Final Score: 85 out of 100
Let’s start with the angry, darn near ‘roid raging, angry elephant in the room: the asking price. On the surface the cost of a decent phone is one steep hill to climb for a dock. Even for a TB3 dock, it really does bring new meaning to ‘sticker shock’… and the 16TB 1Big Dock is not even the most expensive option in the ‘Big’ Dock lineup. So, let us break down exactly what that money buys you.
A decent ThunderBolt 3 dock will set people back about $250. There are cheaper and more expensive options but that is what you can expect to spend for a decent TB3 dock these days. A decent USB UHS-II and CF card read will set people back about $50 (or more). The included IronWolf Pro 16TB drive will set people back $500. A good, USB 3.1 actively cooled external enclosure will set people back about $120 (sans drives). That is $920 right there.
In other words, when you do get over the asking price and take the time to tally everything up it is actually a pretty decent deal. Especially when you consider that you will not only be consolidating multiple devices into one neat and tidy package but getting features that you will not get from the ‘decent’ alternatives. Features such as hot swappable storage and good, active cooling for the entire works. Those are the kind of things you are not going to get if your budget is less than 10-11 bills these days.
So, is the 1Big Dock series going to be right for everyone? Of course not. The 1Big Dock sales pitch is predicated on the assumption you need all these features… as its main focus is professionals who constantly use all those features. If you do not, the value proposition goes off the rails a wee bit. Equally important is the 1Big Dock does make a few mistakes that could further tarnish its luster. First and foremost is a 1Big Dock 16TB capacity model is $920, but a variant of the 2Big Dock series can make even more sense. Yes, you are stepping up in price (assuming you pay full retail) but in addition to gaining an extra TB3/USB Type-C on the back, you gain an extra hard drive slot. One hard disk drive, even a great HDD like the IronWolf Pro, will never be able to compete on the performance or capacity it has to offer compared to a two-drive model… and even two hard disk drives in RAID can barely justify a costly TB3 interface vs. cheaper (but ‘good enough’) USB 3.1 gen 2 interface options. The other misstep is the inclusion of the darn near dead, and certainly on life support, CompactFlash port… instead of a more useable CFexpress port in the integrated reader like the 1Big Dock SSD Pro series has. That would have been a more ‘professional’ option these days and made it an even better overall value.
These ‘issues’ will come down to personal preference more than anything, and we can see a lot opting for the 1Big Dock over the more expensive 2Big Dock or 1Big Dock SSD Pro, but there is one final issue. The only ‘real’ issue in our opinion. That is as a docking station the 1Big Dock lacks enough ports to actually be a great dock. A single USB 3.0 Type-A port is just not good enough these days. A minimum of two, and preferably four Type-A ports should have been included. More Type-A ports would have made this a much more useable dock for professionals with everything from mice, keyboards, Wacom tablets, and maybe even a scanner and/or printer that they want to connect directly to their new dock. Lastly… most will agree that having a Kensington lock connector on the back but not making the hard drive caddy lockable is rather puzzling and sub-optimal to say the least. These are all issues that are self-inflicted and could have easily been avoided.
This is why it really will come down to exactly what you need in your next dock. If the LaCie 1Big Dock series features are precisely what you are looking for it is a fan-freaking-tastic choice – and is an excellent example of engineering prowess. Alternatively, if the 1Big Dock does not match your needs perfectly, then it may not be a great fit for you. Still decent to good, but not necessarily optimal. As long as you understand exactly all the things it brings to the table, and they align with your needs, we would strongly suggest taking a long hard look at this bad boy. It can indeed make a great case for being your next purchase… seemingly high asking price or not.
The Review
LaCie 1Big Dock
If the LaCie 1Big Dock series features are precisely what you are looking for it is a fan-freaking-tastic choice - and is an excellent example of engineering prowess. Alternatively, if the 1Big Dock does not match your needs perfectly, then it may not be a great fit for you. Still decent to good, but not necessarily optimal. As long as you understand exactly all the things it brings to the table, and they align with your needs, we would strongly suggest taking a long hard look at this bad boy. It can indeed make a great case for being your next purchase… seemingly high asking price or not.
