Other World Computing (OWC) today announced the upcoming availability of its new Thunderbolt 2 dock. The OWC Thunderbolt 2 dock includes twelve ports, allowing for the connectivity of up to 78 direct and daisy-chained devices through a single Thunderbolt connection.

owc-thunderbolt2-dock
Designed with Apple hardware aesthetics, the dock is compatible with Thunderbolt-equipped Macs in both form and function. Available expansion connections include two Thunderbolt 2 ports, five USB 3.0 ports, 3.5mm audio in/out and one port each for Firewire 800 devices, Gigabit Ethernet, and HDMI 1.4b with support for 4K displays.

belkin-thunderbolt2-dock
The OWC Thunderbolt 2 dock compares favorably with Belkin's Thunderbolt 2 Express Dock HD, which debuted earlier this year. Similar to OWC's latest offering, Belkin's $299 expansion dock includes two Thunderbolt 2 ports, one HDMI port and one Gigabit Ethernet connection. It also offers two audio out ports and three USB 3.0 ports as compared to five for OWC.

The OWC Thunderbolt 2 dock is available now for pre-order with a price tag of $249 and an expected ship date of early December.

Top Rated Comments

FWRN Avatar
135 months ago
Looks nice, just wish it didn't have the ugly logo on the front...
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
noodledog Avatar
135 months ago
FYI...
I've pre-ordered this product and found out that almost immediately OWC invoiced my AX $10 within the hour. It doesn't bother me too much, but OWC should have at least warned me about this and it should also be stated in their pre-ordering process.

I've also pre-ordered, and have the same $10 pre-charge

They did warn you before you hit 'confirm order' that there would be a 'small' charge to verify the payment method.

You could quibble with their characterization as 'small', of course. :p
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
cube Avatar
135 months ago
This has eSATA, USB 3.0, FW 800, but no video

http://www.akitio.com/accessories/thunder-dock

I know that. The point is that no complete Thunderbolt Dock is available yet, and that's why I've bought nothing.

----------

eSATA and USB 3.0 + UASP (OS X 10.8.5+) provide similar speeds.

eSATA you can TRIM, but I've seen no UASP UNMAP support yet.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
therockyroad Avatar
135 months ago

Available expansion connections include two Thunderbolt 2 ports, five USB 3.0 ports, 3.5mm audio in/out and one port each for Firewire 800 devices, Gigabit Ethernet, and HDMI 1.4b with support for 4K displays.


Isnt it a bit misleading to claim two Thunderbolt 2 "expansion ports"? One of them is an input from your computer isn't it? So there is no expansion of thunderbolt at all, just one port out for one port in (daisy chaining).

With a number of single port small thunderbolt drives out there, what I want is a thunderbolt hub, so I can connect two of such drives to my Mac. Technically this may not be possible to split a thunderbolt signal the way you can with USB. I don't know.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
paulrbeers Avatar
135 months ago
I doubt you will see such a product with eSATA. Not enough demand and usb 3 is sufficient for the majority of users.

The Akitio thunder dock has eSATA with port multiplier.... I know since I currently own it.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
cube Avatar
135 months ago
I doubt you will see such a product with eSATA. Not enough demand and usb 3 is sufficient for the majority of users.

The Sonnet vaporware will have eSATA.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Pro 34ths Perspective

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 10 New Features

Sunday March 23, 2025 10:00 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of March 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone ...
macbook pro blue green

When Will Apple Release the M5 MacBook Pro?

Wednesday March 26, 2025 4:53 pm PDT by
Apple regularly refreshes the MacBook Pro models, and a new version that uses M5 series chips is in the works. Apple just finished refreshing most of the Mac lineup with M4 chips, and now it's time for the M5. Rumors suggest that we could see the first M5 MacBook Pro models this fall. Design There have been no rumors of a design update for the M5 MacBook Pro models that are coming this...
Apple Lumon Terminal Pro

Apple's Mac Site Features Fictional 'Lumon Terminal Pro'

Wednesday March 26, 2025 12:19 pm PDT by
Apple is going all out with promotions for the popular Severance Apple TV+ show today, and as of right now, you'll find a new "Lumon Terminal Pro" listed on Apple's Mac site. The Lumon Terminal Pro is designed to look similar to the machines that Severance employees like Mark S. and Helly R. use for macrodata refinement. The Terminal features a blue keyboard, a small display with wide...
Facebook Feature

Facebook's New iPhone App Feature Turns the Clock Back to 2007

Thursday March 27, 2025 1:59 pm PDT by
In the mid-to-late 2000s, Facebook was all about staying connected with friends and family. However, as the social media platform added new features and grew over time, that core experience began to get drowned out. That changes starting now, according to Meta, which today introduced a new feature that will "bring back the joy" of classic Facebook. Specifically, Meta has redesigned the...
Generic iOS 18

iOS 18.4 Coming Soon With These New Features for Your iPhone

Tuesday March 25, 2025 6:45 am PDT by
Apple is expected to release iOS 18.4 to the general public as soon as next week, following more than a month of beta testing. Apple's website says some iOS 18.4 features will be released in "early April," so the update should be out as early as Tuesday, April 1. Apple this week seeded the iOS 18.4 Release Candidate, which is typically the final beta version, barring the discovery of any...
iPhone 17 Pro 34ths Perspective

iPhone 17 Pro Supports 8K Video Recording, Suggests Leaker [Updated]

Wednesday March 26, 2025 4:06 am PDT by
Update 7:25 pm: Based on comments from our forums, it appears the original Weibo post may have been mistranslated and "8K" actually refers to the high price of the device rather than 8K video recording capabilities. The iPhone 16 Pro currently starts at 7,999 yuan in China. Our original article follows below. Apple's forthcoming iPhone 17 Pro models are capable of shooting 8K video, up...
Foldable iPhone 2023 Feature 1

'iPhone Fold' to Feature Metallic Glass Hinge That Resists Deformation

Thursday March 27, 2025 4:21 am PDT by
Last week, we covered a report claiming that Apple's book-style foldable iPhone (or "iPhone Fold," as we are provisionally calling it here) will use liquid metal hinges to improve durability and help minimize screen creasing. Today, a Chinese leaker provided more details on the properties of this hinge material that help to clarify why Apple chose it for its first foldable device. According...
iOS 18 4 Ambient Music Control Center

How to Use iOS 18.4's New Ambient Music Feature in Control Center

Thursday March 27, 2025 7:45 am PDT by
The upcoming iOS 18.4 update for the iPhone adds an Ambient Music feature to Control Center. Below, we take a closer look at how it works. iOS 18.4 is currently in beta, so the Ambient Music feature is not widely available yet. The update will likely be released to the general public next week. To use the feature on iOS 18.4, open Control Center and tap on the plus sign in the top-left...
Generic iOS 19 Feature Mock

Gurman: Jon Prosser's iOS 19 Mockups 'Aren't Representative' of Redesign

Tuesday March 25, 2025 4:47 pm PDT by
The iOS 19 mockup images that leaker Jon Prosser shared today are not representative of the actual iOS 19 design, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said on social media. According to Gurman, the images that are "floating around" are based on "very old builds" or "vague descriptions," and are lacking key features. Gurman says that we can "expect more from Apple in June." Gurman made the same comment ...