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What are the display output capabilities for the TBT3-UDZ?

Last Update: August 29th, 2024
Article ID: 815695

The TBT3-UDZ docking station offers two primary modes to output video to attached displays via the dual HDMI 2.0 and dual DisplayPort 1.2 outputs: Thunderbolt 3 mode and USB-C DisplayPort Alternate mode.

Systems with Thunderbolt 3 (or 4) support and USB-C only systems without Thunderbolt support will have differing capabilities. In addition, some Thunderbolt 3 systems may only support a single display and some USB-C only systems may lack USB-C DisplayPort Alternate Mode video output entirely (no displays will work).

In either TBT3 or USB-C DP Alt modes, a maximum of two displays are supported and can be connected in any combination of HDMI + HDMI, DP + DP, or a mix of HDMI + DP to the "Display 1" and "Display 2" output groups. See below for more details:

Multiple display capabilities for Thunderbolt 3:

  • Systems that support two DisplayPort streams over Thunderbolt 3 can offer up to two displays at 4K (3840x2160) at 60Hz via HDMI 2.0 or DisplayPort 1.2.
  • Systems that support one DisplayPort stream over Thunderbolt 3 can offer up to one display at 4K (3840x2160) at 60Hz via HDMI 2.0 or DisplayPort 1.2.

Multiple display capabilities for USB-C only systems (no Thunderbolt 3 support, operating in USB-C MFDP (Multifunction DisplayPort) mode):

  • Systems that support DisplayPort 1.2 HBR2 (High Bit Rate 2) can offer one display up to 4K (3840x2160) at 30Hz or two displays 1080p (1920x1080) at 60Hz via HDMI 2.0 or DisplayPort 1.2.
  • Systems that support DisplayPort 1.4 HBR3 (High Bit Rate 3) can offer one display up to 4K (3840x2160) at 60Hz or two displays 1440p (2560x1440) at 60Hz via HDMI 2.0 or DisplayPort 1.2.
  • Systems that support DisplayPort 1.4 HBR3 with DSC (High Bit Rate 3 with Display Stream Compression) can offer up to two displays at 4K (3840x2160) at 60Hz via HDMI 2.0 or DisplayPort 1.2.

Important Notes: 

  • Apple M1 and M2-based Macs (non-Intel processor MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, Mac Mini, and iMac) only support a single display through Thunderbolt 3 or USB-C. This is a limitation of the M1 and M2 graphics card design. (M1/M2/M3 Pro and M1/M2/M3 Max based Macs do not have this limitation.)
  • MacBook Air and MacBook Pro M3(base) can support up to two displays with the lid closed(clamshell) over Thunderbolt.
    • macOS Sonoma 14.3 or later for MacBook Air M3 is required
    • macOS Sonoma 14.6 or later for MacBook Pro M3 is required 
  • We do not support HDR (High Dynamic Range) or adaptive sync (AMD FreeSync or Nvidia G-Sync).
  • We do not officially support high refresh rate displays above 60Hz. (Higher refresh rates may be selected but performance and stability above 60Hz is not guaranteed.)
  • If converting the DisplayPort outputs to a different connector type, an active DisplayPort adapter is required. Passive DisplayPort adapters are not supported. (Dock DisplayPorts do not offer DP++ capabilities required for passive adapters.)
    • Users with legacy DVI displays should use passive HDMI to DVI adapters.
    • Users with legacy VGA displays should use active DisplayPort to VGA adapters or active HDMI to VGA adapters.
    • Thunderbolt and USB-C DisplayPort Alternate Mode displays are not supported.
    • Legacy Apple ADC displays are not supported.
  • 5K or 6K displays are not supported as they require a higher resolution output than what this dock can offer.
  • The use of multiple DisplayPort displays daisy-chained via MST (Multi-Stream) is not supported.
  • Older 4K displays that require MST to operate at 4K 60Hz are not supported. (These displays use two 1920x2160 vertical panels in the display via MST to achieve 3840x2160.)
  • Apple 12” MacBook Retina USB-C models without Thunderbolt 3 are limited to a single extended display or dual mirrored displays up to 4096x2160 @ 30Hz.
  • Legacy Apple Thunderbolt (1 or 2) systems being converted to Thunderbolt 3 using Apple's bi-directional Thunderbolt adapter are not officially supported. (Some users have reported success, however, the dock is limited to a single display in this configuration and we cannot guarantee performance or stability.)

If you have any questions please feel free to contact us at support@plugable.com and we'll be happy to assist!