Planning to upgrade my 5 yr old MacBook w/a New MacBook Air. Don’t really need MacBook Pro but Pro has 3 (4?) USB-C connections, Air only has 2; for my use, I need at least 3, preferably 4. Hate to pay so much more for Pro just for additional ports.
Have been looking at hubs to connect to the Air. Found many w/multiple ports but most only have 1 or 2 USB-C ports; I don’t need USB-A, HDMI, etc.
Having a separate charger won’t work for me, not concerned about charging devices, I have items that need to be connected to the MacBook; my external drive, a USB-C flash drive, & more.
Suggestions for hubs that have multiple USC-C connections?
Thank you.
Good news is there’s been quite some rumors about the new M4 MBA gaining a 3rd TB/USB port. But even if that doesn’t pan out, there’s plenty of USB-C hubs around, also such for just data w/o video or networking ports. I have been happily using this one for a while at one work station.
https://www.amazon.com/PULWTOP-Delivery-Support-Multiport-Chromebook/dp/B0BND5487P/
Several others around my lab have bought this one and seem perfectly happy with it.
https://www.amazon.com/UGREEN-Powered-Adapter-Splitter-MacBook/dp/B0D9Q9WCLX/
1 Like
Thanks, Simon. I had only looked at my “usual suspects”: Anker & Belkin & couldn’t find anything. Didn’t know where else to look for a reliable hub. I’ll take a look at both of these. Don’t need ports for video or another monitor; just my external drive (for Time Machine), a flash drive, & an available port for occasionally connecting my iPhone or iPad directly to the MacBook.
One thing to keep in mind is the power requirements of the devices you want to connect - they may require more power than the MBA can provide. I have to use powered TB hubs for my macStudio because it can’t support four SSDs at the same time. If this might be an issue, get a powered TB hub. I am using the CalDigit Element powered hubs and they work fine. Of course you have to have some way to plug the hub into a power supply.
I have this hub connected to my M2 Mac mini and it happily supports 4 SSDs. Note that it only draws power from the Mac; it has no A/C power connection.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BY27XSJ3
I’m curious about these hubs. I see no USB-C hub with more than four data ports. Is this a technical limitation of USB-C? I have a 7-port USB-A hub which was very handy before USB-C came along.
Not a problem; I can easily plug in a hub. Just need to find one that will also directly connect to the MacBook so the MacBook recognizes the peripherals, such as the external drive for backups, the flash drive, etc.
Thx very much.
I’m curious as well; surprised there are still so many hubs w/multiple USB-A ports & so few w/more than 1 or 2 USB-C ports. I would think USB-C has been around long enough that we’d see more USB-C ports & fewer USB-A ports.
Current MacBook is a 2019 model & all 4 ports are USB-C, but 1 port is used for charging the MacBook leaving 3 other ports, which was enough for me.
Learned the new MacBooks no long use a USB port for charging but the MB Air only has 2 USB ports, which just isn’t enough.
Will take a look at the one you’re using; thx very much.
It all depends on usage.
If you’re using it on the go, you’re probably going to want to plug in a mouse and a thumb drive, and maybe a keyboard, but not much else. So a hub with 3-4 type-A connectors is probably what you will want.
But if you’re using it with a desktop device (e.g. a Mac mini), then you’re probably going to use it with more advanced devices like SSDs. You may also find yourself using it for other kinds of I/O like video and networking. Hence the existence of so many USB-C hubs that include HDMI, DisplayPort and Ethernet jacks.
I suspect we’ll see a lot more el-cheapo hubs with non-video type-C ports as we find a lot more el-cheapo peripherals (like keyboards, mice and thumb drives) with type-C connectors. There are plenty today, but they’re still far from universal.
While I plan to replace my current MacBook Pro w/a MacBook Air, I rarely move it; 99% it’s used more or less as a desktop. Since it’s a MacBook, don’t use external mouse or keyboard. I do have an SSD connected.
Haven’t had any devices that needed USB-A since I bought the 2019 MacBook, which is why I don’t understand the lack of USB-C hubs. Isn’t an issue w/that MacBook as it has 4 USB-C ports. Didn’t notice the lack of USB-C hubs until I saw that new MacBooks only have 2 USB-C ports. Trying to figure this out before I order a new MacBook. 
Um, er, why not get an iMac? Much bigger screen, M4, four ports (at $1499)? 
It is peculiar that there are so few USB-C hubs with more than 2 ports. The ones that do have them tend to be on the pricey side (Caldigit et. al.). And if you are looking at those the iMac pricing looks even more attractive when you just want a couple more USB-C ports. . . . 
