Sonnet Technologies has launched a new addition to its Echo range of Thunderbolt docking stations and hubs. The Sonnet Echo Dual NVMe Thunderbolt Dock is compatible with all Thunderbolt 4 computers. This means you can use it with all M1, M1 Pro and M1 Max Mac computers and all Thunderbolt 3 Mac and Windows computers. You can also use it with iPad Pro tablets with a Thunderbolt port.
What does the Sonnet Echo Dual NVMe Thunderbolt Dock do?
A Thunderbolt docking station gives you a central place to connect your computer peripherals such as storage and input devices or a monitor, etc. This is useful when your computer has fewer ports than your need, or the ports are awkward to reach. With Sonnet’s Echo Dual NVMe Thunderbolt Dock, you have the benefits of a docking station with the addition of Thunderbolt-connected SSD storage. The Echo dock won’t take up much of your desk space either. It only measures 6.8 inches wide by 3.4 inches deep by 1.8 inches tall.
The Sonnet Echo Dual NVMe Thunderbolt Dock’s storage options
The Sonnet Echo Dual NVMe Thunderbolt Dock has two internal M.2 NVMe SSD slots for you to add SSDs. You can use most M.2 SSDs, including PCIe 3.0 or 4.0, single- or double-sided, and with or without a heatsink. If you use a Mac computer, you can install macOS on one SSD and use another SSD for file storage or as a Time Machine backup. You can add up to 16 TB of storage capacity. Single SSDs installed in the Echo dock can achieve sustained data transfer of up to 1,500 MB/s. With two SSDs configured as a RAID 0 set for even greater performance, data transfers up to 3,000 MB/s are possible.
USB
Sonnet’s Echo Dual NVMe Thunderbolt Dock has two USB 3.2 Gen 2 (10 Gbps) Type-C ports and two USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type A ports. All four are 10 Gbps USB ports and support most USB peripherals. Each port can provide up to 7.5 watts of power, which means that bus-powered devices will operate without fail. The ports also support superfast USB NVMe SSDs at up to full speed.
Thunderbolt
The Echo Dock’s 40 Gbps Thunderbolt peripheral port lets you daisy-chain five additional Thunderbolt 3 devices. In addition, you can also add one 4K or 5K monitor or even the Apple Pro Display XDR. Thunderbolt 2 devices are also supported by macOS when used with an optional adapter. The Echo Dock’s Thunderbolt peripheral port also supports USB 3 devices. This means you can connect additional USB peripherals, including monitors with the correct cable or adapter. In addition, this works even at the end of a Thunderbolt device chain.
Pricing and availability
The Sonnet Echo Dual NVMe Thunderbolt Dock is available now with a suggested retail price of $349.
