At CES 2018, Elgato announced its newest Thunderbolt 3 compatible hub, The Thunderbolt 3 Mini Dock, and this time it's a lot smaller but just as powerful. The little brother of the Elgato Thunderbolt 3 Dock comes with an HD-supported DisplayPort, HDMI port, Gigabit Ethernet, and USB-A port. Though it has fewer ports, it's got the same level of speed of its big brother with up to 40Gbps throughput.
I'm a big fan of the Thunderbolt 3 Dock. I use it all of the time with my MacBook Pro, but it's not for everyone, especially at a $300 price point. It's worth every penny but is designed more for people that use multiple displays and need a lot of extra ports for daily use.
The Mini seems to better fit the average computer user looking for a bit more versatility and flexibility than the USB-C ports that come with your MacBook Pro.
Unlike the Thunderbolt 3 Dock, it doesn't need a separate power source. You connect it directly to your MacBook Pro. It produces up to 4K video output, high bandwidth data signals, and the most current USB-transfer support.
Elgato doesn't have a price tag or official launch date, but it's expected in the spring of 2018. You can expect us to let you know when it's available and how much it'll cost.
In the meantime, check out Elgato's Thunderbolt Dock lineup.