Dave
1 Like
You know what, I didn’t even consider an iMac. When I bought this MacBook, I was traveling a lot as my father was sick; I really needed a laptop. Now I rarely travel but have gotten so used to the MacBook, never thought about going back to an iMac.
Given how much more versatile the iPad’s become in the last several years, even if I do travel, the iPad’s probably sufficient at this point in my life.
Thanks very much for bringing this up, definitely worth a look.
I’ve used an iMac as my primary computer and an iPad/iPhone combo while doing personal travel for many years. For non-business travel, particularly after I bought a keyboard for the iPad, I haven’t ever wished I had brought a laptop instead. The only two inconveniences that come to mind are it’s good to have a generous hotspot allowance on your phone plan (or a cell network enabled iPad) for places with congested WiFi and there isn’t any simple way to connect to Ethernet networks.
A big advantage of not traveling with a laptop is many airports are OK with not physically inspecting tablets at security checkpoints.
Thanks for the input; I’d momentarily forgotten about the WiFi access issue. But when I was traveling more frequently, I only used my iPhone while en route. Once I arrived at my destination, I always had WiFi access so whether I was traveling w/an iPad or a MacBook wouldn’t have mattered for connectivity. What was important was access to various apps that at the time weren’t available or easily usable on an iPad.
A lot has changed in the last several years, guess I was so used to doing things one way didn’t occur to me to consider to consider other options. Thank you!
Not true.
“Pricey” is if you require those ports to be actual TB. If USB is good enough, as the original poster here indicated, you can get inexpensive powered hubs with 4 d/s USB-C ports. Read the entire thread: in the 2nd post I linked to two such hubs. At ≤$25 not at all “pricey”.
Tee hee! OK! Point made. Yes, I did read the entire thread and I ignored the suggestions because the stuff was too cheap. Yes, you and your lab have real world experience with these modest hubs, but when I see $25 I immediately question whether the product (high-speed data transfer with no hiccups) actually works. Hubs have been a problem for decades. . . . 
But returning to the recent question, why are there so few reliable hubs with so few USB-C ports? Why isn’t there a 20-port hub? You could design one that fits on the bottom edge of your monitor oh so elegantly and then you could pretend you were a switchboard operator in 1923! That would be exciting and nostalgic wouldn’t it?
Dave
The lack of useful usb-c “hubs” has been an issue for many years. My 2015 Retina Macbook (now a spare laptop) has only one USB-c port. The assumption was that USB-c hubs would quickly become available to overcome this limitation. No such luck!
Maybe it is a limitation of the USB-c standard/licencing requirements?
My M2 Macbook Air has two USB-c ports and I use a multipurpose hub with ethernet, HDMI, several USB-a ports and one USB-c port.
I also have a USB-c to USB-a cable that allows me to plug an extra SSD into the hub (luckily the Mac connects to it).
1 Like
I purchased the Plugable 5-in-1 last November. It has 3 downstream USBC/Thunderbolt ports up to 40GBS, plus one upstream USBC/Thunderbolt port to connect to your laptop, plus one USB-A at 10GB/s. All with modest power (laptop port is 60W).
Works great for data port expansion plus my one 3440x1440 display. I too use my laptop 95% of the time at my desk so plugging only one USBC cable cable to connect to everything is a plus, too.
Lots of video flexibility (2 x 4k or 1 x 8k), but for me it was Thunderbolt compatibility that closed the deal.
$129 at Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09NQPVZF3
1 Like
You might also consider a Mac mini and a monitor of your choice. The good news: there’s a huge selection out there and new ones come frequently. The bad news: it may take you some time to decide what you want, which is what happened to me. There’s a helpful current thread right here.
Thanks very much. I would consider a Mac mini but choosing a monitor is more than I can handle. Too many choices & I don’t know enough about monitors. I did look at the thread you mentioned; it convinced me that’s just not a road I’m willing to travel.
I’d recommend looking at retail stores that have working display models. If you can see them running, it should help you decide.
If you can bring a laptop computer to plug in (some stores may allow this), then you can try them out with your own contents and preferences, which would also help you decide.
Of course, web-stores will have a much much bigger selection, but you can’t try those out before buying, so you’re stuck relying on reviews (which may not be accurate) and comparing specifications (which you’re not comfortable doing).
Of course, Apple’s displays (both standalone and built-in to iMacs and laptops) are great quality, but they are fairly expensive options.
2 Likes