In my opinion, the TR scarifies some important things in the name of mobility. One of those things is a dedicated docking station (port replicator) port. Since there is no Sony solution I went searching for a universal one.

SonyStyle sells the Kensington Portable Universal Docking Station for $129.99. Buy.com has it for around $89 shipped.

I wanted this device to plug in quickly and allow me to have use of extra ports. It delivered on one out of the two of those needs.

First, the pictures:

As you can see it is quite small for what it does. I used the mouse as a reference so you can really see just how compact this is. The unit came with an A/C power cord as well as a USB 2.0 Cable and the required software.

That leads me to issue #1, you need the software drivers even in XP. Not a terrible issue, I just need to make sure I know where the disc is at all times.

The ports that are included are:
1 Parallel
1 Serial
1 PS2 Mouse
1 PS2 Keyboard
2 USB Type A
1 10/100 Ethernet

I liked the idea of the 10/100 built in so when I am docking I can get off wireless. I did not have any issues with the Ethernet port interfering with either my wireless or my onboard Ethernet.

I like the idea of expanding one USB port on the TR to 2 while leaving the other onboard USB alone…giving me a total of 3 available USB ports.

I connected a printer to the Parallel port and had no issues printing. I also connected a PS2 Keyboard and Mouse and again had no issues. I also tried a USB Keyboard and Mouse, both of which worked fine. I never tested the serial port.

As I said before I had two needs, the first giving me extra ports to use, the second allowing me to quickly plug this in. Obviously I got the extra ports I needed, however one port that wasn’t included which makes my plug in and out times much slower was the lack of a VGA port. Most port replicators include this, however this one does not. Now not only do I need to plug in the docking station, but I need to plug my monitor directly into the TR…it sounds insignificant but I would have liked everything off of one cable.

I am not 100% sure why a VGA port was not included…I am not sure if it would even work through a USB port, either way I would have liked the port included if it was possible.

Overall, I still like the product, it’s not 100% perfect but it does do most of what I need. I would buy it again because it does make it easier to connect to a full keyboard and mouse and it is very compact. I’d rate it a 2 or 3 out of 5.

Thanks,
Erik

Thanks Erik.  Sounds like an honest review.  The lack of VGA really hurts.  Seems like mobility is the reason for the lack of more ports.  They could have done without the serial port for me though.

Me too…VGA instead of serial would make this a must buy product. I doubt i’ll ever use the serial port.

Erik

You prefer PS/2 over USB for your mouse and keyboard?

Yes, unless I am playing games.

PS2 mice limit your FPS. Otherwise, i’ve noticed that PS2 devices to be more reliable versus USB and I can always use the extra ports (USB) where PS2 is really limited to keyboards/mice.

It’s getting harder and harder to find non-USB mice/keyboards…which is a shame because the PS2 ports are wasted.

Erik

If they eliminated PS/2 it would open the door for a lot more USB ports.  Additionally, all you need are a few hubs and you can connect as many USB devices as you like.  No need for port replicators! :D

Yeah, I have 3 hubs now..over 45 USB devices on my desktop, trust me when you get a lot of USB devices things start to go wrong, it’s not as peachy as they might make you think.

If they remove the PS2 I doubt they will replace it with more USB. Years ago we had 2 serial ports on every PC..now its hard to find one. A large COM port was commonplace, again, gone…with nothing in it’s place.

I don’t see one advantage to using a USB Keyboard over a PS2 one.

Erik

45 USB devices!  You are a madman!

At least 45…maybe more. It drastically slows down my bootup and shutdown times among a lot of the conflicts I have when some won’t work with others.

I know for the longest time before I dumped my USB Zip drive I would need to unplug my memory card reader because the Zip wouldn’t work if it was connected.

I use my 6 onboard USB plus i added another 3 USB ports…then all the hubs I have.

Erik

I guess you’ve never fried a PS/2 socket (making the mobo useless) by kicking out a PS/2 keyboard or mouse while the comp was on…  :?

I guess you’ve never fried a PS/2 socket (making the mobo useless) by kicking out a PS/2 keyboard or mouse while the comp was on…  :?

No, can’t say that I have…I am very careful around my PCs.

Erik

I thought it was a myth until one of the higher-ups at my company actually did it. We had to replace the whole motherboard because both SP/2 sockets died when the keyboard was yanked out. It wouldn’t boot again…

...and that would not happen with USB…case closed for me!

[quote author=“tifosiv122”]Me too…VGA instead of serial would make this a must buy product. I doubt i’ll ever use the serial port.

VGA would require a docking stationg that mates with all the ports on the left side of the TR.  Sony, are you listening?? :xeno:

I thought it was a myth until one of the higher-ups at my company actually did it. We had to replace the whole motherboard because both SP/2 sockets died when the keyboard was yanked out. It wouldn’t boot again…

Wait a minute, are you talking about unplugging the PS/2 Keyboard/Mouse while the comp’s running hot?  We do that at my school all the time as [stupid] pranks…nothing’s ever happened.  :?

~nox

[quote author=“nox”]

I thought it was a myth until one of the higher-ups at my company actually did it. We had to replace the whole motherboard because both SP/2 sockets died when the keyboard was yanked out. It wouldn’t boot again…

Wait a minute, are you talking about unplugging the PS/2 Keyboard/Mouse while the comp’s running hot?  We do that at my school all the time as [stupid] pranks…nothing’s ever happened.  :?

~nox

Yeah i’ve done it too…actually i’ve never seen a fried MB from a PS2 connector.

Erik