Hardware

Review: Logitech Logi Dock Boosts Collaboration in Higher Education

This feature-rich docking station helps instructors and students stay connected and charged.

Carlos Soto is an award-winning reviewer and journalist with 20 years of experience covering technology and business within various sectors and industries.

Docking stations are among some of the most overlooked pieces of technology at universities, though that is changing fast. In a world with so many devices that need to be used concurrently to execute day-to-day activities, a docking station can be an invaluable tool for any workspace.

The Logitech Logi Dock docking station can facilitate the delivery of videoconferencing and web conferencing and improves collaboration by connecting several devices together onto a centralized screen. In college and university settings, this capability can help drive lesson plan creation and any other endeavor where people need to tie together different sources of information from multiple devices into a unified platform. The improved web conferencing capabilities also help deliver the flexibility faculty members need to work remotely with other academics and students.

The Logitech Logi Dock docking station can do all of that while maintaining simplicity and ease of use. For example, the Logi Dock’s calendar integration allows users to instantly join any meeting by pressing a button.

The docking station connects and charges up to five USB peripherals and drives two monitors, making it the centerpiece of even advanced workspaces. A built-in speakerphone helps users facilitate meetings or remote lessons, and the docking station is compatible with most collaboration platforms, including Google Meet and Zoom.

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Logitech Logi Dock Docking Station Suports Education Environments

The Logitech dock drives four key areas of value for classroom settings. It improves instructor productivity by providing multiple ports for connecting peripherals. Teachers and faculty can quickly connect anything, from a keyboard, mouse or external hard drive to monitors and smartphones to share data and feeds with their classes.

The Logitech dock simplifies meetings by providing an integrated speakerphone with a noise-canceling microphone that provides clear audio during conference calls. I took multiple meetings using this device, some of them in very loud settings, and I was impressed at how well it eliminated background noise while allowing me to clearly communicate and hear others.

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The dock also boosts connectivity by supporting multiple connection types, including USB-C, USB-A, HDMI and Ethernet. This makes it easy for students and teachers alike to connect multiple devices to the dock without worrying about having the correct adapters. It also enables quick switching between feeds or devices. We used this feature to switch from lesson plans to video footage and back to the lesson plan with ease.

Finally, the Logitech dock streamlines the charging of almost any other device. Too often during long classes or over the course of a workday, charging devices can become an issue. The Logitech dock charges laptops and other devices simultaneously from a single outlet without the need for multiple chargers, reducing clutter and saving time.

The Logitech Logi Dock can become an invaluable asset ideal for busy classrooms and teachers with multiple devices.

SPECIFICATIONS

Security Slot: Kensington
Input Device Type: Microphone
Operating System Required: Android, Apple iOS, Apple MacOS, Google Chrome OS, Microsoft Windows
Dimensions: 3.3x6.3x5.2 inches

Stress Testing the Logitech Logi Dock Docking Station

I recently attended the annual Tech Connect World Innovation Conference and Expo and decided to stress-test the Logitech Logi Dock there. This meant 16-hour days for me over the course of the three-day event.

For more than 20 years, Tech Connect has brought together applied research and early-stage innovations coming from universities with industry end-users and prospectors. What I discovered while testing the Logitech Logi Dock is how easily it simplified the long workdays of a conference, with enough in the tank afterwards for me to take it to other venues or after-hours events.

The Logi Dock’s enhanced mobility features have robust capabilities that make this unit great for academic conferences. Its compact size and lightweight design make it easy to carry anywhere. Working at the airport, at the office or at an event booth, this unit is easy to store and fast to set up and use.

With a height of 3.3 inches, a width of 6.3 inches and depth of 5.2 inches, the Logi Dock is a wonderful size for any tight space, from economy seating on a small plane to an overcrowded convention booth.

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And at just over 33 ounces, it’s easy to forget that it’s in your backpack when not in use. That is a huge difference from the dinosaurlike docking stations of a few years ago, which were almost as big and heavy as laptops themselves.

At one of the university booths at the conference, I pulled out the unit to show one of my clients a new website and quickly connected the booth’s monitor to my phone in less than 30 seconds. Of course, it helps to carry a multiprong extension cord with you if you’re traveling with the unit, but the client was extremely impressed with how quickly I was able to set up a presentation using the available tools, thanks to the Logi Dock.

Another feature that I really enjoyed is the way the unit seems to pair better with other Logitech peripherals. I also used a Logitech wireless keyboard, the K380, at the event; when paired with the Logi Dock, the entire experience was fire and forget.

As great as all the peripherals and devices we carry around with us these days are, being able to quickly network them using something such as the Logitech Logi Dock docking station makes them even more valuable. This is not a device I plan to ever leave home without.