HP Thunderbolt 3 dock with my XPS 13 9350

I initially purchased the HP Elite USB-C dock to use in my home office; But when I got it I found out it used an USB graphics adapter (needed software, used CPU, compressed picture etc etc) and had no direct DP passthrough, idiotic, as it must cost more. It did charge my XPS 13 though.

So I sent it back and go the HP Elite TB3 65W dock instead. Its been great so far!

- Charges the laptop, seems identical to the regular charger
- 2 full DP - 4K x 60hz at the same time if needed. Using it for one 1440P now though. U2715H
- No drivers has been installed. I did reboot once (and maybe toggled some bios stuff).
- USB audio worked without drivers, and use no CPU vs 4-6% from the internal audio in the laptop. I see the Dell website has at least 3 type of driver packages for their dock. I do have the latest bios and TB software of course.
- I also have a usb receiver for a logitech keyboard plugged in it.

Saves me a lot of plugging in and out and with much less clutter.

Also I can use the original charger as a travel charger!

Might be moving the dock underneath the desk for even less clutter. Might need a 1M TB3 cable for that.

See picture. Pricey but recommended! ( http://store.hp.com/us/en/pdp/hp-elite-thunderbolt-3-65w-dock-p5q54ut-aba)

 

Bro, you got me lookingand I found the ZBook 200W TB3 on Amazon for $103. Worth the try, my XPS 15 gets here Thursday.

Where did you pick up your cables? I can only find a 1.5 ft cable for TB3.

 

Waiting for your review. I am really exciting to see the HP dock works on XPS 13. I have 3 XPS 15, I desperately need docking station for them.

 

I'm very much anticipating the arrival of my XPS 15 and seeing how it plays with this dock.

I will update when I've had a chance to put it through the ringer (unfortunately, I won't get it until Thursday...ugh, and then I'll be out of town for a week (so not in my office where I'll be using it).

So, I won't get a chance to update on the dock for several weeks.

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Be careful, only the 65W version of the dock has a single USB-C Plug, the others are special dual-plugs (power plug and USB-C)
Also, for thunderbolt, cable length is very limitet. Longer cables may not work.

 

Does the power button on the dock turn on your laptop? If it does, I'm sold.

 

I would love more info on these HP thunderbolt docks. If these work seamlessly with the XPS 15, I would definitely pick one up. Is anyone using the 150W or 200W version with their XPS?

G.achrainer: Can you clarify what you mean by "special dual plugs"? As in the dock plugs into the laptop with both a power and USB-C plug? Obviously that wouldn't work for our XPS's since the HP power plug is different.

Thanks in advance for the input!

 

I believe the dual plug is one that made special for HP?

I will be receiving the 200, and will have it tested out probably in 3 weeks.

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Hi there,

according to this document http://www8.hp.com/h20195/v2/GetPDF.aspx/c04168358.pdf (Link editet) there is a special connector with the 150 and 200 W Version - its like thunderbolt and dc-input encapsulated into one plug.

Makes sense, since the thunderbolt-specifications allow only up to 100 W power delivery.

Regard,

waitan.

Edit: New link, first one was about headphones.

 

Thanks for that info. Definitely seems like the 150 and 200W versions would not be compatible due to the combo plug. That's very unfortunate. I wonder if the 65W version would be able to charge the xps 15 even though the wattage is much less. The xps 13 charger works with the xps 15 (much slower charging) so I'm thinking that it may work.

kirkyboy - any chance you have access to an xps 15 to check if the 65W dock charges it?

Thanks in advance.

 

Hold your horses...not compatible with the included plug. A separate TB3 cable should yield a working dock.

Depending on the power output, I would venture to guess we could work up a power cable separately that would power our laptops.

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I dont have a XPS 15 to test now unfortunately; If the regular XPS 13 charger works, I assume the this could also work well; I believe USB PD allows up to 100W and so the regular XPS 13 charger is 45W, so it could mean a big improvement. I would just try the 150/200 with a regular Thunderbolt 3 cable then, ignoring the extra HP power cable holes. It is a TB3 compliant product and so it should be a standard. HP uses the extra power plug to charge more than the standard allows only.

