USB-C hubs and my slow descent into madness (2021) • Hacker News Board

Re: USB-C hubs and my slow descent into madness (2021)

#161

Post by zamadatix » Mon, Apr 04, 2022, 10:54 PM UTC

somethoughts wrote: post #59

zamadatix wrote: post #42

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The downside is all of the hardware ends up inside the laptop where you still pay for it and now can't upgrade it separately or reuse it with another laptop. Not that I ever remember Dell/Lenovo docks being $30 new anyways.

I remember I did receive a Dell dock complete with a spring mounted adapter for the actual laptop. I wasn't thinking that though - I was thinking something like the ones reviewed in the article but perhaps with a Apple Thunderbolt connector to prevent them from having to support Windows PC users.

You can get e.g. a Dell PR02X (traditional docking station/port replicator) for $30 or less the last couple of years now that they aren't compatible with new models but they used to also be upwards of $100 new before that ~5 years ago. There was a similar price decrease story after the prior generation of proprietary dock was deprecated as well and you'd see the same thing if the current type-C USB/Thunderbolt docks were replaced with a new physical interface. Has nothing to do with the hardware design and everything to do with excess inventory of an old product.

There is no such thing as "Apple Thunderbolt" just "Thunderbolt". It was developed by Intel, Apple was involved early in development with Intel and first to market >10 years ago but that's it. Most Windows laptops come with Thunderbolt and both Dell/Lenovo offer Thunderbolt Docks just as much as USB-C docks. Being Thunderbolt or not has no impact on whether or not the dock will support Windows/Linux vs macOS.

Re: USB-C hubs and my slow descent into madness (2021)

#162

Post by nerdawson » Mon, Apr 04, 2022, 10:54 PM UTC

moritonal wrote: post #7

If you want a decent dock you have to spend a bit of money. I went through this pain before accepting the cost and buying a CalDigit Thunderbolt 4 Element Hub[1]. Run's two 4k displays at 60Hz, any peripheral and charges my laptop. So good I bought a second. 1. https://www.caldigit.com/thunderbolt-4-element-hub/

As I was scrolling through the article, I was hoping to see the TS3 amongst the docks torn down.

I was happy with mine until I started using an extra display with it recently. The main display is hooked up via DisplayPort. The problem arose when I added a second display over USB C.

For some reason, when I plug the monitor into the dock, there's a faint electrical noise. If I plug the monitor into a USB C port on the laptop instead, it's perfectly quiet. Maybe I should attempt HDMI instead. Either way it's frustrating.

Re: USB-C hubs and my slow descent into madness (2021)

#163

Post by synicalx » Mon, Apr 04, 2022, 10:58 PM UTC

FWIW, I've been using a Samsung S65U monitor which has a built in USB hub, Ethernet, audio out and connects downstream via USB-C with something like 90w power delivery (it might be 65w, can't remember). So far after a couple of months it's been absolutely flawless with Macbooks and Windows laptops and in it's "high resolution display" mode I can get 100hz even over USB-C. It does only have 3 USB ports and plugging any kind of USB-A hub or port multiplier in seems to freak it out a bit, so as far as I can tell you're stuck with the 3 ports it comes with.

LG and Dell also make similar USB-C hub type monitors as well, in a few different sizes but AFAIK none of Ethernet ports on them if that's important to you.

Re: USB-C hubs and my slow descent into madness (2021)

#164

Post by kuschku » Mon, Apr 04, 2022, 10:58 PM UTC

Evidlo wrote: post #135

Why do people buy laptops that don't have this stuff already on it? I run an engineering course and it's almost comical how often students have to set aside their $2000 Macbooks and use the desktop workstations because they forgot their dongles at home. My Thinkpad has 6 USB ports (2 USB 3.0), SDCard, DisplayPort, VGA, ethernet and also e-sata and Firewire which I've never used.

The T470 is IMO the percect thinkpad.

3× USB 3.0 1× Thunderbolt 3 (with USB-PD support) Lenovo Charging port Lenovo Docking port HDMI, SDcard, Ethernet, SIM, SmartCard

It works with the oldest thinkpad docks and the newest thunderbolt docks at the same time.

Re: USB-C hubs and my slow descent into madness (2021)

#165

Post by AdamJacobMuller » Mon, Apr 04, 2022, 11:00 PM UTC

CharlesW wrote: post #124

jmyeet wrote: post #74

I've gone through a number of Thunderbolt docks over the last few years. I tend to prefer docks to hubs because you tend to use your laptop at several fixed positions, each of which might have 1 or more monitors, a network cable, accessories (eg keyboard, mouse, camera) and so on. It's easier to just plug in one cable from the dock to the Macbook that'll do everything including power it. A good example of this is the…

> If you have flickering display in particular, your first instinct should be to blame the cable. Any recommendations? I'm very happy with Monoprice's TB cables ( https://www.monoprice.com/product?p_id=24721 ), which start at $27 but are a lot cheaper than Apple's.

When I was having major issues with my first 5K displays I bought a few of the CalDigit cables (https://www.caldigit.com/thunderbolt-4-usb-4-cable/).

