Today we’re taking a look at the Microsoft Surface 4 Laptop. We’ll talk about the specs and show you a few accessories to help you get even more from your Surface Laptop 4.
This is a really interesting upgrade for the Surface laptops, as it comes with two processor options, AMD or Intel. It's also 70% faster than the previous Surface laptops, and, depending on the model, its battery boasts a comfortable 19-hours on a single charge.
This laptop is going to give you two ports for connectivity. You have a USB-A port and a USB-C port. USB-C will support DisplayPort Alternate Mode for extending displays, and power delivery for charging the laptop.
This laptop will not support Thunderbolt 3, Thunderbolt 4, or USB4. So that's something to keep in mind when you're looking for compatible devices.
So now that we've had a look at the laptop itself, let's talk about a few ways you can expand the USB-C port to add more devices to this laptop. The first thing that we're going to show you is a Thunderbolt 3 Docking Station that will allow you to connect two displays. While the Surface Laptop 4 may not support Thunderbolt 3, the Docking Station is backward compatible with USB-C Alt Mode. So it will totally work with this laptop.
We also have the UD-CAM, which is a small docking station that will support one display. It’s also easily concealable behind your monitor so you can declutter your desk.
And then we have a portable 7-IN-1 Hub that will allow you to connect displays and all sorts of devices on the go.
For a really good high-end solution for this laptop, consider the TBT3-UDC1 which is actually one of our Thunderbolt three docking stations. Although Thunderbolt 3 is not supported by the Surface Laptop 4, this particular dock uses the Titan Ridge-based chipset for Thunderbolt 3. That is unique because it allows backward compatibility with USB-C Alt Mode, so it will work with this laptop.
The TBT3-UDC1 will support two 1080p displays at 60 Hertz when connected to DisplayPort, or one 4k display at 30 Hertz. It will also charge the laptop using the USB-C port and power delivery. We have tested this up to 60 Watts.
Along with that, you're going to get a gigabit ethernet connection, three USB 3.0 ports, two USB-C Data only ports, and a 3.5-millimeter audio port.
Another alternative that's going to get rid of a lot of cable clutter, is our UD-CAM docking station. This is a USB-C Docking Station that will work with the Surface Laptop 4 and it has a bracket so you can actually mount this device on the back of a display and bundle the wires. UD-CAM will support one HDMI 4k Display at 30 Hertz, or lower resolutions at 60 Hertz. This dock will also charge the laptop, it has four USB 3.0 ports, Gigabit Ethernet, and a 3.5-millimeter composite audio port.
For a more portable solution, we suggest the USBC-7IN1. This handy hub includes three USB ports, an SD card reader, and an HDMI connection that can support one 4k display at 30 Hertz, or lower resolutions at 60 Hertz.
Unlike the previous docks that we took a look at, the 7-IN1 hub will not charge the laptop directly, but it does have a USB-C pass-through port that will allow you to connect a USB-C adapter in order to charge the laptop fully.
Hopefully, these have been a few useful options for expanding the ports on the Surface Laptop 4, but if you have any questions, let us know in the comments. You can also contact our support team at support@plugable.com.
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