WavLink USB-C DisplayLink (DL7400) Docking Station review: Exceed Apple’s external display allowance

Best Prices Today: WAVLINK USB-C DisplayLink (DL7400) Docking Station

The Wavlink USB-C DisplayLink (DL7400) is a full docking station with an impressive 14 ports, including two DisplayPort++ 1.4 ports and two HDMI 2.1 ports, that can support up to four external 4K displays at 60Hz—even with an Apple-limited single-display M1 MacBook Air.

We have tested other DisplayLink docks that support up to four external monitors, but none that achieve that feat on Apple’s M1 and M2 MacBook Air models. Apple limits its MacBooks equipped with plain (non-Pro or Max) M1 and M2 processors to just one external display, but one of the workarounds this constraint is connecting via a DisplayLink dock.

DisplayLink is third-party software that enables Macs to support more screens than Apple allows for, and you need a dock with a DisplayLink chipset to connect the Mac and the screens. For more details read our tutorial How to Connect Two or More Monitors to an M1 or M2 MacBook.

The Satechi Thunderbolt 4 Docking Station with DisplayLink supports four displays for the M3 MacBook Air (while shut in Clamshell Mode). The M1 and M2 MacBooks are limited to three (one at 6K and two at 4K). The Wavlink’s DL7400 chipset allows for even the M1 and M2 Macs to connect to four displays at impressive refresh rates: 1x 4K at 120Hz and 3x 4K at 60Hz.

Specs and features

• One upstream USB-C port port (10Gbps, 100W)
• One USB-C port (10Gbps, 30W)
• One USB-C port (10Gbps)
• Three USB-A port (10Gbps)
• Two DisplayPort++ 1.4 video ports
• Two HDMI 2.1 video ports
• Ethernet (2.5Gb)
• SD card reader (UHS-II, SD 4.0, 312MBps)
• microSD card reader (UHS-II, SD 4.0, 312MBps)
• 3.5mm combo Audio jack (front)
• 160W power supply

This dock connects via 10Gbps USB-C. USB-C is the same type of connector so works seamlessly with Macs’ Thunderbolt ports but is not as fast at transferring data as Thunderbolt. Modern MacBooks come with Thunderbolt ports rather than USB-C, boasting higher data bandwidth: 40Gbps for Thunderbolt 3 and 4 or 80Gbps with Thunderbolt 5—plus other benefits.

If you need super-fast data-transfer speeds we’d recommend using a Thunderbolt docking station rather than one that uses USB-C. See our recommendations for the best Thunderbolt docks for Mac.

For most people, however, a 10Gbps USB-C dock will be fine as they won’t be hooking up the fastest studio-level storage. USB-C docks are usually cheaper, too, so make a compellingly affordable solution.

Most DisplayLink docks and hubs use USB-C, but some—such as the Satechi dock mentioned above and the Plugable TBT-6950PD—are equipped with Thunderbolt. At the time of writing no DisplayLink dock uses the most recent Thunderbolt 5 standard but the above two docks conform to the still impressive Thunderbolt 4.

The Wavlink dock offers a bunch of USB ports, all at a speedy 10Gbps—not as fast at Thunderbolt but fast enough at transferring data for most users. Neatly tucked away at the back of the dock is the USB-C port that you use to connect to your Mac. It can passthrough power to your laptop at 100W, enough for even the Pro MacBooks.

Included in the box is a 1m USB-C cable that includes an optional USB-A adapter. Mac users can ignore the USB-A part as they’ll be plugging it into a Thunderbolt (Type-C) port on their computer.

At the front of the dock, one of the USB-C ports can output power to a connected device at 30W, which is great if you want to fast-charge an iPhone or even iPad. Even some Thunderbolt docks lack such a speedy front-mounted USB-C connection.

Also at the front are two flash memory card readers: SD and the dinkier microSD variant. These are rated at UHS-II SD 4.0, which offers a speedy 312MBps transfer rate that is faster than the 250MBps card reader built into the MacBook Pros. Card readers are useful for adding inexpensive portable storage. Fast UHS-II 512GB cards can be found for under $100 online.

If you are connecting to a wired network for a more stable, faster connection than that offered by Wi-Fi you will be blessed with an Ethernet port that supports two and a half times the network speed of regular Gigabit Ethernet. This 2.5Gb Ethernet (2.5GbE) is becoming the norm for modern docks. To get the 2.5x speed benefits you will need your network to be at least 2.5GbE but even if your network is still rated at Gigabit Ethernet (1GbE) the faster variants are backwards compatible—ready for if/when you do upgrade your network.

There’s also an audio jack port for headphones, speaker or mic.

Unmatched display options

That array of ports is impressive for a USB-C docking station but the reason you will be buying this dock is its ability to support more external displays than Apple usually allows.

At the back are two DisplayPort and two HDMI ports for connecting these monitors. The Satechi Thunderbolt DisplayLink dock offers only two HDMI and therefore requires you to use two of its downstream Thunderbolt ports for any extra displays you might require.

The Wavlink DisplayLink dock connects to the monitors via its dedicated video ports. As two are HDMI and two DisplayPort you will either need monitors with these connections or adapters to convert, for instance, the DisplayPort to HDMI. This dock uses DisplayLink++ that is superior to standard DisplayPort: DP++ can convert DisplayPort signals to HDMI or DVI using a cheaper passive DP-to-HDMI or DP-to-DVI adapter to connect seamlessly with those types of displays. To convert DP to HDMI you’ll need a more expensive active adapter.

If that sound complicated, don’t worry. This dock takes the complexity away.

