Dongle galore for my m1 pro 13 inch

[Novius89]

Hello!

I couldn't find a straight answer so i will ask it for my personal usecase.

I have got an m1 mac 2020, connected on this laptop are: Apple AV adapter, hdmi screen, 6 tb ext hdd and a 1 tb SSD.
The av adapter i sometimes take to college for presentations, but this is once in a while, for the rest its all hooked up at home.
I take my macbook daily, but don't take my charger or other stuff.

I use both ports on this mac, and sometimes i need to put in another usb device or cardreader or whatever and i like the everything through 1 usb-c port. I need to unmount the ssd and this got me thinking:

I don't want to buy another dock or spend a "load" of money, i am happy with this AV adapter (that also was a rip-off for €79!)
Will it work if i buy a powered usb-a hub that i hook up on this AV adapter and connect my 2 externals on this?
Or will this be too much for the usb-a connection on the adapter and through the usb-c on my mac, will it conflict with drive numbers or whatever?

I guess it should be usb 3.0 and powered.
Doesn't have to be tidy, for now i only have this av adapter on my desk (and the usb c from the ssd), the cabes and hdd's are on a small shelf under my desk, i will put the hub there as well.

Edit: when i bought this m1 mac i had the anker 11 in 1 dock, that connected with the 2 usb-c, there was some issue where some power delivery docks broke the macbook, so i returned it and bought the official av adapter.

 

[mystery hill]

You only need a USB-C hub.

The hub should have:

• USB-C port (connected to your MacBook for charging and data)
• USB-C port (for external SSD)
• USB-A port (for external HDD)
• HDMI port (for your monitor)

You don’t need the AV adapter.


Something like this:

USB C Hub,7 in 1 Type C Hub,USB C Hub Multiport Adapter with 4K 60Hz HDMI,100W PD,2 USB 3.0,USB C Data Port,SD/TF Card Reader,Compatible for MacBook Air / Pro,iPad Pro,Surface Pro,XPS and More

USB C Hub,7 in 1 Type C Hub,USB C Hub Multiport Adapter with 4K 60Hz HDMI,100W PD,2 USB 3.0,USB C Data Port,SD/TF Card Reader,Compatible for MacBook Air / Pro,iPad Pro,Surface Pro,XPS and More

www.amazon.com

 

[Fishrrman]

OP:

Be aware that the USBc hub linked to in reply 2 above looks to be an UNpowered hub.
It could cause problems with having too many devices (such as drives) connected, IF they start requesting too much "bus power" from the Mac.

I'd suggest a POWERED USBc hub. Having one eliminates "bus-power related" problems.

 

[mystery hill]

Be aware that the USBc hub linked to in reply 2 above looks to be an UNpowered hub.

The hub that I linked to isn’t unpowered.

 

[Fishrrman]

mystery wrote:
"The hub that I linked to isn’t unpowered."

Did it come with an external power supply block?

 

[mystery hill]

mystery wrote:
"The hub that I linked to isn’t unpowered."

Did it come with an external power supply block?

It has a USB-C port for power input, so you can use any suitable external power adapter.

 

[Basic75]

If you get a USB-C hub with HDMI port you might want to ensure it does 4K60 and not just 4K30. And please report back and tell us what your experience is. There are so many ****** USB hubs that get very hot or are unstable but I'm hoping for a success story.

 

[NeonNights]

I had an old Aukey 7-to-1 USBc hub with HDMI but was limited to 4k30. Not only that, there was considerable lag onscreen.

I recently purchased a CalDigit SOHO and it outputs 4K60 through HDMI with my M1 MacBook Air, but with a peculiar problem. In 4K60 it fails to display the alternating white/gray rows in Finder, but looks proper in 4K30. Has anyone else experienced this with 4K60 on their hubs/docks? If so, is there a fix?

I am not sure if the issue is with my 4K TV or the signal being passed through from the MacBook Air. When switched to 30Hz I see the white/gray rows in both screenshots, but when set to 60Hz I actually don't see the alternating row colors in either desktop screenshot and it looks like the photo from my phone.

EDIT: Figured out the issue -- the 4K TV I use as a monitor is a budget/cheap model and is clipping the highlights. I finally realized this after using a calibration disc, and comparing it to our Sony 4K TV in the living room. I previously tried different HDMI cables but still had the same issue. I then connected the CalDigit and MacBook Air to our better Sony 4K TV in the living room, which I know can do HDR, and everything looked correct in 4K60. Case closed.

 

[Basic75]

Not only that, there was considerable lag onscreen.

Is there any explanation why some hubs produce lag and how to recognise them?