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A few years ago I feel like it was pretty easy to find cheap USB-C docks with Ethernet, video, USB, and SD card ports for under $30. These days you typically have to pay substantially more if you want a single dock with all of those functions. But RAVPower is running a sale that lets you pick one up for just $13 when you use the coupon BEUC1 at checkout.
Is the VAVA 8-in-1 USB-C hub the best USB-C dock that money can buy? Certainly not. It could use a few more USB ports, for example. But it’s one of the most versatile you can find for under $20 at the moment.
Here are some of the day’s best deals.
Charging & hub accessories
- Insignia 112W 3-port wall charger for $40 – Best Buy
- Insignia 140W dual-port wall charger for $60 – Best Buy
- Amazon Basics 2400 mAh AA rechargeable batteries (12-pack) for $13 – Woot
- VAVA 8-in-1 USB-C hub for $13Â – RAVPower (coupon: BEUC1)
- UGREEN 7-in-1 USB-C hub for $21 – Amazon
Wireless audio
- Anker Soundcore Life P2i true wireless earbuds for $20 – Newegg (coupon: SSCU2828)
- JBL Live Free NC+ true wireless noise-cancelling earbuds for $50 – JBL
- JBL Flip 6 portable Bluetooth speaker for $100 – Amazon
- JBL Charge 5 portable Bluetooth speaker for $140 – Amazon
- Sennheiser Momentum 4 wireless over-ear noise-cancelling headphones for $260 and up – Amazon
 Laptops
- Asus Zenbook 14.5″ 2.8K OLED touchscreen laptop w/Core i7-13700H/16GB/512GB for $700 – Best Buy
- MSI Summit E14 Flip Evo convertible 2.8K laptop w/Core i5-1240P/16GB/512GB for $700 – MSI
Other
- Logitech MX Anywhere 3 compact wireless mouse for $55 – Lenovo (coupon: BTSMXSALE )
- Amazon Basics 256GB USB 3.1 flash drive for $15 – Amazon
Don’t buy a USB hub until early next year! USB 4 with Alt-Mode will soon be in stores.
Almost insta-bought that USB hub, until I noticed in the description that they specifically mention support for “2018 Macbook Pro”, which leads me to believe it might not support M1/M2 Macs.
The mention is probably meant to imply that it doesn’t support earlier models, not that it doesn’t support the newer ones, Apple didn’t remove support for any of the Type C standards that are used by these docks. As long as you’re fine with the limitations of these things, they’re certainly not comparable to a Thunderbolt 3 dock, you should be fine. I got a Vava 9-in-1 dock myself (it comes with a 3.5mm jack, so it also works as an “external USB sound card”, so to speak), I’ve used it successfully with my S21Ultra, a Tiger Lake Pavillon and a 2019 Macbook Pro. The only device were one feature, the video output didn’t work, was a 2018 Vivobook.
I doubt that it would matter, unless the Thunderbolt ports work very differently on the M1/M2 MacBooks. But then it wouldn’t be Thunderbolt. It’s just a USB-C hub. If the device works if you connect it directly to the computer, it should work on the other side of the hub.
I would have bought one, at least for testing, if they had been shipping to Europe, since the price was very good.
Cheaper than my old Blitzwolf USB-C hub that got similar ports, though slower ethernet, which I have tried successfully on a friend’s M2 MacBook.
That RAVpower USB-C hub looked nice for the price. Unfortunately, they don’t ship outside of the United States of America.