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Test Drive: EZQuest Ultimate Plus Hub
19 December 2022
In preparation for (eventually) moving to an M-series Mac, we acquired an EZQuest Ultimate Plus Hub with a variety of input options to extend the rather limited USB-C ports of current Apple designs.
But we didn't connect it to an M-series Mac. Instead, we replaced our old Belkin USB hub connected to a 2010 MacBook Pro. To make the connection between the EZQuest's USB-C cable and our laptop's USB-A port, we used a $6 adapter.
A variety of data is transmitted through a USB-C port, including Ethernet, video and audio. Unfortunately, most current hardware does not offer enough USB-C ports to make all the connections you need.
A hub is, consequently, inevitable.
USB-A on an old machine like ours doesn't deliver every kind of data that USB-C does on the new machines. There's no video, audio or Ethernet, for example. So we aren't yet able to test those functions of the hub.
But we have a lot of USB-A devices from card readers to scanners to a Wacom tablet to a Logitech receiver to external drives. And we hooked them all up to the EZQuest.
Designed for Apple M-series chips, Intel-based Macs and Windows computers to support three external extended or mirrored displays
Operate dual HDMI 4K (one at 60Hz) external displays to support extended or mirror mode with HDCP enabled
One USB-C Power Delivery 3.0 port with pass-thru charging up to 100 watts with Fast Role Swap
Four 5-GB/s USB 3.0 ports
High speed Gigabit Ethernet network connection port with LED indicator
Simultaneous read-and-write SDHC or Micro SDHC card reader
VGA Port
3.5mm Audio Jack with Microphone 2-in-1
Three-foot nylon-braided USB-C Cable
LED power indicator
What attracted us to this model is that it has all the ports we use now so when we move to a USB-C computer, we'll be able to connect everything we currently rely on.
We've been using the Ultimate Plus Hub for a few weeks now. It's been completely reliable to the extent we almost forgot to review it. But it has a few issues.
The biggest problem we had with this hub was finding a place for it. At nearly six inches square it needs some room.
Because the USB-C cable that connects to the host is three feet long, we had some options. And we tried them.
We tried putting it out of site. If we had monitors connected to it, that wouldn't be a problem. Even the USB-A connections weren't an issue because once we plug something in, we leave it plugged in.
Details. Mouse over or tap for captions.
But the SD card reader had to be accessible. So moving it off the table and out of sight wasn't going to work.
There's a couple of other issues with the SD card reader's location. It's between the audio connection on the right and the power connection on the left, making it a little awkward to insert a card, especially if you use the USB port next to the audio port. Just not a lot of clearance there.
The other issue is that it's on the bottom edge of the unit so there's no clearance underneath. That's because the circuit board is in the lower part of the box.
All the video ports are on the other side of the unit with the Ethernet port and never need to be touched. It would have been nice to have the power connection there too so that side could face in an inaccessible position.
We resolved this for our current situation (which uses just one side of the box), by placing it to the side with the port on the right and elevated by a block of wood to give us space under the USB cables for existing USB cables and room to handle an SD card.
We also stacked a few other boxes on top of it (like an audio controller, our VOIP connection and a CompactFlash reader) and, while it runs warm, that was no problem.
We weren't able to test video (or audio and Ethernet for that matter) merely because the USB-A port we used to connect to the device did not provide a signal. A USB-C port would, of course.
But we can spell out the video support here for you anyway.
The hub uses the Silicon Motion chipset requiring a video driver supplied by InstantView to run the HDMI 2 and VGA ports. None of the other ports require the driver so we didn't install it.
The Ultimate Plus Hub actually has a built-in USB drive called InstantView that mounts on the desktop. From there you install the driver and don't have to worry about it again.
Once you have the driver installed you can connect up to three monitors to the hub in mirror, clone or extend modes. HDMI resolution up to 4K is supported (at 30 Hz and, where supported on Dp 1.4 systems, 60 Hz) as well as VGA resolution to 1080p.
By running our current peripherals through the device connected to our current laptop with an adapter, we're assured of having hardware compatibility to our peripherals when we eventually do swap out the laptop.
And because we're running Monterey on that unsupported hardware, we know we'll have software compatibility, too.
So we're as prepared for a smooth transition as you can get. Thanks to the Ultimate Plus Hub.
The Ultimate Plus lists for $169.99 on Amazon, a savings of $50 off the suggested retail price. And additional 10 percent discount can be had by ordering directly from EZQuest.
We wouldn't want to travel with the Ultimate Plus Hub because at roughtly 5x5x1 it's not compact. But then we wouldn't want to travel with all the peripherals we connect to it either.
But as a replacement for the missing ports on modern machines, it includes everything from VGA and HDMI to Ethernet, audio and USB-A. So we were able to connect and use our SD card reader, scanners, a Wacom tablet, a Logitech receiver, external drives, an Olympus audio recorder, our iPhone and cameras just as we always have.
We wish the port configuration was a tad bit more convenient but that's no reason to deduct points on an otherwise solid solution to a vexing problem.
So we're awarding all four corners to the EZQuest Ultimate Plus Hub.
