I got wind of this one at CES back in January of this year, though I didn’t really get around to playing with it until a few weeks ago. Because = why? In a pool of very bright and shiny things (solar cars, nanny robots, and every flavor of AI you care to think of) something that bills itself as a “10 Port USB C Charging Station” can’t really compete. Or so I thought. But when I wasn’t looking, it was voted some CES version of the belle of the ball in its category. Now, having it hooked up to my own rig, I get it. You can call it a charging station if you like, but I’ll go further and call it a game changer.

Here’s the deal: over the last not-very-long, there’s begun to be a lot of things that need charging via USB-C. Not everything, yet. But give it a minute. Even things that less than a year required some sort of plug-into-an-electrical-socket type of charge, are now coming ready to be USB-C’d. There are good reasons for that. For one thing, USB-C is, quite simply and in super layman’s terms, better. Also, since it’s becoming pretty universal, there’s just less futzing around to do.

Get good quality, high wattage USB gear, and you’re good to go on so many devices.

And therein lies the rub. Back in the days of USB2.0 and micro-USB (that’s the stuff my husband insists on calling the pyramid connection, because of the shape of the plug itself) we never used to (at least, I seldom used to) think about the power and strength and wattage of the charger and cables. I’d just grab something, stick into the wall or the port in my car and then either wonder what was taking so long, why it was flaky or why it was charging so well “on this one”. In the era of USB-C, though, we can no longer cling to our ignorance. They’re not all created equally: you get that pretty fast. I mean, they never were, but now we’re being forced to notice in part because one  connection can power my laptop, charge my watch and recharge my AirPods and my water flosser. And, clearly, they don’t put the same demands on the system, but they all need to be charged.

In this power-aware world, the Plugable 10 Port USB-C Charging Station is, I said early on, a game-changer. At my desk, mine lives on the deskspace below the elevated plinth that supports my main laptop. Now, thanks to Plugable, I have a veritable array plugged in and the device gives power in a priority I choose. Plugable’s patented PriorityShare(TM) technology delivers a very simple prioritization system that you set up almost instinctively: left to right. So, in my case, my main computer gets the far left position. Always. My secondary device of the moment (iPad, lesser status laptop, you name it) gets position two. My backup drive gets a position somewhere in the middle, because now — with the luxury of all of those plugs — it is always plugged in, ready to back up at regular intervals, but it never needs to be high priority.

The device itself is beautifully designed. It’s physically appealing and, despite having TEN ports, it’s incredibly unobtrusive. Additionally, it’s sustainable, as it’s made from 50% recycled aluminum and 75% recycled plastic. There is literally nothing here to quibble about. If you want a post-modern docking station that has the ability to do it all, it’s here. ◊