docking station for dorm room

Hey I wanted to know what everyone thought about the HP docking station for dv9000 series notebooks I think its the xb3000 docking station. Is it good I found one on ebay for around 140 bucks with a extra charger both in new open box, is it worth it? I thought it wouldnt help in cooling at all since it blocks the vents under the laptop in the top rear so I dont know has anyone used it? The thing is that I want something I can ahve everything hooked up to and not need to put my aptop on my desk and the hook up my usb hub and then speakers and everthing else. Would I be better off getting the dock thats just the box without the stand??? This one:


What does everyone think should I get the quick dock and the Lian Li cooling pad or the HP Expansion base????

Any ideas I do leave my laptop on over night sometimes burning dvds and other stuff.

 

Because of USB and the fact that I'm using my laptop LCD, I'm not using a replicator. I'm using this riser and a USB keyboard and mouse on my college dorm desktop. I think replicators are obsolete and overpriced. Needed them when you had a CRT monitor and a PS2 keyboard and mouse.

http://www.staples.com/webapp/wcs/s...ductId=103924&cmArea=SC3:CG71:DP3943:CL142670

 

will that hold my 17in widescreen????

 

Chances are that the 17" will fit on there, it might hang over a little bit. I would just measure your laptop and hit up a few office stores and walmart type places locally. Then, you can get a feel for what is out there and then search online more. I built my own custom riser, so I haven't gone shopping for things like this, but I know from surfing shelves and the web that there are lots of these around.

As far as the dock goes, I just use a USB hub. I have a 7-port and two 4-ports. I will plug my "essentials" into the larger one. Then, if I want "extras" I will plug in the smaller hub. If I need more than 4-ports on the smaller one, I will daisy chain them. I have never needed more than that. A single USB port, VGA cable, power, and audio isn't that much to hook up, is it?

 

I kind of like the HP expansion base only because it elevates the monitor and I can find it on ebay for around 100 bucks. The only thing I am not sure is if it may heat it up since it doesn't allow any air flow under the laptop. I liked the Lian Li cooler since it does cool it off but my audio jacks are in the front and I cant hook up my speakers to it cause of that. Any ideas? My laptop doesn't run amazingly hot right now idles around 40 and may hit 50 when burning dvds and playing WoW. So yeah don't know.

 

Oh and yeah I already ahve a D Link 7 port USB hub and that why I wanted to jsut get the cooler to keep my laptop cool but at the same time I want to see how I can hookup my speakers if most docks will cover the front part of the laptop where the hook ups are at???

 

Because the front doesn't need cooling, you could always put a strip of foam in the pad, then cut out (or leave out) a space where the speakers plug in. If you have a right angle jack, you would only need 1/2" or so. Then, your speakers can still be plugged in.

Also, I don't think that the expansionbase will make the computer run any hotter. It should allow "normal" airflow.

 

Ok cool, well I saw the expansion base for 100 bucks on sale so I might go with it. Since I also do prefer using my keyboard and not a laptop keyboard cant seem to type fast enough on it. I think worse case scenario I will be able to put a piece of foam to raise the back and allow more air under the rear vents. And also it should get more air since it wont have speakers blocking the sides or usb hubs and other stuff on my desk so I think Ill go with the dock, for 100 bucks i think its a good deal.

 

The riser I entered is $30-40. What are you getting for $100?

 

True I do like the price on the one you showed me, I am going to see if I can go to Staples near my house and see if they have one I can see. I just want to make sure its not to flimsy and just made for a 14in or something like that. I gotta think about it tonight. Let me see, if I can stop by staples tomorow.

 

http://www.pcuniverse.com/product.asp?pid=3107336&m_id=32

$21.14 plus shipping here

 

Wow thats a great deal, I am most definitely going to go with that. The HP base was good at the price but I honestly didn't even need half that stuff. Especially since I had speakers and better mouse and keyboard. Also I have the usb hub and I will use the laptop lcd not an extra monitor. And I can just get another usb hub to hookup extra hdd and things like that. Might get another ac adapter to keep in my bag and not have to pull it from behind my desk all the time. Thanx for the info lots of help.

 

Also I found a nice external sound card on ebay brand new Phillips with good reviews on other sites that I might get.