Looking for USB hub...

[DaveWT]

I am trying to find a POWERED hub with a minimum of 2 USB C ports and 2 USB A ports (some flavour of USB 3). In addition, I would prefer if it did NOT have a tethered cable for connection to my Mac, I want to choose my own cable there to suit length requirements. I don't need any other extra ports (VGA, card reader, HDMI etc.) I have scoured the websites of prominent makers I can think of but surely I have missed some. (No cheap Amazon foreign brands please.)

Has anyone got a suggestion for me, please?

 

[BilBo]

You're going to have fun finding a USB hub with just the ports you're looking for, Dave. 'POWERED' and 'hub' tend to be mutually exclusive in my experience. Have you considered a small Thunderbolt 4 dock? I'm thinking of pulling the trigger on one of these: https://www.sonnetstore.com/products/echo-dual-nvme-thunderbolt-dock in the near future.

The Echo has your requisite 2 USB-C ports, 2 USB 3.1 type A Gen2 ports, a Thunderbolt power port for connection to a Thunderbolt port on your Mac mini and a single Thunderbolt peripheral port that also can be a 3rd USB-C port if you'd like.

There are no VGA ports, card readers, HDMI or 2.5GHz Ethernet ports. However you can open the Echo up where you'll find slots for two NVMe blade hard drives. My plan is to put a couple of 2TB blades into the Echo; one is going to be my new Time Machine drive and the other blade is going to be a fast scratch disk for Affinity Photo and Designer. The extra USB & Thunderbolt ports are just icing on the cake…

 

[DaveWT]

Thanks Bill,
Wow, that is way more power than I was looking for, but I may have to give it some serious consideration as it is the closest I have come to finding what I was looking for. Way more money than I wanted to spend but it would be replacing an old Belkin hub I probably bought around 2007 and is therefore probably USB 1 (not even USB 2). So if I keep this new one 16 years also, perhaps the cost / year won't seem that bad.
I will do more digging into this product. Not sure if it comes with the power supply so that is one of the things I need to find out.

 

[BilBo]

The Echo is actually a $100 cheaper than it was last year when it first came out. All metal construction too, no plastic for miles. And it's made by Sonnet, who've been making quality Mac peripherals for at least 25 years.

 

[chas_m]

Most USB-C based hubs don't have their own power supply because USB-C itself supplies plenty of power (at least 80w) based on what machine it's plugged into.

 

[DaveWT]

Most USB-C based hubs don't have their own power supply because USB-C itself supplies plenty of power (at least 80w) based on what machine it's plugged into.

Good point, but hubs with more than one each of USB A and USB C ports seem scarce, even if I now remove the requirement for it to be powered.

 

[chas_m]

London Drugs has a few that are either a USB-C based hub that gives you 3-4 USB-A ports, or USB-C based hubs that give you a mix of USB-A, HDMI, Ethernet, and camera card reader. If you'll remind me next Zoom meeting (which won't be for a while, I'll show you one of the two I have.

 

[DaveWT]

London Drugs has a few that are either a USB-C based hub that gives you 3-4 USB-A ports, or USB-C based hubs that give you a mix of USB-A, HDMI, Ethernet, and camera card reader. If you'll remind me next Zoom meeting (which won't be for a while, I'll show you one of the two I have.

Ah yes that is what I have been seeing but not my desired USB-C based hub that gives a mix of USB-A and USB-C ports. I don't need the HDMI, Ethernet and card reader stuff. Bill's suggestion was wonderful but perhaps a lot pricier than I want to spend (or can justify).

 

[chas_m]

This is probably the closest thing you're going to find, and it's available for $55 from London Drugs:

 

[DaveWT]

Thanks for your efforts. I guess I am out of luck finding exactly what I like. That Satechi hub has no USB-C port(s) and I also don't like the very short attached cable. But I should perhaps give in on my demands for now. This hub would go a long way to replacing my ancient Belkin USB hub and would probably do for almost all the connections going forward. But in the future as I get more USB-C devices this one will start to look ancient again.

 

[BilBo]

Ah yes that is what I have been seeing but not my desired USB-C based hub that gives a mix of USB-A and USB-C ports. I don't need the HDMI, Ethernet and card reader stuff. Bill's suggestion was wonderful but perhaps a lot pricier than I want to spend (or can justify).

Dave, I don't know if you've pulled the trigger on a hub or dock yet, but I've just noticed that the Sonnet Echo is now $50.00 less expensive than it was when you started this thread 3 weeks ago…

 

[DaveWT]

Bill,
Thanks for keeping me informed. I still haven't jumped yet but need to take another look. I have been sidetracked lately with other stuff.

Dave

 

[BilBo]

Bill,
Thanks for keeping me informed. I still haven't jumped yet but need to take another look. I have been sidetracked lately with other stuff.

Dave

I understand completely, Dave. This iPhone 15 Pro Max that I've been playing with for the last few days has got me on a third and long. I have not thought at all about USB hubs and Thunderbolt docks.

And I think I believe in Santa again…

 

[DaveWT]

And I think I believe in Santa again…

Well let's hope you haven't been naughty!

 

[DaveWT]

Presently on the hunt for one of these: https://www.logiix.ca/products/usb-type-c-to-multiport-slim-hub

Seems to fit my description perfectly.

 

[chas_m]

London Drugs carries a lot of Logiix stuff, though I don’t off the top of my head know if we have that one.

If not, they’re based in Vancouver so you could easily order directly.

 

[DaveWT]

London Drugs carries a lot of Logiix stuff, though I don’t off the top of my head know if we have that one.

If not, they’re based in Vancouver so you could easily order directly.

Thanks Chas, I looked at LD first of course, and then tried to support another local retailer. That has not gone well, so I will likely have to order it directly from Logiix.