Can you daisy chain USB hubs on the M1 Macs?

1

Anyone have any real-world experience daisy-chaining USB hubs?

Okay, so the shiny new computer is coming. I have a lot of little USB-A gadgets. Shiny new computer has no USB-A ports. I have this USB-A hub:

…and I have this USB-C hub…

If I connected the former to the latter…

  1. How bad would it make @ismh feel?
  2. Would anything blow up? My MacBook Pro, perhaps?
  3. Would it work well?
  4. Would I be able to continue hanging out here with dignity? (Well, as much dignity as I currently have, anyway)

Alternatively, how would you go about making 10+ USB-A ports available to the new MBPs?

2

I’ve used a HooToo USB-a hub (that looks like yours) downstream of Anker USB-c to connect a keyboard and the occasional usb stick. It’s slow but I haven’t had any other problems.

https://www.amazon.com/Anker-Upgraded-Adapter-Ethernet-Pixelbook/dp/B07X8ZLYLR/

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I should also note that I’m not, like, totally lazy. I did a bit of research, and according to usb 3 - Are there issues with stacking USB hubs? - Super User and https://electronicguidebook.com/how-many-usb-hubs-can-you-daisy-chain/, it seems like it’s generally fine to do this, but with some technical limitations that I will require more patience to understand.

So, thanks @WayneG and anyone else who’s doing this with M1s for making me feel more confident!

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4

It should work. However, there may be a way to connect the Anker hub directly to your M1 Mac. I have that same hub and I believe it connects via a USB-B 3.0 cable, so you could also get a USB-C to USB-B 3.0 cable and plug the it directly into the USB-C port on your Mac.

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5

I agree. I originally connected my HooToo using an adapter but the Cable Matters cable would be a cleaner solution, if you have the port to spare. I didn’t.

https://www.amazon.com/Adapter-Anker-High-Speed-Transfer-Notebook/dp/B08HZ6PS61/

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Treat it the same as daisy chaining extension cords. It’s fine. Just don’t daisy chain anything high power. Mouse? No problem. Keyboard? No problem. Charge a portable battery? Less good idea. Plug in a spinning external hard drive that requires a bit of extra power for spin-up? Less good idea. Filling all 10 slots on that hub at once? No.

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The Anker 10 port hub is has it’s own power adapter. So from a power perspective, at least, daisy chaining shouldn’t be an issue.

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8

I am chaining a USB Ankur hub to an OWC Thunderbolt 4 dock. Not exactly what you are asking about, but the concept is possible.

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