CalDigit Element 5 Hub review: The CalDigit Element 5 Hub adds more Thunderbolt 5 ports to your setup
As Thunderbolt 5 devices become more widely available, the CalDigit Element 5 Hub offers a compact, no-frills expansion option with only the essential ports.
Thunderbolt 5 was finalized in 2024, but it wasn’t until January’s CES 2025 show that we started to see devices get announced. CalDigit, known for its excellent peripherals, was quick as always with its Element5 Hub.
It was soon followed by its more full-featured docks, but the Element 5 Hub is great for something more affordable and compact. Plus, it still has eight downstream ports to utilize.
Thunderbolt 5 has many benefits over Thunderbolt 4, including increased bandwidth. According to CalDigit, the Element 5 Hub delivers peak storage performance of up to 6,200MB/s, or twice as fast as its Thunderbolt 4 predecessor.
CalDigit Element 5 Hub review: Design
The Element 5 Hub is essentially the Element 4 Hub that came before it — Just with Thunderbolt 5 support instead of Thunderbolt 4.
CalDigit Element 5 Hub review: It’s compact enough to fit into most desk setups and has an external power supply
It’s rather thin, with the ports spread out amongst the front and back. The shell is extruded aluminum with a matte black PVC core around the ports.
The power supply, a surprisingly small external brick, connects to the back of the hub. The upstream Thunderbolt 5 port is on the right side, making it more ideally situated to the left of your Mac.
Currently, MacBook Pro, Mac mini, and Mac Studio all support Thunderbolt 5. Since the MacBook Pro has two Thunderbolt ports on the left, that orientation for the upstream port is probably a wise choice.
CalDigit does include rubber rails in the box, which can connect on the top or bottom, making the whole thing reversible if you want to put it on the other side of your machine. You’ll have to deal with upside-down logos, though.
CalDigit Element 5 Hub review: Ports
In total, there are eight downstream ports on the CalDigit Element 5 Hub. There are four on the back and four on the front.
CalDigit Element 5 Hub review: The front-facing ports on the hub
On the front:
- USB-C (10Gb/s) 7.5W of power
- USB-C (10Gb/s) 7.5W of power
- USB-A (10Gb/s) 7.5W of power
On the back:
- Thunderbolt 5 Type-C with 15W Power Delivery
- Thunderbolt 5 Type-C with 15W Power Delivery
- Thunderbolt 5 Type-C with 15W Power Delivery
- USB-A (10Gb/s) 7.5W of power
- DC Power In 180W power supply
The port selection here is sufficient. If you’re looking for anything more, that’s why the larger, more capable hubs exist.
You’ll find things like HDMI, Display Port, or card readers on those, which may be more suitable, depending on your needs. We’re big fans of the Type-C ports, so the abundance is welcomed.
The rear ports on the hub, including the power input
Three Thunderbolt 5 ports mean you can easily connect more Thunderbolt accessories. For example, an external SSD, a faster CFExpress Type-B card reader, and an external display.
The upstream Thunderbolt 5 port that connects to your Mac can also deliver power if using it with a portable Mac or iPad. It supports up to 90W of PowerDelivery, just shy of the 100W maximum the Type-C ports are capable of.
Our only gripe would be charging speed for the downstream ports. We’d have liked to see 15W on the front-facing USB-C ports, rather than only 7.5W.
The front-facing ports are the ones most likely to be used for things like charging a device, be it your wireless mic or your iPhone, as 7.5W is unnecessarily slow.
The whole hub has 180W of input. We’d have liked to see extra effort put into increasing that output power by a hair so you don’t have to use the rear ports just for fast charging.
Using the hub, you can connect up to three displays depending on your machine. For Mac users, it’s more limited, supporting only two external displays via Thunderbolt.
CalDigit Element 5 Hub review: There are nine total ports on the Element 5 Hub
The two displays can be 8K at 60Hz or 4K at up to 480Hz. Additional displays can still be connected directly to the Mac, again, depending on your model.
Should you buy the CalDigit Element 5 Hub?
There are two questions you have to ask yourself when considering the Element 5 Hub.
First is whether the ports meet your needs. Assuming they do, the second question is whether or not the hub is well-designed and performs as expected.
We can’t answer the first one for you, but we can help with the second. It’s an excellent design, distilling a hub into a compact external brick on your desk.
The space gray color matches Apple’s pro machines and is hard to find fault with. Even the reversible design is appreciated.
CalDigit Element 5 Hub review: It lacks a card reader and other ports, but it’s cheaper and more compact than any other Thunderbolt 5 hub
Ports are capable and plentiful, especially with USB-C. All too often, we find hubs that prioritize too many Type-A ports at the detriment of Type-C.
As most of our gear is USB-C these days, that’s the port we look for most. Though a couple of legacy ports are still handy, especially as Apple has banished them from the Mac mini.
CalDigit Element 5 Hub review: Pros
- Industry-standard space gray aluminum body
- Latest Thunderbolt 5 tech
- Plenty of Type-C ports on front and back
- Legacy Type-A ports on front
- Thunderbolt 5 cable included
- Reversible design
- Stackable with a second hub
- Double the data support over Thunderbolt 4
CalDigit Element 5 Hub review: Cons
- Lacks ports of more expensive hubs
- PD output could be higher on some ports
- Only dual display output for Mac
CalDigit Element 5 Hub Rating: 4 out of 5
Where to buy the CalDigit Element 5 Hub
You can find the CalDigit Element 5 Hub on Amazon for $279.
