Over the years, the tech companies behind every popular laptop has been working hard to make their products slimmer and sleeker. While it’s nice to have a computer that more easily slips into your bag, it comes at the cost of functionality. Lots of laptops nowadays have limited the functionality of what they can do out of the box. You’ll be lucky if your laptop has more than one USB port on it. If want to expand the feature set of your slim and sleek laptop, what you can do is pick up a USB hub. This USB-C hub from Anker can do just that for you, and right now, it’s on sale for as low as black. $18. Amazon has it on sale for up to 28% off for a limited time.
5-in-1 Hub
The Anker USB-C hub contains five different functions. It’s equipped with two USB-C ports, two USB-A ports, and an HDMI port.
The two USB-C ports are not identical, and are not intended for the same use cases. The first of which is a PD input that can be used for charging only, not supporting data transfer. You can use this either to charge your accessories like a pair of headphones via you’re laptop, or you can use this to charge your laptop directly over pass-through charging. This way your laptop charger can stay at home and you can plug in with a USB-C charger instead. The USB-C port supports up to 100W max.
The other USB-C port is used for data transfer, able to move files from a flash drive or external SSD to your laptop in just seconds. It supports speeds of up to 5Gbps. The additional two USB-A ports also each can transfer data at speeds of up to 5Gbps.
Lastly, we have the HDMI port. This output will allow you to connect your laptop to a second display at resolutions of up to 4K at a refresh rate of 30Hz. This will let you either duplicate what is on your laptop screen or extend your display to effectively double your workspace. Note that neither USB-C port supports the video output.
Anker has this USB-C hub available in an array of colors. It comes in black, blue, green, grey, and white. However, the majority of them have only been discounted to $21. The steepest discount comes on the black version which is currently on sale for just $18.
