Introduction

I would like to thank TDBT for supplying the review sample.

TDBT is a boutique brand catering to all things Thunderbolt with their product lines. Instead of attempting to build out a distribution network, you can find their products directly on their site or through Amazon marketplace. They sent us the HybridHub-S, which offers all the usual I/O of a Thunderbolt USB-C based hub, but includes the unique element of providing external M.2 SATA storage as well.

A Closer Look

As TDBT products don't need to rely on catching a potential customer's attention in a busy retail store, their offerings, including the HybridHub-S, ship in a solid, but plain brown box with some black branding on it. That said, some detail about the device's capabilities are provided on one side of the package. Opening it up, you will find the unit set in the center of a cardboard tray with the accessories underneath.


You will receive a small screw driver and two sets of screws for both the housing and the SSD and two thick thermal pads. This means you will have a spare of each in case you need it. A basic manual essentially focuses on the display output capabilities of the HybridHub-S and how to install the M.2 drive.


Out of the box, the first thing you will probably notice is the heft of the unit itself. It is quite heavy and feels surprisingly sturdy. Clocking in at 126 g, it is up to twice as heavy as similarly equipped hubs on sale on Amazon that lack the storage capabilities.


On one side, you will find a Gigabit Ethernet port, full-sized HDMI 2.0 connector, and a VGA plug. On the other is a USB-C port with 100 W power delivery capability to charge your device. Three USB 3.0 ports and a power LED round out the rest of the I/O on this side of the HybridHub-S.


Next to the permanently attached cable is a small SSD on/off button, which is nice to have, but luckily, M.2 SATA drives are perfectly hot-plug capable. The Thunderbolt connector itself looks solid and is gold-plated.


Looking at the belly of the beast, there is a small cover held in place by a single screw. You have to remove it to reveal the M.2 SATA bay which can hold devices of up to the 2280 form factor. An additional tidbit is the RTS5411 from Realtek, which is a 4-port USB 3.0 hub controller.

Assembly and Performance

Installing the SSD is essentially done in the same way as adding it to a notebook or a motherboard. Simply clip it in at an angle and then screw it down. The thick thermal pad makes firm contact with the SSD on one and aluminium cover on the other side. Interestingly enough, as there is no little groove, prying the cover off once everything is assembled is really tricky. It would have been nice to have something one's fingernail or a flat-head screw driver could latch onto for the necessary leverage to pull the cover off the thermal pad.


As most such units, using the HybridHub-S provides a solid and functional experience. The times where Thunderbolt hubs were finicky with your Apple notebook are long past for the most part, and the TDBT HybridHub-S manages all kinds of devices just fine. Even HDMI hot-plug works well, which is the area where some may unearth some issues around screens not being detected, for example. TDBT advertises 4K at 60 Hz, but doesn't mention anywhere if lower resolutions allow for higher refresh rates than that. Thanks to the used HDMI 2.0 standard, going above 60 Hz was not an issue, either. In my case, it managed to provide the 1440p at 75 Hz of the ASUS display just fine.


Obviously, with the included storage possibility, the HybridHub-S is able to push the Kingston M.2 SATA drive quite nicely, only loosing around 10% at most compared to how the drive should perform when installed directly to a motherboard.

Overall, the TDBT HybridHub-S delivers on all its promises. On one hand, all the USB 3.0 ports translate into proper USB 3.0 performance, the hot-plug attributes of all the relevant I/O included. On top of that, the HDMI 2.0 output manages to provide everything you would expect to see from that version of the interface. The only somewhat odd one is certainly the VGA output, as that seems like a pretty rare requirement. While those who need this will value it highly, the broader user base could be more interested in a second digital output or SD card reader instead. Otherwise, the HybridHub-S is pretty well balanced with the mixture of USB-A ports, Gigabit Ethernet, and 100 W power delivery capability, which means that single port on the host system is utilized to the fullest extend possible. In terms of the M.2 SATA storage capability, the HybridHub-S performs as expected, and this somewhat unique element makes it a bit easier to talk about pricing as well. With many similar hubs selling for $20–$30 on Amazon and a similar cost for external USB-C based M.2 enclosures of similar quality, the price premium the TDBT HybridHub-S asks for at $70 (currently on sale for $55) is justifiable—it is a capable all-in-one solution.