Razer Thunderbolt 5 Dock Chroma review: has plenty of tricks up its sleeve, and they're all exciting for laptop users

The Razer Thunderbolt 5 Dock Chroma may look expensive if you haven't been in the market for a high-end hub for some time. However, those hunting around for a new connection system may be pleasantly surprised by that $399.99 MSRP.

After all, this isn't just a Thunderbolt dock. It's also an external SSD enclosure with support for fancy dual-laptop sharing features - it also puts on a pretty good light show to boot. If you're looking to outfit one of the best gaming laptops with an equally premium base of ports, this is one of the best you can get right now.

Design

Like most Razer gadgets, the Thunderbolt 5 Dock Chroma is a black brick of anodized aluminum with an explosion of RGB color. It's a design fans of this brand will be familiar with, stark and cold but undeniably cool. Without those LEDs blaring, the whole dock can easily sit on your desk unnoticed (with a rubberized bottom to keep it in place). However, switch them on and it's obvious this is a hub created for gaming.

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It's compact, neat, and tidy, with rear-mounted ports keeping the action out of view and allowing those lights to shine. I did find myself missing the front-facing connections of my Razer USB 4 Dock, though I constantly swap in new mice and keyboards - your needs for easy access may vary.

A larger issue (in every sense of the word) might be that power brick. This thing is chunky, almost measuring up to the size of the dock itself. It's likely going to be tucked away and forgotten about, but if you - like me - only have a limited amount of space for cables under the desk, it certainly adds its own bulk.

Features

There are two main features that set the Razer Thunderbolt 5 Dock Chroma apart from the rest of the competition, and they both work incredibly hard to make that $399 / £399 price tag impressive. I'll cut straight to it; the internal SSD enclosure and Thunderbolt Share license make this a must-see.

Starting with the feature most of us will actually be able to use now, even with a Thunderbolt 4 machine. Razer has included space for an NVMe stick inside the dock itself. Flip the dock over and unlatch the bottom panel, and you'll find a bay ready and waiting for a PCle 4x4 drive running at the full 7,000MB/s whack. Put those tools away; this is a pop-and-lock situation. You don't even need to prep your drive; heatsinks are already included in the design.

That's a fantastic result if you also need to add storage to your laptop (though note that you'll need to buy your drive separately), but it's also incredibly helpful if you happen to work across two different laptops. Simply keep everything on the 'external' drive, and you've got full access just by swapping one cable.

If that's got you dual-wielders excited, just wait until you hear about Thunderbolt Share. This is one of Intel's newer developments, and you'll need a complete Thunderbolt 5 ecosystem to make use of it, but it essentially allows you to connect two systems via a single cable, transfer files, and use accessories between them. Razer included that critical license in its dock, so you're all good to go.

Ok, we've covered the fun stuff - what about the nitty gritty?

The Thunderbolt 5 Dock Chroma packs 11 connections in total: one upstream Thunderbolt 5, three downstream Thunderbolt 5s, two USB-As running at 10GB/s, one USB-C at 10GB/s, a UHS-II SD card slot, an ethernet connection, and 3.5mm audio. It's not the most expansive selection of ports on the market, but it's designed to complement your entire laptop experience rather than simply add a bulk of connections. I still had everything I needed for my single monitor setup, consisting of keyboard, mouse, Razer Laptop Cooling Pad, Logitech speakers, webcam, and headset.

You may have noticed something missing, though. There's no dedicated video ports here, no DisplayPort, no HDMI - this is a Thunderbolt device, and it means it. That's a little disappointing considering it's not exactly an expensive addition, and the lack of these traditional ports certainly makes initial setup more of a headache.

Once you've all the right kit, you're good for a single 8K monitor at 60Hz or, more likely, three 4K displays at 144Hz.

A 140W power delivery is certainly a step up compared to older Thunderbolt 4 options, but I still needed to keep my gaming laptop roster plugged in. Those using the Thunderbolt 5 Dock for productivity purposes with integrated graphics should be able to get by easily on a single connection alone.

Performance

Thunderbolt 5 gaming laptops are out there, but they're still infiltrating the market. You'll be running one of the most powerful machines available if you're able to take advantage of the Razer Thunderbolt 5 Dock Chroma's full speeds right now. I didn't have any compatible laptops in my arsenal while testing, but I do have a number of Thunderbolt 4 options to test run.

I hooked the dock up to the Alienware 16X Aurora and Acer Predator Helios Neo 16S AI for a couple of days each and had no issue with stuttering or low power draw. I've seen my fair share of cheaper docks in my day, and they almost always cause problems when the heat is on.

If you're looking for a particularly serene working environment, it's worth noting that the brand's cooling system can kick up a stir. It's by no means as loud as your gaming laptop is likely to be, though.

Should you buy the Razer Thunderbolt 5 Dock Chroma?

If you're looking to invest in a high-end Thunderbolt 5 dock, there are a few options open to you. Of course, you can always take aim at the cheaper market, but I generally find that you get what you pay for in terms of stability here. Those building a new future-proofed setup will certainly want to take a look at what Razer's putting down here.

iVanky packs more ports with that same 140W power delivery and ups your ethernet to 2.5Gb for $499.99 at Amazon. That's for those maximizing connectivity, though, you're paying $100 more and dropping the SSD enclosure and Thunderbolt Share license.

I've had good experiences with Ugreen in the past, and its Revodok Max is hitting the same $399.99 MSRP as Razer, with a couple extra ports thrown in. Again, there are no fancy features added to that cost.

Overall, Razer is actually looking pretty strong right now. It's matching and beating competitor prices while offering more features, albeit at the slight expense of connection breadth.

How I tested the Razer Thunderbolt 5 Dock Chroma

I used the Razer Thunderbolt 5 Dock Chroma over the course of four weeks, with it tethered to both the Alienware 16X Aurora and Acer Predator Helios Neo 16S AI. I installed a Seagate Firecuda 530 R 1TB SSD and connected all my usual peripherals. For more information on how we make our recommendations, check out the full GamesRadar+ Hardware Policy.

After a machine to connect that dock to? Check out the best Asus gaming laptops and best Alienware laptops. Or, if you're hooking up a smaller screen, check out the best Steam Deck docks on the market.