Im not sure the dock power button does anything when using it with my XPS, there are no lights on it either as I can see. But sleeping (screen, laptop) works great and I just hit some keys and the screen comes on. Or I use "sleep" in the windows menu to force it. No hassle.

example cable;
http://www.amazon.com/StarTech-com-Thunderbolt-40Gbps-USB-C-Cable/dp/B019FPLDIS/

 

LOL. My dock showed up today, even though tracking showed next Thursday =]

I will update once I have my system set up! (Lappy comes tomorrow)

 

Tried a 65W adapter on a Dell TB15, with a Precision 5510. It came up with a warning when it boots (obvious, can be turned off) and it charges as long as system load is not heavy. So there is a chance, but it might fail if HP limits output on USB-C

 

Does it work?

 

Greatly appreciate it Meetloaf13! Couple quick questions: Did your HP 200W dock come with the combo power/USB-C cable? And if so, did you purchase a separate cable similar to the one that kirkyboy mentioned?

Looking forward to hearing back after you test it.

 

It did come with the combo cable. My TB3 cable comes Friday. I doubt it powers via the TB cable...It doesn't on the HP. But if I could find a cable that would plug into that power jack...

To the other poster, my XPS shows up tomorrow afternoon.

 

Guys, I need your help. I have a pretty good feeling that we can get power from this dock, the adapter plug size is Identical to the size of our XPS15 machines.

Here's my problem. I need to find a male to male cable of the same size so that I can hook the power jack from the dock to the laptop. I've already tested the dock charging the laptop via that power port, it does work. My separate TB3 cable arrives tomorrow, but without having an individual power cable and individual TB3 cable, I can't test this out, because the HP combo cable blocks both ports when plugged in.

Long story short, I need to know the 'tip' size of the adapter plug. I know the outside diameter is 4.5mm and pretty certain the inside is 3.0mm.

Now I just have to find a compatible Male2Male cable.

Let me know!

 

Noticed the following settings in the BIOS the other day that may help with the use of the power button. Specifically the enable TB3 pre-boot and wake on Dell USB-docks (may work with HP as well?). I think its likely you'll be able to get wake from sleep using the dock power button; not so sure if full power on is possible with any external docks and the XPS series. Don't have any of the TB3 docks myself, but am interested if this is possible for future purchases
http://imgur.com/a/prQiF

 

I can't find the specifics of the tip size anywhere online. Hopefully someone can chime in. I'm very surprise that the HP tip size is the same as the XPS though! I am still crossing my fingers that the TB3 cable itself will provide some power to the Dell. But we'll have to wait and see. Thanks for updating and looking forward to more updates.

 

I have one slight issue with my dock, I get a barely audible high pitch static sound/noise when I am charging / using my mobile attached to either USB port, also charging the wireless mouse with the USB also cause that. So I wonder if its a monday product and I should try an exhange or not. The Logitech mini receiver does not make that sound. I develop for Android so I do keep my phone attached many times to test compiled applications. The noise seems less on the USB port on the back with a charging/bolt symbol.

Maybe you/someone can test theirs, but I do think it only comes when charging the laptop at the same time with the TB3 cable, so testing for it needs a docked laptop.

Its nothing major, many might not hear it as well.

 

Hi,
i'm following this thread very interested.
Purchased a Dell XPS 13 and was planning to buy a TB15 dock for adding 2 FHD monitors to it, but it seems to have tons of problems.

- Does the HP 65W Thunderbolt 3 Dock really work with XPS13 9350? A review at laptopmag says that HP docks only work with HP laptops.
- Is the 65W version of the dock itself not identical to the higher wattage versions, or only higher power ac adapters and combo cable included?
- Does the Dell XPS 45W AC Adapter work with the HP dock (same plug)?

Thanks,
Pappl

 

Hi,
Hopefully not too off topic.....I have a new XPS 15 w 4K. I also have BenQ 2711U 4K monitor.

A direct connection to the monitor using HDMI cable (that came with monitor) gives 4K @ 30hz. This is as it was with my older less powerful Lenovo Flex 2.

