Dorm Room Tech Guide for Fall
The new college term is starting up for students this Fall, and the consensus is the same – tech in dorm rooms is ready for an upgrade. With technology being incorporated more and more into both the learning environment and students’ everyday lifestyles, this is the perfect time to invest in the practical, useful, and functional tech.
With the right collection of docks, adapters and accessories, you can quickly transform a dorm room from a quick pit stop location into a central hub for studying, entertaining, creating, gaming and more. So, this fall, forego the dime-a-dozen LED strips, and instead try out some approachable tech that will take your dorm from a dud to somewhere you want to a functional hang out and effective workplace.
Start with Docking Stations
Docks are one of the most crucial pieces of tech to build your dorm, office, or travel gear around. Depending on your needs, a docking station can provide exactly what you need to connect from system to console, laptop to monitor, and much more. A few of the most popular use cases we see are:
Portability – Many college libraries are now outfitted with “hoteling” or “hotdesk” stations wherein students can connect to local displays, thin clients, etc. with their own machines. For these situations, it’s ideal to have a small form factor dock such as our VT210 or VT400 to connect to USB devices like keyboards/mouse, external storage, and external monitors.
Recommended Dock: VT210 or VT400
Connectivity – In the dorm itself, you can’t go wrong with a dock setup that gives you all the power of a desktop tower with the versatility of a laptop for classroom notetaking or common room study. For these purposes we recommend a docking station with multiple USB connectors, DisplayPort and HDMI connections, SD card readers, and ethernet connections. For these types of dock solutions, consider the VT2500 or VT4510.
Recommended Dock: VT2500 or VT4510
Content Creation – Another common staple of collegiate life is content development. For these scenarios, videographers and photographers, designers and programmers alike rely on docking stations that are compatible with their host machines and capable of providing power and fast transfer speeds. If your system is Thunderbolt™ 3 or Thunderbolt™ 4, we recommend the VT5400 with its support for high resolution high bit rate color output.
Recommended Dock: VT5400
Gaming – No dorm room tech breakdown would be complete without taking gaming into consideration. With a console agnostic mindset becoming more prevalent, and a resurgence of PC gaming, multiple audio video connection ports are a must. As well as connections for additional peripherals like wired keyboards and gaming headsets. With support for high refresh rate monitors check out the VT5400 for a good docking station fit.
Recommended Dock: VT5400
Cables & Adapters
Be sure to make sure you have the appropriate cables and adapters for any new tech. Whether you’ll be primarily mobile or nose-deep in study materials, being able to connect to the right monitor or storage device is crucial to saving time and creating ease-of-access for presentations, entertainment, or simply file transfer.
Check out our collection of cables and adapters for all of your connectivity needs here
Portable Wireless Speakers
No college apartment or dorm room is complete without a proper sound system, and with the mobile-ready nature of college day-to-day, portable speakers are a must-have. For activities on the fields or in the quad, hikes out with new roommates, or poolside adventures, Bluetooth speakers are a gamechanger
With the tech above at your disposal, you’ll be ready for the widest range of classwork curveballs and college activities. For additional questions about docking stations, webcams, storage devices and more, check out our FAQ page.