Needs to filter whether it can show HDMI 4K at 30Hz or 60Hz. And related to that, for video, it’s possible to have 2 4K 60hz through or one or none.
Also filter whether it’s one USB-C connects to computer or two USB-C connects to computer. With two USB-C connected to computer, can pass through more types of USB to accessories.
Finally, it doesn’t show matches that I know are matches.
// I buy these to test, but don’t want to waste time testing duds, so spend time trying to figure out if/when the claimed stats are possible.
> Needs to filter whether it can show HDMI 4K at 30Hz or 60Hz. And related to that, for video, it’s possible to have 2 4K 60hz through or one or none.
I don't think they'd bother, because none of these docks can do it. USB-C 3.1 inherently can't support a 4k@60hz display, due to bandwidth limitations. And it certainly can't run two of them.
You'd have to jump up to a Thunderbolt 3 dock for that sort of thing.
Why are they making these so complicated when average people don't even make the difference between a VGA and DVI cable?
For a few years I didn't buy new hardware and recently I started seen "HDMI cables with / without ETHERNET" I thought it was some crappy marketing, wrong Chinese translation of just a "scam" like the HDMI to water tap adapter, but after looking on the internet I discovered it was real.
For choosing the right product based on a list of spec requirements I can highly recommend the price comparison website Geizhals [1]. They offer an insane amount of filter options over a wide category of products. Want USB C hub with Power Delivery, Gigabit LAN, a card reader and at least 2 display options? Here are your options: [2]. Also works for Mainboards, TVs and a whole lot of other stuff
Unfortunately this doesn't fix any of the confusing bullshit around USB versions and specs and port shapes. And it muddies the issue by mixing "3" and "2" with "C", which describe entirely different things. My first search looking for 3 USB-C ports brought up this behemoth: https://www.amazon.com/Ethernet-Adapter-VEOOVE-Samsung-Unive...
2 of the USB-C ports are USB 2.0? WTF is that. Nobody wants that.
And the third is just PD, no data. Searching for 2 ports is no better - they’re all one data plus one PD (with the exception of one that’s macbook-specific, so it can pass-thru two ports because it’s using 2 on the host).
It seems like it’d be more realistic to have a tick-box for “a usb-c port” and a tick-box for “a PD port”.
Not only for macs... I have 4 raspberry pi4 powered through an USB hub and spent quite a bit of time looking for one that had at least 4 ports and that every port could deliver a minimum of 5V-3A. The US amazon had a few, but trying to find them (or similar) in several european Amazons was quite difficult.
I was so pissed a year and a half ago when I realized that none of the hubs had a Thunderbolt pass-through.
The new Anker 7 in 1 has a 'USB-C data' port. Given there's no claim or picture of video out, I'll bet that's all it does.
And the tail on these. It's almost always too short to make it useful to plug it into the back of a thunderbolt display.
I think the Thunderbolt 3 monitor I got recently is my last planned Thunderbolt 3 purchase. I'm not sure if I can hold out long enough for USB-4 to land, where hubs are expected to be hubs again. But barring lost or damaged equipment, I'm going to try.
I would prefer if it had less products but actually reviewed them, there is so much crap on Amazon you really need to try something out, disassemble it, sometimes even measure it to figure out if it's crap or not.
SEO Spam really ruined product search / reviews.
Just last week I tried hard but couldn't find a good review of USB-C Power Adaptors, just page after page of SEO optimized spam without actual content.
Thanks so much people, I really appreciate all your feedback. I read all comments, already answered to some them. I will try to respond to every one, but can't promise that.
I noted down all the feedback and ideas for improvement and will tackle those points:
* better filters (video resolution, displayPort, card readers, power delivery) and sorting by price, "no-feature" search
* Better and cleaner design
* Moar data: definitely Thunderbolt 3 hubs and usb-c hubs of higher quality (anker?)
* implement reviewmeta to check the reviews of each product
> * Moar data: definitely Thunderbolt 3 hubs and usb-c hubs of higher quality (anker?)
Are you talking about adding hubs that aren't available on Amazon? When I started to use my 13" mbp as a desktop station I was surprised how hard it was to find a decent hub, and I couldn't find anything on Amazon that worked. I tried several hubs that seemed to work, but they interfered with wifi.
