The laptop’s port decides before the dock does

Anker describes the 565, a plain USB-C hub, as DP Alt Mode passthrough with no driver.

A DisplayLink dock takes a different approach. The UGREEN Revodok Pro 209 and the Plugable UD-3900 both carry a DisplayLink chipset. UGREEN says the chipset renders the second display in software and that its dock works from any USB-C port with the driver installed; Plugable describes the UD-3900’s host link as a hybrid USB 3.0/USB-C connection. The trade is a mandatory driver, covered below.

A Thunderbolt 4 dock moves native video at up to 40Gbps with nothing installed. Plugable states the TBT4-UD5 drops to a single display on a Thunderbolt 3 or plain USB-C host. The CalDigit TS4 and the Lenovo ThinkPad Universal Thunderbolt 4 Dock are documented against Thunderbolt 4 hosts; Dell’s WD22TB4 manual adds that it also accepts USB-C hosts with DisplayPort Alt Mode.

So identify your port before comparing docks. A Thunderbolt 4 port opens up all four Thunderbolt docks, and CalDigit and Plugable also publish USB4 host support.

Read the dual-display line, not the headline

Plugable’s UD-3900 drives two HDMI displays at 1920x1200@60Hz each; a single display can reach 2560x1440@50Hz, and Plugable states 4K is not supported. Both it and the Anker 565 sit below the five products that publish dual 4K@60Hz.

The four Thunderbolt docks and the UGREEN all publish dual 4K@60Hz, each with a different condition. Plugable’s TBT4-UD5 documents dual 4K@60Hz through its two rear HDMI 2.0 ports and publishes no dual-display figure using the downstream Thunderbolt port, which can instead drive a single 8K display. Dell’s WD22TB4 documents several pairings for dual 4K@60Hz, DisplayPort plus HDMI, DisplayPort plus DisplayPort, or either plus a Thunderbolt Type-C port, with a single display up to 5120x2880@60Hz. Lenovo’s dock is documented for up to four 4K@60Hz displays or a single 8K@30Hz.

The CalDigit TS4 has the highest published dual-display ceiling here, but only on specific hardware: dual 6K@60Hz with DSC 1.2 on Apple Silicon Pro, Max and Ultra Macs, and dual 4K@60Hz on Intel Macs and Windows Thunderbolt 4 hosts. On a Windows laptop it lands at the same dual 4K@60Hz as the other three Thunderbolt docks.

UGREEN’s Revodok Pro 209 publishes dual 4K@60Hz through DisplayLink with a layout worth noting: its two HDMI and two DisplayPort outputs form two display groups, and within a group you use HDMI or DisplayPort, not both. Two monitors means one output from each group.

What actually reaches the laptop

Plugable certifies 96W for the TBT4-UD5, plus 15W on the downstream Thunderbolt port for a phone or second device. With the CalDigit and Lenovo figures in the table, those three are within a few watts of each other, and nothing separates them for most laptops.

Dell’s WD22TB4 publishes two figures. It delivers up to 130W to Dell systems, but non-Dell laptops get less than from the CalDigit, Plugable or Lenovo.

UGREEN publishes a 100W PD 3.0 input for the Revodok Pro 209 and a claim of roughly 1.5 hours to charge a 15-inch MacBook Pro, but no pass-through figure of its own. PCWorld measured approximately 76W to the laptop from a 100W supply and about 2.5W from the front USB-C port; those are independent readings, not UGREEN specifications, and UGREEN ships no power adapter in the box.

The Plugable UD-3900 does not charge the laptop at all. Its 20W supply powers only the dock, so the laptop’s own charger stays plugged in beside it.

Compare the dock’s published figure against the wattage printed on your laptop’s charger. A dock that publishes noticeably less than the charger does is not a like-for-like replacement for it.

The driver trade-off that catches people out

DisplayLink is what makes dual 4K possible on a laptop without Thunderbolt, and the trade is software. UGREEN states the DisplayLink driver is mandatory for both display and network function on the Revodok Pro 209, and on macOS the driver needs the Screen Recording permission granted to work at all. Plugable’s UD-3900 follows the same pattern with different installation routes: Windows picks up the driver through Windows Update, macOS 14 and later requires the separate DisplayLink Manager app, and ChromeOS 100 and later works without extra setup. Plugable also lists the UD-3900 as not compatible with Linux and not supporting HDCP-protected content.

The Thunderbolt docks are the opposite. CalDigit states no DisplayLink driver is required for the TS4, Plugable describes the TBT4-UD5 as typically driverless, and neither Dell’s manual nor Lenovo’s specification mentions a DisplayLink driver. The Anker hub needs no driver either, because it passes the laptop’s own signal through.

What CalDigit and Plugable publish about base-chip Macs

Two of the four Thunderbolt dock makers publish a base-chip Mac limit, and both are explicit. CalDigit states base M1, M2 and M3 Macs get a single external display from the TS4, while M1 through M5 Pro, Max and Ultra chips get dual displays up to 6K@60Hz. Plugable goes a step further: base M1 and M2 get a single display from the TBT4-UD5, base M3 gets dual displays only in clamshell mode with the lid closed, and M1 Pro and Max and newer get full dual displays.

Dell and Lenovo publish nothing about macOS. Dell’s compatibility list covers Windows 10 and 11, Ubuntu 20.04 and later, and Chrome OS M107 and later; Lenovo’s covers 64-bit Windows 10 and 11 only. A Mac owner buying either is working without manufacturer guidance.

Plugable lists the DisplayLink-based UD-3900 as compatible with M1 through M5 Macs via DisplayLink Manager and does not list a base-chip restriction; neither Plugable nor UGREEN publishes a statement that a base-chip Mac gets two displays. UGREEN publishes no Apple Silicon notes for the Revodok Pro 209.

When the hub is enough

The Anker 565 is the right answer for a narrower buyer than its 11-in-1 label suggests. It fits someone with two monitors that run at 2K or 1080p and a need to carry the device. At 4.8 oz and 5.39 x 2.24 x 0.55 in it is the lightest and smallest product here, against 12.9 oz for either Plugable dock, 1.1 lb (510 g) for the UGREEN, 1.41 lb for the CalDigit plus its 230W external supply, and 1.43 lb for the Dell. Its pass-through figure is below the Thunderbolt docks but not by much, and it adds UHS-I SD and microSD slots, a 10Gbps USB-C data port and one 10Gbps USB-A port alongside two USB 2.0 ports.

It is the wrong answer for anyone who wants 4K on both screens.

Ethernet, ports and the rest of the desk

Six of the seven products publish Gigabit Ethernet. The CalDigit TS4 is the exception at 2.5 Gigabit, which only matters if your router or switch runs faster than gigabit.

Warranty terms are published for five of the seven: 3 years for Lenovo, 2 years for the CalDigit, the TBT4-UD5 and the UD-3900, and 18 months for the Anker. Plugable adds a 30-day money-back guarantee and lifetime support on the TBT4-UD5. No warranty term was retrieved for the Dell or the UGREEN.