StarTech.com 4-Port USB-C Hub, 5Gbps, Bus Powered, USB C to 4x USB-A Hub with USB-C Auxiliary Power Input, 1ft/30cm Host Cable, Portable Desktop/Laptop USB Hub

Product Overview

AI-generated summary

For £37.90 ex-VAT, this StarTech USB‑C hub is the kind of practical “just make it work” accessory I’d recommend for day-to-day office and travel setups—especially if you’re connecting a laptop with limited USB‑C ports and you need standard USB‑A peripherals without faffing about. It’s bus-powered, so in most typical use cases (mice, keyboards, dongles, small USB drives, card readers, scanners) you won’t be constantly hunting for power adapters. StarTech also tends to be reliable on the boring parts (stable connection, sensible build quality), which matters more in B2B than shiny marketing.

That said, I wouldn’t buy it if your workflow involves higher-consumption devices or consistent fast data transfers. A 4‑port, 5Gbps bus-powered hub can get a bit flaky in real life if you plug in something that draws a lot of power (some external drives, bus-powered docking add-ons, etc.) or you’re moving large files all day—because you’re fundamentally sharing bandwidth and relying on the host’s power delivery. If you mostly need “a few ports for normal peripherals” and you want something compact, this is good value. If you need guaranteed performance with external storage or multiple high-bandwidth devices at once, spend a bit more on a powered/higher-performance hub (or use a proper dock) rather than gambling on what your laptop can supply.