Sonnet Echo 13 Thunderbolt 5 dock: Simply the best right now

Thunderbolt 5 docks are still in their infancy, but Sonnet's dock is an auspicious sign of things to come.

- BY MARK HACHMAN

Sonnet's Echo 13 Thunderbolt 5 SSD Dock carves out a new tier in both price and performance, blowing away conventional Thunderbolt 4 docks as a new tier of ultrapremium Thunderbolt 5 docking stations takes hold.

I fully expect more Thunderbolt 5 docking stations to be released. Hopefully, their performance meets or even exceeds that of the Sonnet Echo 13, which should place among the best Thunderbolt docks (fave.co/3vtAOBE) we recommend you buy.

Sonnet's dock is the second Thunderbolt 5 (fave.co/3txpsEA) docking station I've tested, and the first with an integrated SSD. The integrated SSD drives up the cost substantially, but its performance sits well above a conventional external SSD. (Intel's original reference design included an integrated SSD, my contacts say, so some manufacturers followed suit.) It's a smart decision, nevertheless, and one that is a killer selling point for this laptop docking station.

Sonnet's dock measures about 8.5 inches long and about 3.75 inches deep, and is slightly thicker than an inch. There is no option to mount it vertically. The dock is made of plastic, with what appears to be venting on the top and sides.

On the front of the dock is a power button, with LEDs signaling power and an active Thunderbolt connection. The power button needs to be held down for a second or two to turn the dock on and off.

Sonnet clearly labeled both front ports: a 140W Thunderbolt 5 port that connects via a 31-inch Thunderbolt 5 cable, as well as a second, 60W Thunderbolt 5 port. On the front is a 10Gbps USB-A port, a UHS-II SD and microSD card slot, and a headphone jack. On the rear of the dock are two more Thunderbolt 5 ports, two more 10Gbps USB-A ports (and a 5Gbps USB-A port, too), and an RJ45 connector for up to 2.5Gbit Ethernet.