USB hubs of type A and type C in the test: find a connection

Notebooks are becoming ever slimmer. That’s good, but the cosmetic treatments have consequences: DVD burners have died out, memory card readers are rare and practical USB ports have been reduced to a minimum. If you are not currently working in a fully equipped office, you could be confronted with an acute lack of connections on the laptop at home. Medicine, on the other hand: USB hubs. COMPUTER BILD has tested a lot, here are the best.

The processing of the device is very pleasant thanks to the solid housing. the Sharkoon 4-port USB 3.0 hub has fast USB 3.0 connectors that allow data transfers at a fairly high speed. All in all a good and still cheap hub.

USB hubs are not rocket science. They are simple devices that provide your notebook or computer with additional USB sockets. First, the COMPUTER BILD testers check the workmanship: What housing material is used and how valuable is the hub overall? Then it’s time for the speed tests. A lot of data is sent through the hubs via external storage. Also an important aspect: Are there extras like an additional power supply? Such details can ultimately determine the test victory.

Imagine you only have one socket in the living room. In order for all electrical devices such as televisions, lamps or stereo systems to get electricity, you need several sockets – so buy a power strip. A USB hub – the English term “hub” here means “hub” – offers the same function for USB devices. USB connections ensure data and power transfer to external devices such as hard drives, mice or smartphones. Hubs are available in two connection variants: for USB type A and for the newer variant USB type C. Which hub you need depends on the sockets on your notebook or PC. Some current notebooks only have USB-C sockets, then only a hub with a USB-C connection cable is an option.

Do you always have to turn the USB plug around so that it sits in the socket? Then you are dealing with a rectangular type A USB connection. The plug only fits horizontally in one direction. The test winner among the USB-A models is the Xystec USB 3.0 hub. It even packs a shovel on it and has a separate power supply. Cell phones, for example, charge faster with it. All tested hubs add four USB ports to notebooks. Practical: The Icy Box IB-HUB1426-U3 from Raidsonic has two type A and two of the new type C connections, while the other devices in the test only offer type A sockets. The extra sockets must share the power of the notebook’s USB socket. This means that they transmit data in a throttled manner. Fortunately, the speed losses of the test candidates were limited, they only lost between 11.8 and 13.9 percent when writing and reading.

the Transcend TS-HUB2K dropped a bit in comparison, but only Amazon’s USB 2.0 hub blundered drastically with speed losses of up to 68 percent. However, Amazon’s junk hub also only has outdated USB ports. All other candidates step on the gas with fast USB 3.2 of the first generation – theoretically up to 2.5 gigabytes per second are possible. In addition to speed, the processing quality is important. While Pearl and Amazon let the plugs wiggle in cheap plastic cases, Raidsonic, Sharkoon and Anker score points with aluminum or higher-quality plastic. Despite the cheap processing, the Xystec hub through, not least thanks to the separate power supply – this plus brings the extra points for the test win.

Type C sockets are smaller than type A and have rounded sides. The plugs fit into the USB-C socket in both directions – there is no fumbling and turning. The test shows another advantage: the speed loss is lower than with the USB-A docks at an average of 7.6 percent when writing and almost 10 percent when reading. In general, however, the difference only becomes clear when transferring large files. There is no noticeable difference with smaller documents or individual photos. In the field of Type-C hubs, Amazon won the test despite fewer USB ports because the small box also has a network connection. So the slightly faster one has to Aukey CB-C64 be content with second place. Like the Type-A hubs, almost all candidates have fast first-generation USB 3.2 ports. Only the lame Digitus DA-70243 has to make do with USB 2.0 sockets. The Sharkoon hub is the best processed. However, the simple aluminum case could be smaller.

The test shows how important the USB variants are when making a purchase. Most of the candidates in the test slowed down only slightly, but the USB 2.0 hubs slowed down drastically. Some hubs have extra features: Xystec 3.0 hubthe test winner among the Type A USB hubs, has a separate power supply. AmazonBasics gives its candidate a LAN socket and thus wins among the type C hubs. When buying, make sure that the workmanship is good, because loose plugs do not always ensure a secure connection.