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

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

#511

Post by hbarka »

Forgeties79 wrote: post #504
hbarka wrote: post #300

This beautiful block of metal is my go-to: https://www.amazon.com/Docking-Station-Dtation-Thunderbolt-E... Docking Station, 18in1 USB C Docking Station for Windows/MacBook Pro/Air/Thunderbolt 3 Dock with SSD Enclosure 3 HDMI DP100W PD3.0 RJ45 SD/TF Card Reader Audio&Mic 5 USB Ports.

What a beast. The only concern I have is the price point - seems a little low. You feel the build quality is good?

I’m quick to toss out bad hardware but this one has been with me for a year now and suits my triple monitor setup plus Macbook.

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

#512

Post by forgotmypw17 »

tomatowurst wrote: post #321
forgotmypw17 wrote: post #317

This article makes me feel very good about almost always being several years behind the edge when it comes to hardware. By the time I get around to using these devices, hopefully this kind of crap will get shaken out, and I'll have a nice stable of salvage accessories to choose from. For now, I'll stick to my (also salvaged) MBP with regular USB, audio jacks, MagSafe, HDMI, SD card reader, and an extra millimeter or…

the one problem is that when I look up the price of Caldigit and other brands that HN is vouching for they are $400~$500 range. I would need to burn through 8~9 $50~60 range alternatives that allegedly "suck" before I see returns, and by that time we would have 3 to 4 iterations of macbook. I guess if you like peace of mind then this makes sense but I hope nobody drops $500+ on a hub from reading HN comments, the "cr…

Did you intend to reply to my comment? I’m not sure how the quality of new hardware relates to my using only older hardware which is stable.

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

#515

Post by phkahler »

WhyNotHugo wrote: post #465
phkahler wrote: post #453

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>> I got another USB-C hub... I buy computers with the ports I need. No need for a hub at all. Even my MBA (from 2015) has an SD slot and regular USB ports. This USB-C only thing Apply tried was a big mistake.

Having half a dozen cables on my desk that I need to connect to my laptop every time I sit down would be a pain, and also a huge mess on my desk. Having USB-A ports would make no difference here, I want to deal with LESS cables, not DIFFERENT ones.

When somebody hands you files on a flash drive you need an adapter, where I just plug it in and go. When you take an SD card from a camera, or want to flash an RPi OS on it or whatever, you need an adapter. I just plug it in and go. When connecting a monitor, you need an adapter. I just use a standard HDMI cable and go. USB-C users are the ones that need a bunch of cables and adapters. This may change if the Apple fantasy of every device in production switching to USB-C ever comes true.

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

#516

Post by glmdev »

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/

This is true, though Ethernet seems to be an endemic problem. I have a ~$300 Dell WD19TB that works flawlessly to drive a couple displays, audio out, USB hub, and card reader, but the Ethernet died after a few months.

So now, comically, I have to have a type-C Ethernet adapter connected to the back of my Thunderbolt dock...

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

#517

Post by Forgeties79 »

hbarka wrote: post #511
Forgeties79 wrote: post #504

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What a beast. The only concern I have is the price point - seems a little low. You feel the build quality is good?

I’m quick to toss out bad hardware but this one has been with me for a year now and suits my triple monitor setup plus Macbook.

Good to know. This thread has been great. Wish it went up a month ago when I was looking in earnest haha but I like the OWC Thunderbolt Dock I picked up so I can't complain too much.

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

#518

Post by Evidlo »

loudthing wrote: post #160
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.

Honest answer: Apple is a lifestyle brand, however they manage to offer a superior product to the layman because they have tight control over both hardware and software codevelopment. In my experience, people tend to also like Apple hardware because Apple stores are ubiquitous, so when you need a repair done, you just take it to your local mall and get it fixed rather than mailing it away to Lenovo and hoping for the…

People prefer to use their own development environments, and the microcontroller family we have designed assignments around (Atmel AVR) has a cross-platform toolchain.

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

#519

Post by johnwalkr »

lliamander wrote: post #493
slipheen wrote: post #489

Earlier quoted context omitted.

(I am not the poster you were replying to) - I wanted to add that I have the 40" 5K2K version (U4021QW) and I'd recommend it very highly. I do the same input switching he mentioned, and it works very reliably. It also has support for pbp mode, where it can display each computer on a portion of the screen.

That is also a model I've looked at very closely. Good to know that it can do that! Currently I have a 34" 3440 x 1440, and with two separate docking stations (one for each laptop) and a USB hub for my peripherals that is connected to both docking stations. It's a lot of extra mess on my desk that ideally I would like to cleanup with having everything connect directly to the monitor. BTW, how is the resolution on the…

I use a different monitor but can confirm PBP is great for using multiple computers.

For most peripherals, there are software solutions. I ditched any kind of KVM, and my monitor does not have USB ports. However, I use my monitor to switch inputs and use barrier to use the same keyboard and mouse on multiple systems (up to four). It works well and when traveling I also use it to work on my work laptop, with my personal laptop off to the side for reference materials, calendar etc.

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

#520

Post by [deleted] »

bredren wrote: post #253
wwalexander wrote: post #154

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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…

I’d like to chime in to highlight how totally underrated the Blackmagic eGPU series Apple collaborated on was. They are virtually silent, have capable, reliable TB3 hubs. Outside the Mac Pro line, the BM eGPUs offered graphics capability to macs going back years that was only surpassed with the recent ASi MBPs. They are remarkably stable and ultimately a great value.

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