REVIEW: Dockcase Studio Smart USB-C Hub - truly smart
"A hub to own them all" - that's the motto of Dockcase's new USB C hub which is almost a must-have for all creators needing an all-in-one solution for example during travel.
If you are a computer user who feels that there is always a critical shortage of USB ports, then you either have a lot of peripherals or you use a Mac computer - known for not having too many USB C ports left after you have connected everything you need.
The latest addition is the Dockcase Studio Smart USB-C Hub 8-in-1 which not only solves the USB C issue, but also has a bunch of smart features. Among other things, you can charge your connected computer with USB PD (Power Delivery) at 100 watts, which means you can already skip a cable.
The device is easy to control via the touchscreen where you can directly see status and information, and also press on devices for more information and set various things, update firmware or rotate the built-in screen's display mode.
But that's just the beginning. This device can do so much more, and what I personally like is the integration with card reader functions, where you can mount SD cards and mSD cards of UHS-I/II type or CFexpress Type A/B, to load the images super fast into the computer.
Annons
All connected devices are detected by the device, which simplifies troubleshooting. USB PD up to 100 W - and you can see how much the devices are drawing or charging.Photo: Calle Rosenqvist
For those who have external monitors, it is perfect to use the hub as a device to control the HDMI connection to the monitor, since all data goes through the hub's USB C interface and onwards from there. The video outlet can handle 4K/120 Hz and is compatible with most computers and operating systems. The hub can also be switched to a balanced mode and an extreme mode, which adjusts the data throughput if more is needed for the current image going through the HDMI connection.
What makes it particularly good is the troubleshooting capability: for instance, it displays information about the devices you have connected to the hub, and if it is a screen, you see the resolution and refresh rate, which helps you identify problems with a cable, connector, or device that is not delivering the correct image, speed, or is otherwise malfunctioning.
In the test of CFexpress cards of Type A and B that exceeded the read and write speed of the hub, it still delivers what it promises: CFexpress Type A handles a data stream of 800 MB/s and Type B 1000 MB/s. Of course, one would have wanted a faster speed if using memory cards with higher speeds. But I can still say that it is worth a certain speed reduction during transfer - and that spells "control".
Annons
The card reader for SD/mSD also handles the overclocked speed of 160 MB/s for UHS-I cards. Additionally, there is a USB C port and a USB A port at 10 gigabit (USB 3.2 Gen 2).
The status box displays interesting data about the CFexpress card.Photo: Calle Rosenqvist
The status box that appears on the integrated touchscreen for device management is particularly valuable. Here, when you connect CFexpress cards, you get additional information about the card that is both interesting and important.
Among other things, you can see information about the card's capacity, temperature, as well as what type of card and brand it is. Perhaps not so exciting - but the cool thing is when you can also see the number of incorrect removals in the card's counter, health status (in percent) based on the number of hours the card has been used, and the total number of written and read gigabytes - information that you also get to see.
This status box, along with the number of errors that can also be seen for the card, shows how reliable the card is and the amount of data the card has handled. In this way, it is invaluable information about the card's health and may give an indication of how long it has left. However, this does not apply to SD cards, as this information is not saved for this type of memory card, but only with CFexpress.