So to make use of the XPS TB3 I bought the Dell DA200 adapter Now using this I only get 1080p on the Ben Q (tried HDMI 2 as well as HDMI 1.4 connection on monitor - same result)

I believe I have the latest BIOS (v 01.02.00) on the XPS.

Does anyone know of a solution to this? Are there any other updates I could check for ...perhaps in Device Manager or on the DA200 itself?

EDIT - seems DA200 only has max res of 1080p...when I read it worked with 4K monitors my assumption was at 4K resolution! Returning DA200 I guess :/

Thank You.

 

The HP TB3 65W dock sure does work with my XPS 13 as can be seen in the initial picture.
I do also believe that the the different versions of the docs are equal but the supplied ac adapter and cable are different only yes.
Havent tried the dell adapter with the dock, saw no reason. I use my dell for travel now, and have the HP rigged to the desk. It does give 45W less as well, so who knows.

 

Alright, I've been scouring the 'nets, and here's the best I've come up with as to the cable, buying two of these and soldering them together:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/like/252328478851?lpid=82&chn=ps&ul_noapp=true

I do have the doc, Ihave connected the power only to my laptop, and it powers it. I have had everything else connected to my laptop and it works. I had 3 monitors connected at once, but the 3rd was connected with a Sabrent USB 2.0 monitor adapter. I believe it may be faulty though, because the monitors kept disconnecting and reconnecting, once I unplugged that, the behavior stopped. I only had a small sample-size of time to play around though, so I'll keep you guys updated.

Update:

Here's my plan. I just purchased a used HP power adapter and a Used Dell power adapter on e-bay that came in their respective sizes (but both plug sizes are identical). I went this route because I can hopefully get them here faster. I will detach the power cables from each, solder them together and let you know the results. Chances are this won't happen until I get back from vacation which will be in a couple weeks, but there's a chance I get things done before I leave.

 

Appreciate your report. I have ordered all required dock and parts and they will arrive here on Tuesday. I'll conduct the experiment as well. Hopefully it will work well.

 

A couple days with the dock, mixed results thus far. Will need to rule out driver issues.

I'll be making my power patch cable when I get back to the office in a few weeks.

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I've been doing some reading, it's
It sounds like their may be some general TB3 port issues. I disconnected my monitors from the dock and rewired them directly to the laptop, one of them kept toggling refresh rates. It seemed like it happened most when the TB3 port was still active.

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Hello,

had the chance to test the 65W-version with an XPS 13 Developer Edition for a short time:

What works:

- Charging
- external Monitor (Displayport, FullHD)

Won't work:

- Power button on the dock

Untested

- Usb, network, audio untested

Sounds crazy, but because of the non-funtioning power-button, i returned the dock -its an essential feature of a desktop-dock for me.

Waitan.

 

Thanks for the info Waitan; crazy enough yesterday my dock or software? started to act weird, constantly turning itself on and off, well the display and charging came on for 5+ seconds and then turned off enabling the laptop display again. It all worked flawless the last time I used it so I wonder what did it. Im thinking in general the Intel TB3 software/firmware is a bit unstable, and hoping for new releases there soon. I see people have issues at HP support forums as well,

 

Hi there,

Just got all my parts. Ordered a HP 150W Thunderbolt dock. The dock is very slim and thin, I can bring this dock with me on trips. The first time I connected it to my XPS, it did nothing. Nothing worked except charging! I was a bit surprised to see charging actually worked and it was about the same speed of my XPS charger. I restarted the system, went to BIOS, turned on all Thunderbolt related options and back to Windows 10. Nothing asked me to install any drivers. Weird I think. I connected Ethernet cable to the dock and it worked immediately. I connected my headphone to the dock and it worked again. I connected my USB drives to the dock and it worked! Everything worked! There is no need for extra power cable to charge XPS! It just works!

By the way, the dock headphone port is very bad. The sound is bad, like $7 USB audio adapter bad. Don't expect to be like XPS headphone port.

I should have ordered 200w dock but well. The price difference is about $2...I will order another one since I have 3 XPSs.

Here's the charging speed I snapped a while ago. Enjoy!

 

What about external monitors? 4K ones?

 

I do not have a 4K screen but ordinary 1080P monitor works.