I ended up with a CalDigit TS3 Plus, and it's been really good so far. I would not have found that on a site that only reviews Amazon products, but I would have really appreciated an actual recommendation rather than just a large set of products to compare.
This is great. I always wonder why amazon itself is so useless in this space. The only thing you can go is price and reviews there, without any good comparisons between products.
I like wirecutter for this. Their picks are rarely the most expensive and they try to recommend things that last long. I am happy they can make a dollar or two of my referral link pick for the research work they do.
Yep, Amazon is utter garbage at category filtering. They have some different filters depending on category but ultimately just stop short by a few miles.
It's silly too because other online vendors have no problem implementing it.
Just a word of caution, I believe it is against the affiliate agreement that you show prices. I mean, two of the first four now have the wrong price -- the price probably changed on amazon's side. I believe that's why Amazon doesn't want affiliates to show prices.
4k60 + gigabit is not possible without going up to Thunderbolt 3 - there isn't enough bandwidth otherwise. The best you can do is 4k60 + USB 2.0 (so a gigabit Ethernet connection would cap out at ~300mbps in practice.) See https://www.bigmessowires.com/2019/05/19/explaining-4k-60hz-...
DisplayPort 1.4 changes this, but everything seems to be stuck on 1.2
100W is, of course, possible.
I use a CalDigit USB-C Pro Dock with my MBP: https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B07VL675DT - it's TB3, but it can fall back to USC-C (with reduced capabilities, of course). It uses Intel's newer Titan Ridge chipset. The older and more common Alpine Ridge chipset is TB3 only.
Nice work. I miss the ability to filter by video support. I got this one [1] without reading the fine print, and it only supports 4K at 30Hz, not 60Hz.
I'm actually still looking for a hub that will do 4K/60Hz HDMI/DP and power delivery (and preferably 1-2 extra USB-C ports), so that I can power my MacBook Pro with it, and have it deliver video to my external display, all while only having one cable going into the MacBook. Not dual monitors, just a single display while the lid is closed.
From what I can tell, that's only possible with an expensive Thunderbolt dock.
I was shopping for that the other day but didn't pull the trigger; here are some things I found. Thunderbolt docks have come down from ~$300 to ~$100 so you may be better off with that route.
I have bought this [1]. It costs around 40$, does PD at 60W, 4K Display Port, 2xUSB2 (due to bandwidth restrictions - for me this is fine as I have a time machine hard Drive and a USB mic attached) and 100MBit RJ45. I also bought a 1m USB-C extension cord, which makes it possible to completely hide the dongle under my desk.
No issues with any of the ports so far. I would definitely recommend looking for DP instead of HDMI, because it seems to use less bandwidth. You can also get 2 DP 4k@60Hz with PD from the same vendor.
To work around macOS' awful monitor restrictions (i.e. lack of general MST support), we bit the bullet and got a Dell WB19TB [1] (Thunderbolt dock). It sucks from a wiring perspective but it works.
(To those that go down this route, be aware: you cannot use both DP ports on this dock as-is -- again, macOS lacks MST support. One monitor must be connected to the Thunderbolt add-on module.)
I can recommend the Thinkpad Thunderbolt 3 dock. It's fully compatible with the MacBook Pro. With the latest firmare (or gen2 of the dock - there are two generations), it supports MBP with 2x4K@60Hz (on gen1, one of them needs to be driven from the second Thunderbolt/USB-C port). No DisplayLink needed.
It has one USB Type-C in with 3 USB Type-C out plus 4 USB Standard-A out. One of the C outputs supports downstream charging. Should just be a matter of time until hubs using this chip are widely available.
Yes, I don't care if they're just plain USB, no Thunderbolt or fast charging.
Every "hub" I've seen has maaaybe twl USB-C ports and two or three USB-A ports—which makes me think that USB-A will never die and we'll be stuck with both of them forever.
This is really cool. One more bit of data that would be helpful: cord length. Almost all of these have short cords that are great for portable use cases, but not ideal for use at a desk.
This really didn't make things any less confusing. If anything else, I'm more confused by just a massive spam of product tiles as the first thing I see. It feels like I misclicked an ad in my Google search and ended up at a knock-off product website from abroad.
What you really need to be doing is making recommendations, product breakdown, and even label things as your "choice" and why. Right now, it just looks like a glorified affiliate link farm and that feels dirty.
