- Benefits to Daisy Chaining Your External Displays
- 5 Steps for Setting up a Daisy Chain Using a Thunderbolt™ Docking Station
- Learn more about Kensington Thunderbolt™ Docking Stations
When you hear the term daisy chain, the first thought that may come to mind is the linking of flowers to create garland—a bond that accomplishes something that a single small flower could not do on its own. That same principle has been applied to desktop setups to help you increase your productivity using Thunderbolt™ daisy chain technology.
Thunderbolt™ daisy chaining allows you to use a single Thunderbolt™ port on your laptop or docking station to link multiple Thunderbolt™-supported monitors together. These daisy-chained monitors connect in a series to communicate and transfer data so a single connection can support multiple displays—freeing up valuable ports and supporting a tidier workstation.
Benefits to Daisy Chaining Your External Displays
Daisy chaining your monitors together can provide several benefits:
- Increased Productivity: Studies show that adding additional monitors enhances multi-tasking because users can easily move applications and windows between screens—allowing them to better manage their workflow and get more done in a shorter amount of time.
- Less Desktop Clutter: By daisy chaining your monitors together you limit the number of cables from your laptop or Thunderbolt™ Docking Station to you monitors. Utilizing shorter video cables from monitor to monitor you achieve a clean and clutter free look.
- Increased Visual Real Estate: With additional screens, you can view multiple applications or documents at the same time, which can be ideal for proofing, comparing, combining, and evaluating information.
- Increased Viewing Flexibility: More displays allow you to position information in a way that best suits your workflow needs. You can use one monitor for frequently needed information, like reference codes or stock numbers, and others for searches and comparisons.
- Enhanced Multimedia Experience: With multiple screens, users can have a more immersive multimedia experience by having different content displayed on each screen. For example, on one screen a user could be watching a movie, while on another screen they could be browsing the internet. This allows users to multi-task and have a more interactive experience.
5 Steps for Setting up a Daisy Chain Using a Thunderbolt™ Docking Station
- Connect your Thunderbolt™ docking station to your laptop using a Thunderbolt™ cable.
- Once you have confirmed your monitors support Thunderbolt, plug in the first external display into one of the daisy chain ports on the docking station.
- Plug in the second external monitor into the daisy chained port on the first monitor. Continue the connections until all monitors are connected.
- If necessary, configure the daisy chain connection in your device's Display Settings.
- Enjoy the extended or mirrored displays from daisy chaining!
Learn more about Kensington Thunderbolt™ Docking Stations
Kensington Thunderbolt™ Docking Stations provide the ability to daisy chain monitors and other devices together to help you get the most from your desktop setups. The SD5700T Thunderbolt™ 4 Dual 4K Docking Station can daisy chain up to three additional Thunderbolt™ devices, and up to five in total.
The SD5300T and SD5350T Thunderbolt™ 3 40Gbps Dual 4K Docking Stations are robust all-in-one docks that take advantage of Thunderbolt™ technology, supporting Thunderbolt™ laptops, Ultrabooks, and monitors that support up to 4K resolution.
Note: Always check the specifications of your Thunderbolt™ Docking Station and laptop model to ensure daisy chaining is possible. Different models may have different daisy chain capabilities.