Plugable Thunderbolt 4 TBT4-HUBC3 hub is here

Plugable Thunderbolt 4 TBT4-HUBC3 hub

The Plugable Thunderbolt 4 TBT4-HUBC3 hub is now available, and no, don’t throw away your older TB3 dock just yet.

Thunderbolt 4 (TB4) is the same speed as TB3 (40Gbps) but has double the PCIe bandwidth at 32Gbps. That means it can natively support two 4K or one 8K displays and have more downstream Thunderbolt ports. It can achieve up to 3000Mbps data transfer rates for external SSD storage.

Now let’s not get TB4 confused with the new USB 4 standard – it is only 20Gbps and supports USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 at 10Gbps. The Plugable Thunderbolt 4 dock supports all these standards.

Plugable Plugable Thunderbolt 4 TBT4-HUBC3 hub

WebsitePluggable Technologies
PriceA$225 with a $15 coupon
Warranty2-years
FromAmazon AU
Accessories1m TB4 cable A$39.95 2m TB4 cable $51.51 (prices subject to currency fluctuation)
CompanyUS company Plugable make a range of Thunderbolt and USB docks, devices and adapters. It is one of the more reliable suppliers.
MoreGadgetGuy Plugable news and reviews

Basic specs

Intel owns Thunderbolt 4. It licenses host and client chips to computer makers like Apple and those using other chips. This is one of the first ‘compact’ certified Thunderbolt 4 hubs. It is a forerunner to many more complex docks with more functionality. For now, it fulfills the need to power dual monitors and three downstream TB ports.

The 60W upstream power is more a function of the Intel standard, and that TB4 cables only carry up to 100W. Most TB4 laptops have a plug pack and USB-C upstream charging so this is not an issue.

The third downstream port can host a TB3 or USB-C dongle for added USB or other ports. Don’t forget that most Thunderbolt 4 computers have 2 x Thunderbolt 4 discrete ports, so you could use two of these docks as most Intel TigerLake CPUs support six displays.

ChipsetIntel JHL8440  (Goshen Ridge)
Tunnelling capabilities (32G PCIe, USB3(10G), two displays (up to DP1.4)
Native interfaces: x1 PCIe 8GT/s, 1x USB 3.2 Gen 2 (10Gbps) Intel VT-b DMA device security
PowerDC 20V/5.5A/110W – the dock uses about 40W when all ports are in use the maximum spec
Upstream60W minimum
Ports3 x Thunderbolt 5V/3A/15W each
Monitors2 x 4K@60Hz or 8K@30Hz (6K@30Hz on Mac M1(
Adapters available for TB4 to HDMI, DP
Daisy chainUp to six devices, including other docks (shares 40Gbps data)