Hacker News Reader

Comment by bodge5000 | Hacker News Reader

This is obviously far more advanced, but I still think its a shame that the old style thinkpad dock didn't catch on more. For those who arent aware, the docks on old thinkpads used to double as a stand (and a lock too actually), originally connecting via a custom connector at the bottom of the laptop and then over dual usb-c slots.

View on HN

I don't think this was limited to Thinkpads, where I worked heavily used laptops that had similar features but were Dell laptops.

The laptops had connections at the bottom that clicked into the docks/stands, which you could connect external screens/peripherals.

I saw plenty in corporate environments but I think people mostly wanted to use a larger and better screen than what was available on a laptop at the time.

What I never saw in the wild but which was neat was the Powerbook Duo dock that pulled in the laptop like a front loading VCR tape, peak Sculley-period pointless complexity. It totally enclosed the laptop in a closed configuration, the idea being that you would put a monitor on top of the dock.

> I saw plenty in corporate environments but I think people mostly wanted to use a larger and better screen than what was available on a laptop at the time.

Certainly with some of the older Thinkpads (going back 10+ years or more) it was only possible to connect two external monitors via one of these docks. (Then USB-A monitor adapters started to appear...)

I had a dock for my Thinkpad X200. It was a chunk of plastic the same size as the laptop but it also had a bay for a disc drive (since the laptop didn't have one) and also had a pop-out connector for charging a second battery. Since it was the same footprint, it didn't take up any extra desk space and still allowed you to use the laptop's own ports too (except for power), it just made the laptop thicker. And you could even take the dock on the go if you really needed the extra I/O and disc drive. Pretty innovative design when docks at the time were just a big box at the rear of the assembly.

Now we just plug in a USB C or two into any manufacturer’s laptop or phone.

I like this way better. Despite the docks feeling cool as hell.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com