Spamming users with a wall of product is not the solution.
One of the things that blew my mind was that in the USB-C spec, you can't have a male to female cord, but I was only able to find two hubs on amazon with a detatchable cable.
Why you ask?
I have a mac and a PC on my desk, and i plug my kb,mouse, and headset (usb sound card) into the hub) and just swap one cable instead of three to game. If you have a better solution that has hub/kvm -> usb-c for the mac, i'm all ears.
I am extremely frustrated at the lack of options for USB-C multiport adapters. The majority of the models seem to be manufactured by brands I have never heard of. Any that seem to be decent quality and have decent port selection are also extremely expensive.
Apple decided to eliminate all data ports except USB-C on its notebooks several years ago, yet they don't offer a robust multiport adapter? (I guess you can spend $70 if you want the privilege of being able to plug in a conference room HDMI adapter, but not much else.)
I am also completely confused on how many of these multiport adapters work. One I purchased in the past required that I install drivers on my Mac. Others seem to not require that. Can I plug USB-C adapters into USB-C adapters, if say, I wanted to plug a USB-C to Ethernet adapter into my main USB-C multiport adapter? Does it depend on the adapters? Does any USB-C multiport adapter that has a female USB-C port allow me to charge the device the adapter is plugged into? I seem to have had mixed results with that in the past.
After struggling with countless hubs now, having drives disconnect and displays freak out I'm now convinced the reason Apple only offers adapters like single USB-C to USB-A and no hub solution is because deep down they know that the hub technology just isn't reliable or feasible at all and only 1 to 1 port conversions are actually reliable in this spec.
Happy to be proven completely wrong, but honestly I've yet to see a hub that can reliably keep drives connected and only the Apple single C to A cable manages to do it reliably enough across 5+ hours and the fact Apple doesn't even ship a $100-$300 hub speaks volumes to me.
Very nice project! Can you tell us a little about your tech? How did you crawl Amazon's USB listings, did you use their API? And then how did you figure out if an item has the feature you are looking for: What was your parsing and extraction logic like? Finally, how often are you refreshing your index?
I'm always interested in projects that have a clear path to monetization.
No option for DisplayPort? Currently trying to find a way to run two screens from my 2 port MacBook Pro (Macs don't support display daisy chaining for some reason) and the HDMI dongles I've used before have been so incredibly janky and unreliable.
The two ports on this laptop are an absolute nightmare, this wasn't my choice because it's a work machine but please no one else buy this thing because it's pure suffering, hubs never work reliably only cables that work are the single C to display port cable and the single official Apple C to A cable.
Every hub I try has drives disconnecting on their own, HDMI displays freaking out and so on. This isn't pro level computing if my data and displays don't work reliably.
Here's a few filters off the top of my head that you might consider adding:
* Price
* DisplayPort ports
* Maximum power pass-through
* Is the ethernet port gigabit or just 100mbit ( e.g. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06Y5N3YCD/ - You generally can't get 4k60 + gigabit without thunderbolt 3.)
You might also want to consider adding docks, or perhaps create a second website for those. (In my mind, the main distinction between the two is weather or not it has a built-in power supply - it looks like none of yours do.)
Do not forget to use Amazon Product api to fetch price and mention the last price update in product disclaimer, otherwise you may be violating affiliate program terms, and may get your account suspended.
Cool that you have an option to turn off affiliate links but since you are providing value and product recommendations with this site I'd personally say it's fine to remove that option.
[+] [-] Terretta|6 years ago|reply
Also filter whether it’s one USB-C connects to computer or two USB-C connects to computer. With two USB-C connected to computer, can pass through more types of USB to accessories.
Finally, it doesn’t show matches that I know are matches.
// I buy these to test, but don’t want to waste time testing duds, so spend time trying to figure out if/when the claimed stats are possible.
101 Intro: https://www.howtogeek.com/211843/usb-type-c-explained-what-i...
301 Deep dive: https://www.bigmessowires.com/2019/05/19/explaining-4k-60hz-...
[+] [-] maxsilver|6 years ago|reply
I don't think they'd bother, because none of these docks can do it. USB-C 3.1 inherently can't support a 4k@60hz display, due to bandwidth limitations. And it certainly can't run two of them.
You'd have to jump up to a Thunderbolt 3 dock for that sort of thing.
