Yeah the Belkin Thunderbolt 3 Docks. I have a couple, they're huge, but full of ports and very nice.
When I'm done with the semester in a few weeks they'll be up on the classifieds here with the rest of my office.
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Belkin Debuts New Connect 4-Port USB-C Hub Made From Post-Consumer Recycled Plastics
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When I'm done with the semester in a few weeks they'll be up on the classifieds here with the rest of my office.
There's no support for DisplayPort alt mode with this Belkin USB-C Hub. I suppose they could have added support but it would make the hub more expensive. The CalDigit Element Hub is a Thunderbolt 4 hub that has support for one DisplayPort connection when the hub is connected as USB-C instead of Thunderbolt (Thunderbolt allows two 4-lane DisplayPort connections).
USB-C docks that support DisplayPort alt mode have only two lanes of DisplayPort instead of 4 because the other two SuperSpeed lines of the USB-C cable are used for USB 3.x. There are some USB-C docks that don't support USB 3.x - they support USB 2.0 so all 4 SuperSpeed lanes can be used for DisplayPort.
A USB-C to dual-link DVI converter uses an old chip to do the conversion. The old chip is limited to HBR link rate, so it requires 4 lanes to support 2560x1600 60Hz. Such adapters are not suited for USB-C docks that only support 2 lanes of DisplayPort. In such cases, the adapter would be limited to 1280x800 60Hz, unless there's a MST hub to convert 2 lanes of HBR2 to 4 lanes of HBR. The CalDigit SOHO is a USB-C dock that contains a MST hub. You could also use an external MST hub.
macOS doesn't support MST hubs for multiple displays but should allow using the MST hub to convert DisplayPort connections from fast and narrow (HBR3 x2) to slow and wide (HBR x4).
You cannot get > 10 Gbps bandwidth from Thunderbolt 3/4 unless different controllers are being used.
In the case of Thunderbolt 4 and Thunderbolt 3 docks which support USB-C upstream (Titan Ridge based docks: e.g. HP Thunderbolt Dock G2 and Goshen Ridge based docks: e.g. CalDigit Element Hub), there is one USB port being used for all USB devices. 10 Gbps max.
In the case of old Thunderbolt 3 docks which don't support USB-C upsrteam, the dock may contain multiple controllers. The CalDigit TS3+ has one 1 Gbps Ethernet controller, two 4 Gbps USB controllers, one 8 Gbps USB controller, and one 10 Gbps USB controller for ≈22 Gbps max.
The CalDigit TS4 is Goshen Ridge but it includes a separate controller for 2.5 Gbps Ethernet so it's bandwidth can be up to 12.5 Gbps.
Thunderbolt SSDs contain NVMe controllers so they can use up to ≈22 Gbps.
The total bandwidth of a Thunderbolt port is ≈22 Gbps.
Right, it's USB, not Thunderbolt. That said, does it support DisplayPort Alt Mode?
Looks nice, I like the recycled plastics angle. I can never have enough fast ports, I’m often needing to connect many SSDs and RAIDs simultaneously for large file transfers ASAP.
Strange claim that no other 10Gbps USB-C hubs exist as I own a couple others already, but they are pretty hard to find it’s true. I really had to hunt, luckily the local Central Computer had a few options in the $30-$40 range. (not seeing any currently in stock online though.)
This one sounds like it might be extra solid though, might have to add to my kit…
Strange claim that no other 10Gbps USB-C hubs exist as I own a couple others already, but they are pretty hard to find it’s true. I really had to hunt, luckily the local Central Computer had a few options in the $30-$40 range. (not seeing any currently in stock online though.)
This one sounds like it might be extra solid though, might have to add to my kit…
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That's a ridiculous comparison. One is a $50 hub for everyday use. Affordable for most people, and the other is a $230 hub for people who require more functionality.
It's a bit like me comparing my OWC Thunderbolt 3 dock to this....no comparison.
Two different products with completely different requirements.
I think I'll probably pick one of these up as it'll work on my MBP M1 and my PC laptop as well as my iPad Pro. Nice accessory.
You don’t get the point of it? What if you just want extra usbc ports?
Well they weren’t comparing it. They were answering another posters question.
I also love the fact this is just a no-fuss multi-USB-C port hub. When I search various places e.g. Amazon for USB-C hubs almost all of the hits seem to be for the "add a gazillion different ports to your laptop" type with ethernet and HDMI ports included in the hub when whet I really want is a simple way to have a few USB-C ports sitting on my desk rather than having to reach under the desk to plug stuff into the ports on my PC. Yes, I jknow I could just ignore those extra ports but it's inelegant and I suspect USB drivers might automatically get installed for a load of ports I'll never use which is again inelegant.
Yeah. That bugs me too. These manufacturers seem to be 100% focussed on the use case of a laptop user carrying these hubs with them for mobile use. Maybe my use case is vanishingly small but I want a hub for desktop use to give me a few USB-C ports conveniently on my desk for the occasional file copy or even ripping the odd CD rather than having to crawl under my desk to get to the ports integrated into my PC (and actually my PC is in a cupboard about 3m away from my desk). For that (e.g. my) use a detachable host-to-hub cable is much more elegant than having to use an extension cable or a USB-C F-F connector to get the extra cable length required to connect to the PC.
