Thanks for all the help guys! It kind of looks like it's as much of a quagmire as I had expected
Definitely some solid recommendations there though.
derFunkenstein wrote:I have a Dell Inspiron 13" 7000, which both charges over USB-C (but the also has a separate charger port) and outputs DisplayPort/HDMI/VGA over the same port. It only has one, though, so pick your poison unless he has a multi-purpose adapter. Mine is the Kaby Lake generation but the new ones support power delivery and video as well.
Definitely an interesting option! It's right in the price range I was hoping for (my Dad doesn't like spending too much on laptops), so he might well go for that. I'd definitely buy a multi-purpose adapter, so he can get the single-cable easy docking.
End User wrote:Bottom line is, if you want something awesome that will last a good long time, then get a laptop that supports Thunderbolt 3.
If money were no option then that would be great, but sadly most of the TB3 laptops seem to start pretty expensive. My Dad's not looking to spend a fortune, and he doesn't really have any high speed I/O requirements- displays and input devices are pretty much it, and possibly a gigabit ethernet port. (Though his laptop is set up literally directly next to the wifi router, so he could probably survive without that.)