It’s not just with Amazon, Google, and Microsoft that Apple is going into WWDC 2017 playing catch-up. There’s also Samsung.

And Samsung, undeterred by the Note 7 fiasco, has been busy over the past year.

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You’re probably thinking that I’m referring to the gap between the Samsung Galaxy S8 and the iPhone 7. Not really.

I’m thinking about Samsung’s DeX.

For those who don’t know, DeX is a dock that allows users to connect their Galaxy S8/S8 Plus to a monitor, keyboard, and mouse to turn it into a desktop experience — of sorts — powered by the handset.

This “dock that transforms a smartphone into a desktop PC” thing is not a new idea — it’s been tried many times before — and DeX is not perfect by a long shot, but it is certainly the most credible attempt at bridging the smartphone/desktop gap.

And, right now, Apple has nothing to compete with DeX.

OK, some of you are probably already flexing your fingers in preparation to type into the comments something along the lines of “but what about the iPad?” or “who needs a desktop when you have an iPhone?” or “what about the MacBook?”

My response is simple: None of these solutions comes close to what DeX offers.

Now, you might be thinking that DeX is just a flash in the pan. A fad. A sign that Samsung desperately throwing ideas against a wall in the hope that just a few stick.

Maybe.

But it’s also pretty timely. If the current limited laptop ban expands into a global laptop ban, then platforms such as DeX might get a foothold as business travelers decide that it’s too risky to take a laptop. While some might appreciate the break from the never-ending distraction that modern technology bombards us with, others might feel that their smartphone can be leveraged to do more than we currently ask of a smartphone.

And, like I said already, Apple has nothing to offer.

We can add DeX to the ever-increasing list of technologies that Apple is trailing behind in. And while Apple fans are desperate to believe that everything is all right with Apple, and affirming every bad decision the company makes (even if that results in the stagnation of the iPad, losing ground to Microsoft, and the Mac line up being left to go old and crusty), Samsung users get cool new stuff.