Targus Travel Dock DOCK 110 review: 'Only Connect'

E.M Forster's famous epigraph or succinct summary of his novel 'Howard's End' -- 'Only Connect' -- referred to the challenge of connecting people. Today a tougher, more common challenge is to connect digital devices in a so-called 'connected world'.

In the race to make computers thinner and lighter, makers often reduce the number of ports they offer. What is the use of an ultra-light notebook or tablet if you can't connect an external display or project a movie or a presentation or If you can't tap into a broadband connection using an Ethernet connection (always faster and more reliable than Wi-Fi)? Yet, the average portable computer tends to flaunt its super light tag by doing away with the good old VGA port or the gigabit Ethernet connection.

The Targus USB3.0 Travel Dock DOCK 110 comes as the answer to the prayers of hassled mobile professionals (and a lot of lay users). It offers a full slate of ports: VGA, Ethernet, the new USB 3.0 standard port, a micro USB if you want to charge a device -- and the contemporary HDMI port for carrying HD video. A USB 3.0 cable is integrated into the dock and sits snugly inside till you pull it out. It weighs just 237g and will effectively replace a few connector cables, many times heavier.

I'm not saying it will replace all your cables -- but it will sharply reduce the chances of your discovering that you can't get hotel internet or make a critical presentation because there is a cable mismatch. Is this convenience worth the asking price of Rs 9,999? Your personal and professional lifestyle will decide for you. I do wish, however, had they gone one step further and added one port of the reversible USB Type C variety. That would have made the Targus Dock perfect for me.