I think you need to take a look at MBA and 13-inch MBP models again.
$52!? Lol. Try again. Anyone paying this much for this stuff is an utter chump.
Popular Apple accessory maker Belkin recently introduced the Connect 4-Port USB-C Hub, which is the company's first U.S. product made from post-consumer recycled plastics (PCR). Belkin in January announced plans to transition to more environmentally friendly material for its products, and the launch of the hub is part of that effort.
The Connect 4-Port USB-C Hub is made from 72 percent PCR in its product housing, a transition that was made without impacting the quality or the safety of the accessory. Made to be compact, the hub includes four USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 ports, and it supports pass-through charging of up to 100W. USB-C headphones and speakers are supported, and it works with Apple's Macs and iPads.
Belkin says that its new USB-C hub is the only hub on the market able to deliver a maximum of 10Gb/s, which is 2x faster than other available hubs. It's also using Fast Role Swap (FRS) in an effort to prevent data loss and interruption of device connections when adding or removing a power source from the hub.
Belkin's Connect 4-Port USB-C Hub is priced at $52 and it can be purchased from Amazon. Belkin also sells it directly for $45, but it is out of stock at the current time.
Article Link: Belkin Debuts New Connect 4-Port USB-C Hub Made From Post-Consumer Recycled Plastics
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My information was based on https://www.thunderbolttechnology.net/sites/default/files/Thunderbolt3_TechBrief_FINAL.pdf. I see that my understanding was a bit naive. Thanks for that input. I'll certainly study more.
Oh I know they only have 2 ports, and I'm sure this hub will be very useful for people with these laptops. My original point was that the marketing department appears to have used the older style MacBook Pro with the touchbar. The particular model they have used has 4 thunderbolt ports, so more ports than the current MacBook Pro models, I would suggest this is because the Ives designed MacBook Pro just looks better!
Short, simple answer: the ability to connect displays and Thunderbolt/USB4 devices to take advantage of higher bandwidths.
It gets a bit complex (other posts have gone into more detail) but, in general, if you're only going to connect USB 3.x devices (not displays) they won't run any faster on an expensive Thunderbolt hub.
This is something a bit new (may not be the first). Until recently, there were virtually no 5/10Gbps USB hubs with USB-C connectors available - even the expensive Thunderbolt hubs (which were expensive overkill for many uses) tended to include mostly USB-A connectors. The only sensibly priced solution for connecting lots of USB devices would be an old fangled USB-A hub (probably with a wall-wart because they could only pull 4.5W from the host) which isn't exactly an incentive for switching over to USB-C cabling.
I am sure you are right. It just feels like these are released constantly, but a quick search on Belkin's website shows that is simply not true. Also can't really tell Belkin apart from Anker, from Satechi, from Plexgear, from [unknown].
However now when I searched, I saw this one from Satechi which offers (up to) 5 Gbps: https://satechi.net/products/4-port-usb-c-hub?variant=39527859781720 for a reasonable amount of cash.
Well with these types of product, the brands don't make their own controller chips. At best they're all built around one of a very small number of available chipsets. Often they're clearly the same circuit board from some wholesale electronics manufacturer in different shaped cases. At worst, just the same product re-badged.
I don't think Belkin are the first with this type of product, but they've only recently started to pop up and they're nowhere near as ubiquitous as the usual USB/HDMI/etc. legacy port dongles.
This thing is questionable to me, since it exists under several different brands. When stuff like that shows up on Amazon, I'm not eager to buy because it's mass-produced cheaply for various companies to claim as their branded product.Only hub on the market? This 3.2 Gen 2 was added to Amazon Dec 2022:
PULWTOP USB C HUB (Not Support Monitor), 5in 1 USB C Adapter with 100W PD Charging, 4*USB C 10Gbps, Powered USB HUB for MacBook Air/iPad Pro/iPhone 15
PULWTOP USB C HUB (Not Support Monitor), 5in 1 USB C Adapter with 100W PD Charging, 4*USB C 10Gbps, Powered USB HUB for MacBook Air/iPad Pro/iPhone 15www.amazon.co.uk
But it seems that one doesn't use the external power to power devices so says 2 drives max.
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I really like their dual, USB 3x/ thunderbolt 4 hub. This way if you have Mac (thunderbolt) and your wife/ husband has a PC (USB) for work, you can both use the hub.
Oh, maybe I'm thinking of Startech?
Oh, maybe I'm thinking of Startech?
There's not really a market for that as folk still require legacy ports. Maybe in the 2030s.
Apple’s adapter doesn’t support USB. It’s purely a Thunderbolt device. This dock is just USB. If someone needs to connect Thunderbolt disks they would need something like Caldigit’s element hub and the Apple adapter.