XPS

[quickguide01]

I just purchased a dell xps 15 9520 but haven't received it yet.


Specs are

Windows 11 Pro

i7-12700H

32gb ddr5 ram

1tb ssd

nvidia 3050

1920x1200 resolution



I notice that this laptop has 1 usb-c port, 2 thunderbolt 4 ports and that is all. My current laptop, the xps 15 9550, has hdmi port, thunderbolt port, 2 usb a ports.

With my xps 15 9550, I connect 2 external monitors without any dock station. The 32' 4k samsung monitor is connected by usb-c to displayport cable. The 24' 1920x1200 monitor is connected by hdmi to dvi cable. But my hdmi port got fried so i can no longer use this port but before this happened, no issue connecting 2 external monitors this way.


The 2 usb a ports I have. One port I connect a wireless mouse usb. The other port, I connect a sabrent four port hub to it. So with that, I connect wired keyboard, cable matters ethernet adapter so I could use wired internet and the other 2 ports, I would use it for usb flash drive and something else. Thus even if I had just one usb-a port on it, the sabrent port hub would be enough for the wireless mouse, wired keyboard and the ethernet for wired internet as one other port, I would not always use.

[quickguide01]

What is considered daisy chain non powered usb ports?  You mean plugging in the sabrent usb 4 port hub to the single usb a port on that adapter?  

I would be connecting wireless mouse usb, wired keyboard... and a cable matters ethernet adapter to it.  And I would have an extra usb a port for when I use a usb flash drive on occasion.  So that would be too much power then assuming the monitor is connected with hdmi as well?  I don't plan to plug in hard drive or things like.

Well what is the purpose of that usb-c to usb-a/hdmi cable adapter then for it is only meant to connect just 1 usb a device?  I mean most people would need to connect at least a wireless mouse and another usb a device.  

But don't these thunderbolt 4 ports contain a ton of power though?

The wavlink is still fine right?  So if that usb-c to usb-a/hdmi adapter only connects to a sabrent 4 port hub and say just wireless mouse usb and wired keyboard and occasional usb flash drive, is that still safe?  Because the wavlink would have an ethernet port to connect internet to... and also the 2 monitors.  And the usb-c to usb-a/hdmi adapter wouldn't connect to ah hdmi monitor?

I don't want to get a refurbished/used dell dock.

[Chino de Oro]

I received your private message asking for help with reviewing your selection of docking stations for your new laptop.  I see that the Dell thunderbolt 4 dock would be the best suite.  But you can get it at half of Dell price from Amazon (now sold out).

While the Wavlink has everything you want, it's a hub, good for travel and light use.  For daily usage, you would want a complete and good setup as described by @StZill .  As I mentioned before, only you can decide if you need or want one. 

A refurbished TB16 dock still beat all those mini hub you looked at.  You can get new one as well but it will cost you 4 times more, but you already knew that.

[quickguide01]

The person who I exchanged messages a lot and knows a lot about this just told me I don't even need a docking station because of this usb-c to usb-a/hdmi adapter dell supplied  That person said I can connect my 2 external monitors without any issue at all.

If that is the case, why is literally every post by anyone that owns a xps 9510/9520 saying you need a docking station regardless?  If you want to connect 2 external monitors, and dell provided this usb-c to usb-a/hdmi adapter, you can connect 1 monitor via usb-c to displayport for example... the other monitor would be hdmi to whatever.  

You would then plug a sabrent usb 4 port hub to that 1 single usb a port on that adapter to get 4 usb a ports.  Then you can connect wireless mouse dongle, wired keyboard, ethernet adapter cable for wired internet and another usb a port for say a flash drive.

So why do I not hear any 9510/9520 owners talk about this?  I have heard daisy chaining isn't good but aren't those thunderbolt 4 ports very strong and provide ton of power though?  So it could easily connect 4 usb a devices and a monitor as well without any issue?  An issue probably would arise if you were to say connect multiple hard drives into few of the usb a ports which might draw lot of power?  But then again, wouldn't the thunderport 4 port be strong enough?

[quickguide01]

Isn't daisy chaining much safer if you use a thunderbolt 4 compared to the usb 3.2 port on the laptop though because it is much more powerful?

That person who I exchanged messages with who is very knowledgeable about this said I don't even need a dock anymore because of this usb-c to usb-a/hdmi adapter.

[Chino de Oro]

I think you may have confused the power delivery (100w) on a thunderbolt port with a USB bus powered (15w) and daisy chained capability of thunderbolt  with multi-devices into a USB-A adapter.  Just cautious with your setup and not to damage your new laptop as none blame taken.  But nonetheless, your topic derived from original which dock/hub should you get.  I still say it's your decision should you need one or not. 

[StZill]

It seems that your question may be answered by using the usb-c to usb-a/hdmi adapter.  I don’t know if that is a proven solution but it sounds plausible. The threat of damage to your 9520 is probably minimal but also probably not zero.  For myself the convenience of my WD19TB docking station for a couple hundred bucks makes it more desirable for me. There is something to be said for how easy it is to bring my laptop home, set it on my desk, hook up one usb-c thunderbolt cable from my docking station, leave the laptop lid closed, and push the power button on the docking station and voila:  I have a fully operable desktop system with all the amenities.  Once home and set up, I push the single button to boot everything up.  Everything just works and works well. Each to their own. If you try out your solution will you report back here with the results as I, and probably others here, would be interested to know your experience?