To gain full use of these dedicated video ports you must install the DisplayLink software. This gets around limitations in Apple’s software that don’t allow the MST (Multi-Stream Transport) technology that allows Windows PCs to run up to four displays with ease.

DisplayLink software is well established and used by many trusted accessory makers. Installing it on your Mac is largely painless. The Quick Start Guide includes full instructions, although you may need a magnifying glass to read them. Your phone’s camera zoom feature will come in useful here.

M Max: Any MacBook Pro with Max variants of Apple’s M-series processor (M1/M2/M3/M4) processors can support up to four external 4K displays at 60Hz, even without a dock: three displays with 6K resolution at 60Hz over Thunderbolt and one with up to 4K resolution at 144Hz over its built-in HDMI. However, that will use up all the MacBook’s ports. Connecting via a docking station uses up just one of the MacBook’s Thunderbolt ports.

MacBooks with an M-series Max processor don’t need DisplayLink, so you should look at a dock with more ports—for example, the 20-port CalDigit TS5 Plus or Sonnet Echo 13. If you just want more Thunderbolt and USB ports, consider a Thunderbolt hub such as the CalDigit Thunderbolt 4 Element Hub.

M Pro: MacBook Pros with Pro variants of the M1/M2/M3/M4 processors are limited to two external displays. DisplayLink opens up the opportunity to add three or four external displays—enter the Wavlink dock as your possible solution.

Plain M: MacBooks with the plain M1/M2/M3 processors (neither Pro nor Max) natively support just one display are even more in need of a DisplayLink dock. Note that M3 Macs can support two displays if the MacBook’s lid is shut so you lose the laptop’s own screen. Plain M4 Macs support two displays natively with the laptop screen a bonus.

While the Satechi DisplayLink Thunderbolt 4 dock enables three-display support for these Macs—up to 6K at 60Hz via a Thunderbolt port and a couple of 4K at 60Hz via the two HDMI ports—the Wavlink DisplayLink dock supports four: 1x 4K at 120Hz via DP++ and 3x 4K at 60Hz (1x DP++ and 2x HDMI).

The M3 MacBook Air can support four external displays connected to the Thunderbolt dock, but only with its lid closed (Clamshell Mode). You’ll need to use a keyboard and mouse in this mode. These can be connected wirelessly or via the dock’s two USB-A ports.

You can connect displays directly to the Mac’s Thunderbolt ports if the monitors have a USB-C connection. If not, you’ll require either a USB-C-to-HDMI or USB-C-to-DisplayPort adapter (not included) to connect the Thunderbolt 4 ports to the displays.

Without DisplayLink, you can still connect to two displays, both 4K at 60Hz, to a Pro or Max MacBook Pro using two of the dock’s Thunderbolt ports. If DisplayLink is not installed, only the Thunderbolt ports will allow for video output. The DisplayLink software is there to enable the HDMI ports. Non-Pro/Max MacBooks do require DisplayLink for more than one external display.

One downside to DisplayLink is that it doesn’t support HDCP (copy-protected) content playback from streaming services such as Netflix, Prime Video, iTunes and Hulu, including on the computer’s own built-in screen. This is true of all DisplayLink docks and not just this one under review.

Also employing the DisplayLink DL7400 chip, the Plugable UD-7400PD Docking Station drives up to five high-resolution displays (1x 8K + 4x 4K), with up to 140W laptop charging and 30W device charging, 2.5Gbps Ethernet, USB and USB-C ports. That dock has two HDMI ports and three extra USB-C to use for the display connections so if you are keen on a DisplayPort link, the Wavlink is a better fit but the Plugable for USB-C monitors. We’ll be testing the Plugable dock very soon.

Design and build

The Wavlink USB-C DisplayLink dock is a horizontal-orientated aluminum case that is a slim profile but longer than most docks we have tested. This isn’t a big negative unless your desktop space is limited.

It measures 7.8-x-3.75-x-0.72 inches (20-x-10-x-2.8cm) and weighs 17.3oz (490g) minus the power supply.

At the front there’s a power button so you can easily turn off the power supply to the MacBook with no need to pull out the cable to preserve your laptop’s battery health.

At the side there is a Kensington lock for physical security.

Price

The Wavlink USB-C DisplayLink (DL7400) Docking Station—also known more formally as the Wavlink 10G USB-C Docking Station WL-UG75PD1-DH—costs $299.99. Compared to docks that offer full Thunderbolt—such as the $299 Satechi four-screen DisplayPort dock—this seems a little over-priced but it’s the only DisplayLink dock to reach four 4K displays (including one at 120Hz) on the M1 and M2 MacBooks.

You can find cheaper dual-monitor DisplayLink USB-C docks and if you require just two external displays look at the other recommended DisplayLink docks we have reviewed. Wavlink itself offers its own Dual 4K DisplayPort & HDMI Adapter for under $100.

All the other DisplayLink docks can handle two monitors so solutions such as the Wavlink DL7400 are only for people in search of a dock that can handle three or more displays. The support for four 4K displays (with one at a 120Hz refresh rate and the others at 60Hz) is the best we’ve seen so far in our tests.

It’s also one of few USB-C DisplayLink docks to boast 2.5Gb Ethernet right now.

Check our price-comparison unit for the latest prices as Wavlink states different prices in various regions compared to those available via online retailers such as Amazon.

Should you buy the Wavlink USB-C DisplayLink DL7400 Docking Station?

For a non-Thunderbolt dock the Wavlink USB-C DisplayLink DL7400 Docking Station (WL-UG75PD1-DH) offers a great set of fast ports and dedicated video links that allow even the most limited M-series Mac to attach up to four external high-resolution displays.

Best Prices Today: WAVLINK USB-C DisplayLink (DL7400) Docking Station