Thunderbolt/USB-C dock suggestions for Spectre x360 13-w0xx

[hiawatha]

Hi!

This question has been discussed several times before, but I'm having difficulties finding concrete (and current) suggestions. 

I'm looking for a thunderbolt 3/USB-C dock for my Spectre x360 13-w0xx, something like the Belkin thunderbolt 3 mini dock: https://www.amazon.com/Belkin-Thunderbolt-Windows-Laptops-Transfer/dp/B07R5CB6HY

One of the reviews for that dock mentioned that the USB ports on the dock didn't work with their Spectre x360 for some reason. I know that troubleshooting this laptop can really get into the weeds sometimes (eg. USB-controller reset -_- ) and I'm okay with that but obv. would be nice to know beforehand whether a product is simply INcompatible with my laptop rather than just untested. 

I'd like your advice re. docks that you've managed to use with the 13" Spectre x360 or that should be compatible.

reqs:

- power passthrough for charging laptop (laptop uses 65W power supply???) - user guide & manual contains the following info: 

Operating voltage and current -

19.5 V dc @ 2.31 A – 45 W
19.5 V dc @ 3.33 A – 65 W

"The computer operates on DC power, which can be supplied by an AC or a DC power source. The AC power
source must be rated at 100–240 V, 50–60 Hz"

And offers this list of supported power specs:

- power- button for turning on or waking from hibernate (or a convenient solution for doing that without opening lid).

- displayport

- at least 1 USB 3 port

- pref. an HDMI port, pref. capable of 4k @ 60Hz

- pref. ethernet port (not mandatory)

- pref. a thunderbolt 3 or USB-C port. 

- I live in Sweden, so pref. something that's available in Sweden, and usable without an adapter 🙂

- Price roughly  $120 at most, pref. $100. 

The HP spectre travel dock doesn't include Displayport (neither does the Belkin dock). Some people appear to have been able to get their Spectre x360s working with various docks for business notebooks. Issues that have cropped up in these discussions are mostly about charging (dock doesn't reliably output enough power?), power button (can't turn on/wake with power button on dock), and ports not working (eg. USB ports on dock not working). Some of these issues may have been addressed with updates to BIOS or dock firmware. 

I'd greatly appreciate any and all help you can offer. I love this laptop, but owning it is a real pain in the butt sometimes 🙂

[EddyK]

Hello @hiawatha,

The following are HP recommended USB-C accessories for your device: 

• HP Spectre USB-C Travel Dock 2SR85AA 
• HP USB-C to Multi-port Hub 1BG94AA

However, those are most likely overpriced and they don't even meet the requirements you asked for.

Unfortunately, it's not rare to have some sort of compatibility issue with a dock or perhaps receive a slightly defective product, therefore, the best thing to do is just purchase an item with generally positive reviews. Furthermore, what I usually do is purchase several items and return those that don't work too well. 

I would take the review with the Spectre x360 with a pinch of salt as I would suspect that they received a defective product. 

This HP Elite 90W dock seems to be a pretty decent option: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06VSDT8FM/ref=psdc_778660_t1_B07MVNXK7R#customerReviews

I personally use an eGPU with additional ports and some USB-C (non-Thunderbolt 3) docks so I can't make any personal recommendations, unfortunately. IMO, the Belkin option is probably one of the best.

Hope that helps somewhat.

[famousblu]

I have a new Spectre x360 13 and have this issue. I called Belkin and they were very helpful and they sent me a replacement dock, but it didn't fix the issue. I've tested five USB peripherals - all work independently using the USB on the side of the Spectre. All work when I run a USB PC connection from that port to my monitor and use those USB ports, but none of them work on either of the USB ports on the Belkin. I bought this product for the 4k monitor connections and though the USB functionality would be an afterthought. I was wrong. 

UPDATE: After talking with Belkin support again, and going through a full reboot of the device, it did start working. We did not have to change any settings. We did that several times with the other one and no luck, so we'll see if this keeps going.