 

It should support it, and is 2x cheaper than Dell dock. Will give it a try as well

 

Continue my previous report. You do not need to purchase extra Thunderbolt cable. All what you need to do is to cut the tabs of the corners of one end of the supplied Thunderbolt cable case then open it. Cut the power plug carefully, do not short circuit. Cut the oversized case cover to enough to cover the Thunderbolt cable. Seal the case and then you are done. I tried tried to extend the power cable so I can use the power plug to charge XPS. However, XPS has protection circuit, it will not charge but only to maintain the current level of battery. It will not charge. If you use Thunderbolt cable only then it will charge just like original XPS power adapter. Here are some of the pictures for you to mod your cable. If you have any questions, let me know.

 

Great stuff Joseph; Btw when you connect your usb hard drives etc or something else that draws power from the dock USB ports; do you get a high pitch noise - almost inaudible?

 

I got the high pitched whine when I had my USB Dell speaker bar attached to the dock

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I cannot really tell. In my office it is inaudible. I have to test it in my home.

 

I hooked up my earbud, I cannot hear any high pitch sound. What version of dock do you have? I think 150W is more than enough. I just ordered another dock, 200W. It is cheaper than 150W. Weird.

 

Earbud, you mean the audio jack? I meant USB, if that was unclear; Say you charge a phone or something else from the USB port. Then I hear the noise. It differs a bit from port to port.

 

Sorry did not know what you are referring to. No, no high pitch sound when plugged in my 2TB external USB drive. However, my dock does not drive the disk though. If I use a powered external USB drive, it works.

No high pitch sound when plug in my Chord Mojo DAC. I put my ear on top of the dock and I hear nothing. External monitor plugged in and no high pitch sound.

I don't like the HP power adapter plug, it is a right angled plug that may block the nearby ports. If you make it go upwards, it looks ridiculous and bends the power cable(well, it bends no matter what). I tried Dell Power adapter on the dock, it does not work.

Another thing that puzzles me is my HP All-in-One Laser printer does not work when plugged into the dock. It draws too much power? I don't know.

You may want to look else where if your disks are power hungry external disks like Seagate 2TB drives, it will not drive them.

 

Thanks for the report - interesting. btw I do think one of the ports behind gives more power than the other USB ports, but I guess you might have tried it.

I am considering buying a 1 or 2M TB3 cable to get more distance and maybe I can hide the dock under the desk, although they would be 20GBPS and so will only give one 4K60Hz monitor, but that is okay for me now.
Is it possible with longer cables than the short 0.5M while giving 40GBPS, anyone knows?

 

The spec says no. I doubt you can bend TB3 cable, it is very stiff. The dock is very slim and narrow. It won't occupy much real estate.

 

I do have the 200W dock, and the whine only happens through my USB speakerbar, not speakers connected otherwise. I've heard that the sound through the dock jack is less than desirable.

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Btw; do anyone know if this dock will charge and pass through DP for a laptop that only has USB-C (No TB3) ? I'm thinking charging works as a minimum.

 

I don't know if this is the same but my USB DAC connects and I cannot hear any whine on Dock or through my HD650. However I can hear pop sounds through my headphone. I'm regretting getting this dock. Too many troubles. I'll return my 2nd dock once I get it tomorrow. The external monitor works tough. I think either Dell's implementation is not good enough or the TB3 technology on Windows systems is not mature.

 

Be sure to try the firmware: http://h20564.www2.hp.com/hpsc/swd/public/readIndex?sp4ts.oid=9822178&swLangOid=8&swEnvOid=4192
I guess that one is for the 65W version, but I am sure there are versions for the other ones too.

 

I tried my version of firmware. It won't upgrade as my computer is Dell. I need a HP to do the update.

 

Sorry false alarm. The pop sound is in the original sound track!! I never paid attention to the sound track I ripped so I never picked it up. Isn't it amazing the Mojo is able to provide such a great resolution? (sorry, off topic)

Right now I connect one "powered" external drive, a DAC, an external monitor to the dock and it works fine. I think further experiment is required. I wish HP provides more power to the USB ports.

 

This is an update of the Intel Thunderbolt firmware.
With an HP update program you can only update the firmware of HP notebooks.