USB C/Thunderbolt hub

[Peter Blanchard]

My wife's desk has become a rat's nest of cables. Lots of reasons why but life is too short to list them.

There's a ThinkPad E14 Gen 5, HP machine as well as recent-ish Intel-based MacBook Pro. Don't use them all together so unplugging/replugging USB C cable(s) is fine.

Have a number of USB C hubs but they are all lacking in one way or another.

Finding one that meets exact needs is a pain. The tricky bit is finding one with 4+ USB A and 2+ USB C ports without extraneous ports.

 

[reasonsandreasons]

If every system has Thunderbolt, which it sounds like they might, the Caldigit Element Hub is what you want. 4 USB-A, 4 USB-C, power delivery.

 

[nabsltd]

The tricky bit is finding one with 4+ USB A and 2+ USB C ports without extraneous ports.

I don't own the following hub, but I have had good luck with the brand. It has 5 USB-A, 2 USB-C, and 2 charging ports (admittedly "extraneous"):

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CB82NR5C

Read the reviews, and you'll see that some of the loss of stars is for features that are not actually advertised, but assumed. For example, it explicitly states 20W power delivery on individual ports, but has 60W total power available. Some reviews complain that it can't do 60W PD, when it never claimed to.

 

[Peter Blanchard]

If every system has Thunderbolt, which it sounds like they might, the Caldigit Element Hub is what you want. 4 USB-A, 4 USB-C, power delivery.

If someone else was paying for it, I'm sure it's an ideal solution. As I'm paying for it, way too expensive.

Most of the peripherals are USB 2 speeds. Mouse, keyboard, webcam and printers.

There is an external HDD that's USB 3. I've got various wifi dongles that want USB 3. There are USB 3 speed flash drives as well.

Certainly don't need Thunderbolt speeds.

 

[Peter Blanchard]

I don't own the following hub, but I have had good luck with the brand. It has 5 USB-A, 2 USB-C, and 2 charging ports (admittedly "extraneous"):

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CB82NR5C

Read the reviews, and you'll see that some of the loss of stars is for features that are not actually advertised, but assumed. For example, it explicitly states 20W power delivery on individual ports, but has 60W total power available. Some reviews complain that it can't do 60W PD, when it never claimed to.

What do I mean by "extraneous"? SD/TF card slots. Analogue audio ports. More than one HDMI/DP out.

The dream is the one cable swap out.

One thing I don't quite grasp is whether that USB C port on a laptop that is described as power does data too? There are plenty of devices that use USB C connectors just for charging.

Linked to this was the disappointment that some phones with USB C ports only run them at USB 2 speeds. Yes, I understand USB C is just a connector standard but people assume things and are disappointed when their assumptions are incorrect.

 

[Peter Blanchard]

Another annoyance of USB C hubs is the very short cable tail.

 

[gregsachs]

The lenovo usb-c docks are available very cheaply on E-Bay, and should work well for your needs.
There is a wiki that compares them here:

https://www.reddit.com/r/thinkpad/wiki/newdocks/#wiki_40an_-_thinkpad_thunderbolt_3_workstation_dock_.2F_thinkpad_thunderbolt_3_dock_gen_2

The 40AN is well priced on ebay and very compatible.

ThinkPad Thunderbolt 3 Dock Gen 2 - Overview and Service Parts - Lenovo Support US

pcsupport.lenovo.com

The only negative is you will likely need to get a regular TB3 cable due to the odd lenovo USB-C/power cable.
I think the only other thing is only 2 usb-c ports, one for the host, one free.
I believe the intel macs are better with docks than the newer M1, but this reddit suggests that the 40AN should work with both your computers.
https://www.reddit.com/r/macmini/comments/13lj8j7

 

[Peter Blanchard]

HP laptop is a couple years old Spectre x360 14. It does have Thunderbolt.

I think that a chunky second user "dock" from known brand might be a better bet than a new <insert random string> brand "hub".

 

[Peter Blanchard]

I eventually bought a Dell TB16/K16A with 130w PSU for £23 (which is a good price in the UK).

It does the job - one cable for power, data and video. Desk is much tidier as a result.

Wife is pleased.

There are a couple of things that could be done to make desk even tidier. eg swap out wired mono laser printer for one with wifi that's doing nothing right now.

I've learned a little about other things such as Thunderbolt/USB host switches. I don't need one right now but I can see future applications. It seems that (most) Thunderbolt docks will work as USB docks if connected to a machine that doesn't have Thunderbolt eg my Ryzen based gaming laptop.

I need to understand daisy chaining of docks/hubs better.