[+] [-] tsukurimashou|6 years ago|reply
For a few years I didn't buy new hardware and recently I started seen "HDMI cables with / without ETHERNET" I thought it was some crappy marketing, wrong Chinese translation of just a "scam" like the HDMI to water tap adapter, but after looking on the internet I discovered it was real.
[+] [-] chx|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] dmos62|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] calaphos|6 years ago|reply
[1] https://geizhals.eu/?cat=nbdock [2] https://geizhals.eu/?cat=nbdock&xf=5206_2%7E5207_DisplayPort...
[+] [-] TekMol|6 years ago|reply
https://www.productchart.com
It has an awesome interface and covers the US and the UK.
[+] [-] xenonite|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] vxNsr|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] ebg13|6 years ago|reply
2 of the USB-C ports are USB 2.0? WTF is that. Nobody wants that.
[+] [-] soneil|6 years ago|reply
It seems like it’d be more realistic to have a tick-box for “a usb-c port” and a tick-box for “a PD port”.
[+] [-] mmastrac|6 years ago|reply
- Thunderbolt 3 support filter
- Power delivery capability (usually 60W-100W if at all)
Both of those are valuable for mac shoppers.
[+] [-] loopbit|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] hinkley|6 years ago|reply
And the tail on these. It's almost always too short to make it useful to plug it into the back of a thunderbolt display.
I think the Thunderbolt 3 monitor I got recently is my last planned Thunderbolt 3 purchase. I'm not sure if I can hold out long enough for USB-4 to land, where hubs are expected to be hubs again. But barring lost or damaged equipment, I'm going to try.
[+] [-] pen2l|6 years ago|reply
If someone happens to have experience with this, share your thoughts please!
[+] [-] Roritharr|6 years ago|reply
SEO Spam really ruined product search / reviews.
Just last week I tried hard but couldn't find a good review of USB-C Power Adaptors, just page after page of SEO optimized spam without actual content.
[+] [-] mdolon|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] junkern|6 years ago|reply
I noted down all the feedback and ideas for improvement and will tackle those points:
* better filters (video resolution, displayPort, card readers, power delivery) and sorting by price, "no-feature" search
* Better and cleaner design
* Moar data: definitely Thunderbolt 3 hubs and usb-c hubs of higher quality (anker?)
* implement reviewmeta to check the reviews of each product
* better quality of product data/prices and so on
[+] [-] japhyr|6 years ago|reply
Are you talking about adding hubs that aren't available on Amazon? When I started to use my 13" mbp as a desktop station I was surprised how hard it was to find a decent hub, and I couldn't find anything on Amazon that worked. I tried several hubs that seemed to work, but they interfered with wifi.
I ended up with a CalDigit TS3 Plus, and it's been really good so far. I would not have found that on a site that only reviews Amazon products, but I would have really appreciated an actual recommendation rather than just a large set of products to compare.
[+] [-] ec109685|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] kylehotchkiss|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] delfinom|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] bonestamp2|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] intpbro|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] tn890|6 years ago|reply
- 100W PD
- 4k60Hz (preferably through USB-C)
- Gigabit ethernet
I have not been able to find a _single_ docking station or hub that can check these 3 boxes :(
[+] [-] nfriedly|6 years ago|reply
DisplayPort 1.4 changes this, but everything seems to be stuck on 1.2
100W is, of course, possible.
I use a CalDigit USB-C Pro Dock with my MBP: https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B07VL675DT - it's TB3, but it can fall back to USC-C (with reduced capabilities, of course). It uses Intel's newer Titan Ridge chipset. The older and more common Alpine Ridge chipset is TB3 only.
[+] [-] joshmgross|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] leipert|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] atombender|6 years ago|reply
I'm actually still looking for a hub that will do 4K/60Hz HDMI/DP and power delivery (and preferably 1-2 extra USB-C ports), so that I can power my MacBook Pro with it, and have it deliver video to my external display, all while only having one cable going into the MacBook. Not dual monitors, just a single display while the lid is closed.
From what I can tell, that's only possible with an expensive Thunderbolt dock.
[1] https://www.amazon.com/dp/B079GSMZ7G
[+] [-] wmf|6 years ago|reply
https://www.bigmessowires.com/2019/05/19/explaining-4k-60hz-...
https://smile.amazon.com/Cable-Matters-Multiport-DisplayPort...
https://smile.amazon.com/Dell-Business-Thunderbolt-USB-C-Doc...
