Sitecom CN-386 USB-C Hub 4 port | USB-C male to 3x USB-C 3.1 + 1x USB-C Female Power Delivery Ports - Aluminum Hub

Product Information

USB Type-C has plenty of perks, and with one of the USB Type-C hubs you might be considering getting, you'll be able to copy files at USB 3.1 speeds, deliver enough power to charge a laptop, or use Alt Mode to send other types of data using DisplayPort or Thunderbolt 3connections. It costs around the same as the OWC Thunderbolt Hub, reviewed above, and matches that hub on ports, with the only difference being that the OWC’s 10Gbps USB-A port can charge a device at 7.5W, while Plugable’s USB-A port is equally fast but doesn’t offer device charging. For that, OWC’s hub wins our best budget recommendation. Some USB-C hubs go further by incorporating USB-PD passthrough. Here the idea isn’t so much to power the connected devices as to power the laptop the hub connects to, so that you just connect the laptop to the hub, and it charges as you use it without the charger taking up the spare USB-C port. The key thing here is how much power the hub can supply. Most will deliver 80W or more when used with a 100W charger, which should more than cover any laptop. However, with some you’re looking at 50W or less, which might mean missing out on fast-charging modes on some of those laptops that support them. We would have preferred to swap one of the USB-A ports for a second USB-C, but appreciate the powerful 20W charging capability of that USB-C—enough to fast-charge a phone or other smaller device.

Belkin USB-C 4-Port Mini Hub with Tethered USB-C Cable - USB

At 150W, the power supply should accommodate most of your needs, with up to 60W reserved for powering the laptop or tablet—enough for all but the biggest, meanest laptops. This UGreen unit is another basic USB hub, with four USB 3.0/3.1 Gen 1 ports connecting through a single USB-A connection. Disappointingly, what looks like an aluminium casing turns out to be plastic, which feels a little creaky in comparison to some models, but it’s robust enough for daily desktop or mobile use. The big advantage this one has over similarly priced rivals is a 5V micro-USB input, meaning it can charge devices while in use (without any fast charge support) and run one or more USB SSDs or HDDs – we tried it with one of each without any issues. The only downside? You’ll need to supply your own charger and cable, but it’s hard to grumble at this price. Take some of the claims made by some manufacturers with a pinch of salt. We tested a couple of hubs that promised high-end features but failed to deliver during testing. For example, they might promise 4K at 60Hz, but you might find that this only works on specific laptops and displays. Plugable’s USB4-HUB3A calls itself a USB4 hub but, as the branding on the front suggests, is also a fully certified Thunderbolt 4 hub that is competitively priced and boasts a fast USB-A port as well as the one upstream and three downstream Thunderbolt 4 ports. in that respect, it is a better solution than the company’s more expensive TBT4-HUB3C, reviewed later on.

4-in-1 USB-C Expansion

Still, for Windows laptops, MacBook, and Chromebook users who only need a couple of reliable ports, this makes it onto our list of best USB-C hubs.

Thunderbolt 4 hubs and docking stations 2023 Best Thunderbolt 4 hubs and docking stations 2023

It is priced the same as the Caldigit Element Hub, which is still our favorite Thunderbolt 4 hub, with its four 40Gbps/18W Thunderbolt 4 and four 10Gbps/7.5W USB-A ports. However, if you own a large power-hungry laptop, the Belkin’s 96W USB PD charging will impress.

The 4-Port USB-C Hub

This does make it reasonably hefty but still much easier to travel with, and is perfect for laptop professionals often on the move and working on location. There are still a couple of caveats here. First, your device needs to support a DisplayPort 1.4 video output over USB-C, which will count out many Chromebooks and some MacBooks and Windows laptops. Second, the hub itself takes 15W of power, which means that – even with a 100W USB-PD charger – you may find some laptops not charging at their highest speeds. But if you’re happy to live with these compromises, this is one of the best USB-C hubs we’ve seen. Caldigit has sacrificed one of the TB4 ports for a dedicated DisplayPort, which is fine if you need that video port but not as flexible as leaving three downstream TB4 ports with which you can add adapters for external displays.