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South Korea, Seoul
1 Level
687 Review
40 Karma

Review on ๐Ÿ–ฅ๏ธ Anker USB C Hub PowerExpand - 8-in-1 Adapter with 100W Power Delivery, 4K 60Hz HDMI, Ethernet, USB C/A Ports, SD/microSD Card Reader - MacBook Pro Compatible by Tony Stennis

Revainrating 4 out of 5

Great 10Gbps USB-C Hub, worked with Anker support due to compatibility issues with PD4 iteration 1

Original Review (updates below): ------ The moment I read this thing I noticed at Revain, I bought it and it literally just arrived. Finally, 4K60 is just USB-C with other connectors (including up to 10Gbps) at a reasonable price. Unfortunately, the first two things I've done with it have both been disappointing. Getting to the point, Power Passthrough doesn't work with one of their own chargers. The first device I've tried connecting this to is my Anker PD4 with a single USB-C cable as the only device connected so I can test the claimed power of up to 100W (-15 for native power). I tried connecting it with a 2m Apple USB-C charging cable (with 100W power) and an equivalent CableMatters cable that also supports 100W. When plugged directly into my laptop, both cables start charging immediately and show up as 100W power adapters. When this Anker Hub is plugged in and either one is plugged into the power port on its side, the laptop will not charge (the laptop is a 16" Macbook Pro, I tried multiple ports just for fun). My second complaint is that it feels quite warm when absolutely nothing is connected to it. Why is he hot when he's not doing anything? I'm clearly not passing data or even power through it, so I have low hopes for it under load. The fact that it doesn't work in exactly the scenario they want most (MacBook Pro with one of their own chargers) seems like a pretty big flop to be. I have a lot of USB-C, but I decided to grab a few and give them a try. With the Apple 96W USB-C Charger, the device transfers power correctly. It shows that the laptop is delivering 79W (in this case it is outputting 17W). I also have an Aukey 56W charger that splits the power between a USB-A port and a USB-C port, which is 45 W power can deliver. Connected to this charger it also seems to work and shows up as a 30W AC adapter in macOS. Maybe the problem is with the anchor PD4? But it works great to power the laptop directly. Would love to hear from Anker about how these two products work together and what to really expect. That it's unreliable when it comes to power delivery isn't great, but performance and heat aside (it's getting a bit warmer now since it's powered by the Apple AC adapter, but still definitely holding up), the hardware looks good and feels good, just like the cable seems to be tight. It's also worth noting that there's a white LED ring on the side that always seems to be lit when plugged in. I don't know why he needs an LED. ----- Update June 22, 2020: I ran further tests and Anker contacted me to find out what the problem might be. I can say that the hub works as expected from a quick test with my iPad Pro 11" with the chargers listed above. It was able to draw power to both the iPad port and an Apple 96W charger on the other end to the iPad port as a Magic Keyboard connection The ethernet adapter showed up in the iOS settings and the external drive worked When connected through the Magic Keyboard, which as expected is a power-only connection connected to PD4.-----Update 1 July 2020: I have corresponded with Anker and they have sent me a replacement hub.It also does not work with PD4.I have tried several times. USB-C cable but they also sent a cable to test.I'm now increasing my rating from 2 to 3 stars because I'm becoming more and more suspicious of the PD4 and less and less of this hub.They claim they installed that separately from me setup without pr have tested obleme and I've posted a video showing the issues I've encountered so troubleshooting will continue. I was able to use ethernet on it with no problems. You still need to try to test throughput if you're trying to use a 10Gb/s USB-C enclosure and a 4K60 (+Ethernet) monitor at the same time. There will be new updates. ------ Update 7/10/2020: I kept talking to Anker support and they sent me a replacement PD4. The one I had was marked "Iteration 1" on the barcode, the one I received was marked "Iteration 2". I tested it and it works great with this hub, sending the right amount of power to multiple Macbook Pros and quickly charging an iPad Pro. Obviously the problem isn't with this hub, it's with the first iteration of PD4, so I'll update my review accordingly. Working with Anker support was great. I've also been able to test the USB-C throughput (no display control so far) and it's using 10Gb/s correctly. I've attached some additional images showing the various devices connected to it (keyboard dongle, SD card, USB-C 10Gbps external SSD enclosure, USB sound card, ethernet).

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