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Spooner83

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jan 31, 2011
395
388
Hi, is there a hub or dock with multiple usb-c ports? I only have 2 on my MacBook Air but I use multiple usb-c devices. I can't find any online.

Thanks!
 

Phil77354

macrumors 68000
Jun 22, 2014
1,926
2,035
Pacific Northwest, U.S.
Lots of them.

For example, check this thread here on MacRumors:

Which USB 3.0 Hub? [MERGED]

For myself, I recently purchased the CalDigit TS3 Plus. It may be more than what you need, but I can say from my short experience with it that I am very satisfied with it. Well made, solid device. I purchased from Amazon, where CalDigit is the seller.

Check this out as well:

 
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Spooner83

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jan 31, 2011
395
388
Lots of them.

For example, check this thread here on MacRumors:

Which USB 3.0 Hub? [MERGED]

For myself, I recently purchased the CalDigit TS3 Plus. It may be more than what you need, but I can say from my short experience with it that I am very satisfied with it. Well made, solid device. I purchased from Amazon, where CalDigit is the seller.

Check this out as well:

These are all regular USB ports, I'm looking for a hub with a few usb-c ports that are on my 2020 M1 MacBook Air
 

gnasher729

Suspended
Nov 25, 2005
17,980
5,565
You need to decide what you actually need. I don't have any USB-C devices yet, so I'd like a USB-C hub with lots of USB-A ports. There are various mixes available. A few with one strong charger to charge your Mac, and then a random collection of other ports. USB-C, USB-A, video, ethernet etc. Just google for "USB-C hub" and then you check what exactly they offer.
 

ght56

macrumors 6502a
Aug 31, 2020
839
815
Apple should have made and offered this accessory from day 1 of their USB-C vision (along with a multipurpose hub as well.)

Unfortunately, what you are looking for is rare and almost nonexistent...I am not sure if it the lack of chipsets, the licensing, the lack of demand, or what, but I want one of these as well. I've seen a few from completely unnamed companies (most of which looked pretty seedy), but I have never purchased any given USB's ability to fry the host device.

One solution could be getting a hub that has a lot of USB-A ports and then purchasing male USB-A to male USB-C cables. Of course, a downside is that most of these "USB-C hubs" only support the 5 Gbps protocol through their USB-A ports, which if you are using an external SSD can be a significant bottleneck.

OWC makes a Thunderbolt 4 multiplier, which in theory should be cross-compatible with USB 4 (i.e., capable of working with USB devices), but OWC hasn't clarified this yet. Someone who is smarter than me with those technicalities might be able to clarify this.
 
Last edited:

Phil77354

macrumors 68000
Jun 22, 2014
1,926
2,035
Pacific Northwest, U.S.
These are all regular USB ports, I'm looking for a hub with a few usb-c ports that are on my 2020 M1 MacBook Air
Perhaps we are not using the right terminology here. There is more to it than the connector itself. For example, take a look at the following explanation:


The CalDigit TS3 Plus I mentioned earlier will probably do what you are asking for. It takes a bit of study to think through the various devices you are wanting to connect, not to mention any future plans.

My own setup is an older (mid 2014) iMac, which has Thunderbolt 2. I have a combination of external drives including several USB-C drives (LaCie mobile drive, and Samsung T7). The CalDigit hub handles everything and the data connections are giving me the proper transfer speeds, to the extent that my older iMac can support. When I eventually upgrade to a newer desktop computer, everything will still be compatible and I'll have even better data transfer speeds.
 

coolajami

macrumors 6502
Jun 6, 2009
253
176
the OWC Thunderbolt Dock and Thunderbolt Hub (both are in pre-order status) offer extra 3 USB-C /TB3 ports plus the one you have to connect your laptop. The Dock is for a desktop setup where the hub is for more portable setups.


Both are fairly pricey options but there are the only available. if you're looking for hubs with more than 2 USB-C ports they should be on a TB3 otherwise it is not possible.

Currently, the USB-C architecture alone cannot support hubs with more than 2 USB-C ports that could pass data due to the bus design. So if you want to have more than 2 USB-C ports in a hub, this has to be a TB3 hub or dock.
Hope that helps.
 
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