Hp dock question - Raspberry PI

[maysobano]

I have a hp dock G4 the one that is 280watts dual cables (thick black box not the newer (grey coloured one) I've had it about 2 years.

I use it for my laptop. Is it possible to use it with a Raspberry PI as I'm having to disconnect one of the monitors in order to connect that one monitor via HDMI to the unit.

I need a monitor for the pi, I'm not not sure if there's a way I could use the monitor/dock without having to buy additional monitor for it as I don't want to keep disconnecting them. From the dock which is irritating!

[M_Salman]

Hi @maysobano,

The HP G4 Dock is designed primarily for use with HP laptops, providing power, additional ports, and connectivity to multiple monitors. However, using it directly with a Raspberry Pi might not work out-of-the-box for several reasons:

1. Compatibility: The dock is likely designed to interface specifically with HP laptops using USB-C for power and data. Raspberry Pi models generally do not have a USB-C port suitable for docking purposes, except for power delivery in some cases.

2. Connector Type: The Raspberry Pi typically uses HDMI for video output and standard USB ports for peripherals, which aren't natively supported by a docking station that uses USB-C as its primary connection.

3. Power Delivery: The dock is meant to provide power to laptops through the USB-C cable, which isn't a feature that directly translates to powering a Raspberry Pi.

Possible Solutions

1. Use an HDMI Switch: Instead of disconnecting the monitor from the dock, you can use an HDMI switch to select between inputs. This allows you to switch the display input between the Raspberry Pi and the dock without unplugging cables.

2. Secondary HDMI Input: If your monitor has multiple HDMI inputs, you can keep both the Raspberry Pi and dock connected to different inputs on the monitor. You'd simply have to change the input source using the monitor's menu.

3. USB Hub for Peripheral Sharing: If you want to share peripherals (like a keyboard and mouse) between the Pi and the laptop, consider using a USB hub that can switch devices between two host computers.