You may have seen across multiple technology sites over the past month, some stuff on a Apple docking patent. What this does, it is takes a portable computer, like a MacBook, and it goes inside the dock that looks similar to an iMac. This will allow it to be used as a desktop like device with many extra ports and such.

Laptops are becoming more popular and are starting to take over a lot of the desktop market. People are turning to laptops for what they need, except in a portable package with similar and/or sufficient power for their needs. People are turning to laptops to use as desktop replacements and therefore a type of dock is a well welcomed device for the home. This allows for all peripherals such as hard drives, monitors, keyboard and mouse to be on your desk, and you can dock your laptop and use it without having to plug half a dozen plugs into your laptop.

With the Apple dock, the laptop inserts into the device, and there is where the limitations start. First off, you lose the ability to use one screen. It is being wasted inside the computer. For some people, this wouldn’t be an issue but you could use the laptop screen as a secondary monitor to display stuff, such as your iTunes library, or even other applications that you may not use. It would be useful for displaying information that you don’t need to see but it would be nice to have displayed without getting in the way of the apps you are using and without you having to select it. It would be good if it was just there at your side on the laptop screen.

You are also limited to the screen size of the dock, which is dictated by Apple. They could have multiple docks with different screen sizes, but that means you have to pay extra for it, and it probably won’t be cheap. You could even be better off getting an iMac and leaving the dock out of it. It will most likely be cheaper to buy a Dell monitor, or any other brand, for cheaper than the dock is. If the laptop isn’t very powerful, it might struggle with displaying two large resolutions if the dock happened to have a monitor port for a dual setup.

What I would rather have is a dock that can be used with all the Mac notebooks, not just the one that the dock is made for. Also I would like to be able to use a monitor of my choice and have many ports on the dock. It could work similar to how their iPod docks do, you just slide the laptop into it, and it just goes. All peripherals and such connect to the dock and get detected by the computer on insertion. I would also be able to use the screen on my monitor for other applications and not have it wasted.

On the assumption that the new notebook is ultra slim, it might not be as powerful as bigger laptops, in many ways. If so, is it really a good option to use it as a desktop replacement? If people wanted a Mac desktop replacement, they would probably go for a higher end line with higher processor, dedicated graphics and larger screen. A lower powered notebook might not suffice as a desktop machine. In that case, the dock is a waste of space, and probably a waste of money. A port replicator dock would be much better and could also be usable with multiple notebooks, models from now, and in the future.

This is really all based on speculation, and not a real product. Maybe in less than 12 hours, we find out what this really is and if it is plausible. I may end up eating my words, but some of my points may still be valid. It is a neat idea just sliding in your portable computer into a monitor/iMac like device and use it as my desktop. It can be two units in one, a slim portable computer for when i need the portability, and then a desktop like computer with a bigger monitor and more ports and such for when I need that functionality. I would have to get some real information about the notebook and the dock, before I can have real opinions about the actual product, and I would have to use it for a personal opinion of the actual product. We shall wait and see.