dock. There's a little switch on the dock that allows you to slide an audio jack in and out of your MacBook's headphone jack. The idea being that your speakers could be hooked up all the time to the docking station, but you would slide the lever on the dock depending upon whether you wanted to use your speakers or your MacBook's onboard audio. After several attempts, I could not seem to get a secure enough "fit" between the dock and the audio jack and I was left with a loud and constant buzz from my speakers whenever I tried to engage them. If I used my hands to physically push the MacBook and the dock closer together, I could get it to work, but as soon as I let go, the buzzing started back again. I sent an inquiry to BookEndz and within 24 hours got a reply that they needed some information and would send me a RMA out and replace the unit. Great customer service, and I used a private email address, so they had no idea that they were talking to someone who was reviewing the product.

As it turns out, while I had the unit out and not connected to my computer I noticed that the slider appeared to be "stuck" and not fully expanding. I "jiggled" the slider a bit, and it got "unstuck" and appeared to work perfectly, no buzz or hiss at all from the speakers.

After getting the speaker issue resolved, the BookEndz dock worked just as advertised If you're looking for a docking station for your Mac, BookEndz is currently the only provider that I am aware of that makes such a product. The extra USB hub and DVI and VGA expanders do add value to the product, though the $159 price tag does strike me as a little high. When you consider that models for the MacBook Pro range nearly double the price at $299 it gets expensive quickly. However, I'd imagine the big price difference is due to the fact that the MacBook only has ports on one side where the MacBook Pro dock does have to have double the electronics. The question of whether the dock is "worth it" will vary on the individual and how they use the Mac. In my case, I plug and unplug a handful of cables a couple times a week, and it's not that big a deal, but the dock does make it easier and cleaner. I'm not sure that's worth the price tag for me, but it may be for others. All in all, the dock works just as it is designed to and is the only product of its type I know of on the market. If you're looking for a way to "dock" your Mac notebook at your desk, this is your solution.

BookEndz has a variety of different docks that are compatible with all current and most recent Apple portables. The docking station for MacBook runs $159 while the docking station for the 15" MacBook Pro is $299.95 The docking stations are available from BookEndz or retailers like Dr. Bott and others. You can view my photos showing the dock and my setup with and without the dock here on Flickr.