By • 1:00 pm, October 17, 2018 • • USB-C battery packs, chargers, hard drives, cables and hubs will future-proof newer Macs. Photo: Anker USB Type C — it’s no longer a novelty but an emerging connectivity standard for Apple products. As a newer, more powerful variation of the same USB we all know and love (well, kinda), USB-C features higher power and faster data transfer than its predecessors via a smaller connector. Advertisement While older USB Type A and B were a great gift for Mac users — few mourned the passing of ADB and SCSI — USB is often finicky. Just plugging in an old-school USB cable can prove challenging, since you must position the connector just so for it to slide smoothly into the port.

That often means several tries to achieve the proper angle and orientation. Those obstacles disappear with USB-C because, in addition to its smaller size, it is designed to be reversible — with no up or down orientation, just like a Lightning cable — and the cables can have the same type of connector on both ends. About USB-C While the Type C connectors are not backward-compatible with USB-A and USB-B, the fast USB 3.1 standard can be used across multiple generations of connectors, allowing adapters to link with older devices. USB-C can transmit simultaneous video signals and power streams for connecting and powering DisplayPort, and HDMI devices. USB-C cables are bidirectional, so a device can send and receive power and transmit data simultaneously. With the standard in a USB Type C port, a device can support up to 100 watts of power, but not all USB-C ports support USB PD.

Starting in 2015, Apple introduced USB-C by outfitting the, following up with USB-C connectivity via Thunderbolt 3 ports for the 13- and 15-inch 2016 MacBook Pros. USB-C is universal as opposed to an Apple proprietary standard, and is destined to appear on additional Apple and other devices over time. Observers predict that eventually USB-C may end up replacing Thunderbolt, DisplayPort and other older connection types. Meanwhile, a huge slate of accessories are compatible with the new connector, adding additional power and speed to your computing experience. We chose the best USB-C accessories in several popular categories: hubs/docks, battery packs, cables/adapters, chargers and hard drives.

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What to look for in USB-C accessories USB-C hubs and USB-C docks USB-C hubs are designed for boosting performance, offering faster data transfer speeds, and powering multiple external displays. Many creative professionals, content creators, gamers, and 4K workspaces that use them benefit from a smoother workflow. To choose the right hub, determine how many and what kinds of ports you need, the amount of heft you can tolerate, and how well it blends in with your other devices. Some hubs include camera card slots and Gigabit Ethernet as well as older connectors for mice and keyboards. You’ll want something fairly streamlined if you intend to take your hub on the road. Also consider whether your hub connects directly to your computer or is attached via a cable. USB-C battery packs The best USB-C battery packs use Type C ports for both input and output and have at least one USB-C port and one USB-A port.