★★★★★ 4
Need power AND data? You'll need a second power supply.
Style: 8-in-1
If you only need to connect peripherals like an external drive to your computer or tablet and provide power to the peripheral devices, then this hub should work for you. Please note that it WILL NOT provide pass-through power to your computer or tablet without adding an additional power source. Read on if you feel this may apply to you.
I purchased this Anker hub for the very specific purpose of connecting my DSLR camera to the Cascable App on my 4th generation iPad Air. This allows my clients to preview their portraits on a larger screen during a photoshoot.
My hope was, that out of the box, the hub would connect my camera and iPad (which it did) as well as charge my iPad throughout an entire day of work. Unfortunately the product description provided by Anker does not clearly state that pass-through power to your laptop or tablet is only possible by connecting an additional power supply to the PD in port (USB-C) which is located next to the DC power port that connects to the included power supply. It's by no means an elegant solution, but it gets the job done. UPDATE: this is now addressed by amazon in the "About this item" section.
Fortunately I had a spare 65W USB power adapter that I was able to connect to the PD port and get power to my iPad. If not I would have to buy that additional piece of equipment to make this work for my needs.
My thanks to others who have taken the time to mention this in their reviews - saving me the frustration of sending this back.
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Reviewed in the United States on October 13, 2024
