Finally — a docking station that doesn’t make you choose between portability and power. Anker’s latest innovation, the 13-in-1 Nano Docking Station, is designed for anyone who wants a fully equipped workstation that can also hit the road when needed. But here’s where it gets especially interesting: this dock has a detachable USB-C hub that you can pop out and carry with you — a clever twist most people didn’t see coming.
Technology journalist Andrew Liszewski, who has been testing and writing about gadgets since 2006, describes this device as a smart compromise between flexibility and convenience. And it’s easy to see why. The dock provides multiple USB and display ports, enabling users to connect a laptop to several monitors at once. Yet, instead of locking you into a fixed setup, the detachable hub adds a layer of true mobility — keep the main dock on your desk and slide the compact hub into your bag for travel.
The dock itself connects via USB-C, but your laptop’s USB-C port must support both DisplayPort Alt Mode and Power Delivery if you want to unlock all its features. When connected to a single monitor, you’ll get crisp 4K resolution at 60Hz. However, when you expand to three external displays using its dual HDMI and single DisplayPort outputs, the resolution drops to 1920x1080/60Hz. That’s still perfectly fine for productivity, but here’s a detail that might frustrate Mac users: while Windows laptops can extend different content to all four screens (including the laptop’s built-in display), macOS systems can only mirror the same content. Controversial? Maybe — especially for Mac professionals expecting more flexibility.
Beyond screens, this device is packed with useful connections. Expect a 10Gbps USB-C port for fast data transfers, a 5Gbps USB-C and USB-A combo, two slower USB-A ports at 480Mbps, a gigabit Ethernet jack for stable wired internet, a headphone port, and both SD and microSD card slots. The highlight, though, remains the removable hub. Roughly the size of a credit card, it can be ejected with the press of a button even while the dock is attached to your laptop. Once detached, this mini hub retains the 5Gbps USB ports and memory card slots and adds its own HDMI port, power input, and a built-in USB-C connector so you can plug it directly into a laptop—no extra cable required.
It’s a thoughtful design that blurs the line between stationary and mobile setups. But some might wonder: does this hybrid approach solve real problems, or does it complicate a simple tool? Would you prefer one powerful hub that stays put, or a two-in-one setup that travels with you? Share your thoughts — is Anker reinventing the dock, or just reinventing the wheel?
