It would be perfectly understandable to dismiss the relevancy of a docking hub on a design site. The one currently on my own workstation is a device solely shaped by its purpose: to provide as many ports to connect and charge devices with the smallest footprint. Even thankful of its services, it’s an accessory stowed away from view. After happening upon the Red Dot winning Lon:HUB – a desk accessory with an innovative combination of cable management, wireless and cable connected power supply, and a line-up of accessible ports – it seems my WFH desk set up may deserve a design glow up while keeping connected.
The aforementioned laptop docking station I currently use costs about $240, delivering a plethora of ports and offering a power delivery of 87W. The makers of Lon:HUB are planning to launch with a sleeker, more colorfully finished, and flush mount docking station designed to clamp onto the back of a desk for $199. Intriguing!
The Lon:HUB takes an iceberg approach to its design, with the majority of its form factor hidden from view. Positioned underneath the surface, the desk organizer houses 5 outlets, 2 HDMI ports, and two outstretched arms designed for wrapping cords like spaghetti around the tines of a fork. Aboveboard, the hub’s flat imprint across the desk surface is both minimal and intuitive, with one 10 Gbps USB-C 100W port capable of multi-monitor setups, a pair of USB-A ports, an SD card slot, and most unique, a wireless charging landing pad.
If those specs aren’t sufficient enough to meet your connectivity needs, take note there will also be a Lon:HUB Pro edition. The $199 premium attached to the standard edition’s price brings an upgraded Thunderbolt 4 port, two HDMI 2.1 ports, two DisplayPort 1.4 ports, 2.5Gbps Ethernet, two 10Gbps USB-C, six 10Gbps USB-A, UHS-II SD-Card, 100W PD, and a QI2 wireless charger. Tech power users should feel as satiated as aesthetes will feel relieved by the subtraction of clutter.
Both standard and pro versions are set to launch soon, but interested parties will need to sign-up here to get connected.