Not cheap, but, they work great.

Re: USB-C hubs and my slow descent into madness (2021)

#166

Post by nerdawson » Mon, Apr 04, 2022, 11:00 PM UTC

watermelon0 wrote: post #95

TheNewAndy wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It is missing Ethernet, which seems to be important to the author. Having heard positive things about caldigit, I got their USB-C Pro Dock and I get frequent screen blanking with my M1 Mac, and often some of the USB ports fail to work. I don't use the ethernet port, but I think it is a Realtek (so likely the same thing the author is complaining about) I have spoken to caldigit support and so far they have replaced th…

Does it have an audible coil whine? I've tested 5+ TS3 Plus docks, and all of them have a coil whine, which can be heard in a quiet room, without playing any music. Sometimes I like to work in silence, and the coil whine really bothers me.

That sounds like exactly the issue I've just described when I plug a USB C display into mine. I actually notice it, albeit to a much lesser degree, when I move a USB mouse connected to the dock.

Probably time for a change I guess.

Re: USB-C hubs and my slow descent into madness (2021)

#167

Post by andrewia » Mon, Apr 04, 2022, 11:02 PM UTC

Evidlo wrote: post #135

Why do people buy laptops that don't have this stuff already on it? I run an engineering course and it's almost comical how often students have to set aside their $2000 Macbooks and use the desktop workstations because they forgot their dongles at home. My Thinkpad has 6 USB ports (2 USB 3.0), SDCard, DisplayPort, VGA, ethernet and also e-sata and Firewire which I've never used.

Because it's convenient to carry around thin and light notebooks. Especially the ones that flip around to a tablet, making it easy to sketch ideas with a stylus. In addition, it becomes annoying to plug in multiple cables every time you wish to dock. USB, audio, power, ethernet, and video. USB-C is much more convenient when it works. I went through a similar churn as the author and finally settled on a StarTech-branded hub that has few bugs. Now, when I want to switch my setup between my work and personal laptops, I just unplug a single cable and switch devices. I can even connect my phone to the dock if I need to type a lot in an app, download a lot of data to it, or connect external storage.

Re: USB-C hubs and my slow descent into madness (2021)

#168

Post by sitkack » Mon, Apr 04, 2022, 11:04 PM UTC

zeristor wrote: post #34

moritonal wrote: post #7

If you want a decent dock you have to spend a bit of money. I went through this pain before accepting the cost and buying a CalDigit Thunderbolt 4 Element Hub[1]. Run's two 4k displays at 60Hz, any peripheral and charges my laptop. So good I bought a second. 1. https://www.caldigit.com/thunderbolt-4-element-hub/

Don’t you mean “so good you bought the company”?

For everyone under 40, there was a shaver ad that flooded the airwaves of our youth where some guy (Victor) would say, "I liked it so much I bought the company".

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qf22bddvLnc

Re: USB-C hubs and my slow descent into madness (2021)

#169

Post by evilduck » Mon, Apr 04, 2022, 11:05 PM UTC

CharlesW wrote: post #124

jmyeet wrote: post #74

I've gone through a number of Thunderbolt docks over the last few years. I tend to prefer docks to hubs because you tend to use your laptop at several fixed positions, each of which might have 1 or more monitors, a network cable, accessories (eg keyboard, mouse, camera) and so on. It's easier to just plug in one cable from the dock to the Macbook that'll do everything including power it. A good example of this is the…

> If you have flickering display in particular, your first instinct should be to blame the cable. Any recommendations? I'm very happy with Monoprice's TB cables ( https://www.monoprice.com/product?p_id=24721 ), which start at $27 but are a lot cheaper than Apple's.

Hmm, so out of curiosity I looked up both, Apple’s are actually cheaper per centimeter than MP, but don’t sell shorter overall cheaper options if that’s what you can use.

Re: USB-C hubs and my slow descent into madness (2021)

#170

Post by mason55 » Mon, Apr 04, 2022, 11:05 PM UTC

wwalexander wrote: post #154

moritonal wrote: post #7

If you want a decent dock you have to spend a bit of money. I went through this pain before accepting the cost and buying a CalDigit Thunderbolt 4 Element Hub[1]. Run's two 4k displays at 60Hz, any peripheral and charges my laptop. So good I bought a second. 1. https://www.caldigit.com/thunderbolt-4-element-hub/

I’d just like to chime in with the Kensington SD5700T [1]. I’ve tried a CalDigit TS3 Plus, an Anker PowerExpand 13-in-1, and the Kensington has by far been the most reliable. It doesn’t have built-in HDMI/DisplayPort out, but it’s easy to buy the appropriate cable to connect to your monitor (I recommend Club3D [2]). Especially if you’re trying to use an HDMI 2.1 or DisplayPort 1.4 display, as I’ve found most built-in…

Can second this recommendation for an M1 Pro MBP. Expensive, but I've been very happy with mine. A single cable in and out of my laptop to cover power (at a full 95W) plus monitors, USB-A peripherals, network, and everything else, super amazing.