[+] [-] kekub|6 years ago|reply
[1] https://www.amazon.com/Cable-Matters-Multiport-DisplayPort-E...
[+] [-] withinrafael|6 years ago|reply
[1] https://www.dell.com/en-us/work/shop/dell-thunderbolt-dock-w...
(To those that go down this route, be aware: you cannot use both DP ports on this dock as-is -- again, macOS lacks MST support. One monitor must be connected to the Thunderbolt add-on module.)
[+] [-] ak217|6 years ago|reply
You can get this on sale for reasonable prices. Here's a second hand dock currently going for $80: https://www.ebay.com/i/303430714025
[+] [-] InternetOfStuff|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] junkern|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] crooked-v|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] baybal2|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] pzb|6 years ago|reply
It has one USB Type-C in with 3 USB Type-C out plus 4 USB Standard-A out. One of the C outputs supports downstream charging. Should just be a matter of time until hubs using this chip are widely available.
[+] [-] frosted-flakes|6 years ago|reply
Every "hub" I've seen has maaaybe twl USB-C ports and two or three USB-A ports—which makes me think that USB-A will never die and we'll be stuck with both of them forever.
[+] [-] larrywright|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] urda|6 years ago|reply
What you really need to be doing is making recommendations, product breakdown, and even label things as your "choice" and why. Right now, it just looks like a glorified affiliate link farm and that feels dirty.
Spamming users with a wall of product is not the solution.
[+] [-] lbotos|6 years ago|reply
Why you ask?
I have a mac and a PC on my desk, and i plug my kb,mouse, and headset (usb sound card) into the hub) and just swap one cable instead of three to game. If you have a better solution that has hub/kvm -> usb-c for the mac, i'm all ears.
[+] [-] brandon272|6 years ago|reply
Apple decided to eliminate all data ports except USB-C on its notebooks several years ago, yet they don't offer a robust multiport adapter? (I guess you can spend $70 if you want the privilege of being able to plug in a conference room HDMI adapter, but not much else.)
I am also completely confused on how many of these multiport adapters work. One I purchased in the past required that I install drivers on my Mac. Others seem to not require that. Can I plug USB-C adapters into USB-C adapters, if say, I wanted to plug a USB-C to Ethernet adapter into my main USB-C multiport adapter? Does it depend on the adapters? Does any USB-C multiport adapter that has a female USB-C port allow me to charge the device the adapter is plugged into? I seem to have had mixed results with that in the past.
[+] [-] whywhywhywhy|6 years ago|reply
After struggling with countless hubs now, having drives disconnect and displays freak out I'm now convinced the reason Apple only offers adapters like single USB-C to USB-A and no hub solution is because deep down they know that the hub technology just isn't reliable or feasible at all and only 1 to 1 port conversions are actually reliable in this spec.
Happy to be proven completely wrong, but honestly I've yet to see a hub that can reliably keep drives connected and only the Apple single C to A cable manages to do it reliably enough across 5+ hours and the fact Apple doesn't even ship a $100-$300 hub speaks volumes to me.
[+] [-] 6841iam|6 years ago|reply
I'm always interested in projects that have a clear path to monetization.
[+] [-] cocochanel|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] whywhywhywhy|6 years ago|reply
The two ports on this laptop are an absolute nightmare, this wasn't my choice because it's a work machine but please no one else buy this thing because it's pure suffering, hubs never work reliably only cables that work are the single C to display port cable and the single official Apple C to A cable.
Every hub I try has drives disconnecting on their own, HDMI displays freaking out and so on. This isn't pro level computing if my data and displays don't work reliably.
[+] [-] nfriedly|6 years ago|reply
Here's a few filters off the top of my head that you might consider adding:
* Price
* DisplayPort ports
* Maximum power pass-through
* Is the ethernet port gigabit or just 100mbit ( e.g. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06Y5N3YCD/ - You generally can't get 4k60 + gigabit without thunderbolt 3.)
You might also want to consider adding docks, or perhaps create a second website for those. (In my mind, the main distinction between the two is weather or not it has a built-in power supply - it looks like none of yours do.)
[+] [-] jitendrac|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] dvcrn|6 years ago|reply