Dell Inspiron 15" 7000 series (7579) - a USB Type C that's not very modern

[destrekor]

Boss set me up with this laptop for work, and with it a Dell D3100 dock - it uses USB 3 (Type A). It takes a 65 watt power adapter. The laptop comes with a 45 watt power adapter.

Now obviously this doesn't charge the laptop. But the laptop has a Type C port, so I got to thinking. Dell has a WD15 dock (http://www.dell.com/en-us/shop/dell-dock-wd15-with-130w-adapter/apd/450-afgm/pc-accessories) that uses a Type C and advertised somewhat as a Thunderbolt dock.

Now it never says anywhere that the dock can charge a laptop. But then it says this in the compatibility section:

• A system requiring more than 130 Watts must have its own power adapter attached

So... huh? It says that right after a list of compatible laptops. Now, I guess it is supposed to mean that any device that is attached to the dock (other than the laptop) that requires that much power would need to be powered on its own. But... that is not at all clear.

And for the laptop's product page (http://www.dell.com/en-us/shop/productdetails/inspiron-15-7579-2-in-1-laptop) nowhere does it say all that much about it having a USB Type-C port other than to say it has a Type-C port. No mention of USB 3.1, no mention of Thunderbolt, just... hey guys, it has a Type-C port! Cool right?!


Now I had to confirm my suspicions by chatting with a sales tech. Which at first started rather hilariously, as he insisted the laptop did not have a Type-C port. I'm like... I'm staring right at it. And it says it everywhere. At that point I basically figured that, yup, suspicions confirmed. It'd be screaming in the sales guy's face when looking up the system if it was the type of laptop that had a fancy Thunderbolt and USB 3.1 Type-C port that could be used for charging the laptop. That's the major advertising thing right now.


Now even though I basically knew going into the chat that all of this was likely to be the case, I gotta say, I am still a little bummed. Now it's not my laptop to keep and won't replace my personal laptop, but it sure would have been nice to have a single power adapter connecting a dock that then charged the laptop. Now I'll have to use two power adapters plugged in under my desk (I need the dock to power the 3 monitors at my desk), and deal with two plugs every time I move the laptop. That's not docking at all! lol

But I think I was definitely right to still check into it, as with it becoming more of a thing, uninformed consumers are going to see just a few buzz words like USB-C and immediately think of all the possibilities.


This... is just a blog of my disappointment, and a warning to anyone looking into this line of laptops that, if you do want these features, look elsewhere.

 

[VirtualLarry]

Sometimes a Cigar (USB port) is just a Cigar (USB port). Even if it's slightly rounded and reversible.

You do know that "USB Type-C" is simply a form-factor, and says nothing about the ports functionality or lack thereof, right? You can apparently even have a Type-C port that only supports USB2.0, so I've read.

 

[destrekor]

Sometimes a Cigar (USB port) is just a Cigar (USB port). Even if it's slightly rounded and reversible.

You do know that "USB Type-C" is simply a form-factor, and says nothing about the ports functionality or lack thereof, right? You can apparently even have a Type-C port that only supports USB2.0, so I've read.

Yes, and thus why I had my suspicions. I had bet myself that it was in fact only a standard USB 3.0 port (if that) but was hoping this wouldn't become a major trend (the port design without the new signaling standard implemented). I honestly don't see USB Type-C with older USB standards taking off, it's still mostly being kept tied with 3.1 but there are outliers. I hope a ton of devices that don't even need 3.1 or 3.0 speeds to take advantage of USB-C, but I was at least hoping new ports going forward were going to be the faster ports.

But I think part of this may also be Intel's doing - I don't believe they have fully integrated USB 3.1 and Thunderbolt into their main chipsets, so that would definitely add further expense to manufacturers wishing to incorporate it, and thus why it's only on the more high-end laptops thus far.

 

[roger-barton]

I have the same laptop, and when I purchased it, the product description on Dell's website claimed that the Type C port could support Thunderbolt, and could be used to charge the laptop. The charging feature was also confirmed via telephone by a salesperson. I did not think to ask whether the charging feature only works with Thunderbolt, or if any Type C charging method would work. I tried charging the laptop with a non-Thunderbolt power bank via Type C cable, and it did not work.