Plugable USB4 Cable with 240W Charging, 3.3 Feet (1M), USB-IF Certified, 1x 8K Display, 40 Gbps, Compatible with USB 4, Thunderbolt 4, Thunderbolt 3, USB-C, Driverless

good

Pros:• 40 Gbps USB-4, Thunderbolt 4 compatible• 240W Power Delivery compatible• High quality, flexible cable• Clearly marked that it supports 40 Gbps and 240W• Claimed USB-IF logo certificationCons:• None that I can find (this is really unusual for me!)This cable does what it claims, to the level I was able to test for USB-4 and Thunderbolt 4. It functionally works perfectly with 40 Gbps Thunderbolt devices with a Thunderbolt 4 (2020 M1 MacBook Air) computer. It claims logo certification, which is a much bigger deal than that may sound. It also supported 100W Power Delivery, the highest this computer, or pretty much any computer at this date supports.USB PD Revision 3.1 announced in 2021 is where the Power Delivery specification was updated to include 140W, 180W, and 240W. Previous PD specifications had a maximum of 100W. I am not aware of any computers that have been released yet that support the updated specification. This cable does claim to meet the updated specification, so definitely future proofed in this regard.I did test this with a Thunderbolt 4 hub, a Thunderbolt M.2 NVMe drive enclosure and more. They all worked perfectly at the 40 Gbps speed. With at least functional testing, this cable meets all claims of 40 Gbps support.The cable claims USB Implementers Forum (USB-IF) log certification, and includes the 40 Gbps and 240W logos. This is really a much bigger deal than that sounds. At 40 Gbps signal integrity is really, really important and requires proper engineering of the cable itself, the connectors, and the wiring. Logo certification also means passing the USB-IF certification tests in conformance to the defined test procedure. This takes rather elaborate test equipment capable of observing 40 Gbps signals, measuring eye opening, and all the other tests defined by the USB-IF. As someone that understands the significance of this test compliance, the logo certification gives me far more confidence in the performance of this cable.The updated USB-IF logos as well as the additional label on the cable also clearly define the electrical capabilities of the cable. In the case of this cable, up to 40 Gbps and 240W PD. Again, this is far more important than it may seem. Personally, this has become a real pet peeve for me. As I have acquired more USB-C cables, it becomes nearly impossible to just look at a cable and know what it is capable of electrically. It can look identical and only support 480 Mbps, 5 Gbps, 10 Gbps, or 40 Gbps, and 60W PD or less, 100W, or now 240W. Without on cable markings, once you take the cable out of the original packaging, it is really hard to tell. I’ve started adding labels to cables to tell what they are. This cable has both the USB-IF logo as well as another cable marker label. Again, this may seem trivial, but after you get a collection of cables, believe me it isn’t.I was very recently reminded about this. I was using a very high-quality cable from a very reputable manufacturer. The cable looked great with braided fabric covering. However, I was trying to use it for high-speed data. I was reminded though that I bought the cable for 100W PD support, but it only supported 480 Mbps (USB 2 equivalent) data, and lacked the USB Superspeed conductors. I knew to look, but even I was a bit surprised at slow data transfer rates. This Plugable cable solves this potential problem by both clear, on cable markings of the capabilities, and meeting all of the currently defined specifications. I don’t think I can emphasize how significant the markings are. Fortunately, the USB-IF has also recognized this and updated the logo markings. Again, this plugable cable has these logo marking and an additional cable marker label. (see photos of both)The cable itself appears to be of high quality. The rubber-like outer covering is slightly tacky, but flexible. The connector strain relief ends seem robust. The cable is 3’ long. About the only negative thing I could say about this cable is that it would have been nice if it were braided fabric covered, but it never claimed that either so I really can’t find that as a fault.I recommend this cable, and I am giving this cable a 5-star rating since it does everything it claims, and meets the very highest levels of specifications for both data bandwidth (40 Gbps) and power delivery (240W). There are most definitely lower priced cables, and if you don’t require the absolute highest specifications those lower priced cables may be a better alternative. However, if you require these specifications, or you simply want a future proofed cable that works optimally for pretty much anything you can do with it, this cable is for you. I will repeat yet again, the value of the cable markings, and this cable provides as well.The charger information as identified in the Mac System report with a 100W charger.AC Charger Information:Connected: YesID: 0x0000Wattage (W): 100Family: 0xe000400aCharging: No

I own several Apple products, including a few computers, so I always have a need for Thunderbolt cables. I use them both as monitor cables and to connect fast external SSD drives to my computers. I already have Thunderbolt cables from Apple, Belkin, and Cable Matters. Those cables have all worked great, but they are also very expensive. This cable from Plugable is much more affordable, but the quality is just as good as the more expensive ones from what I can tell so far. The speed when connecting external hard drives to my Mac is just as good. I have also used other products made by Plugable before, so I expected the quality to be excellent based on that previous experience. If you need a quality Thunderbolt cable, but you don't want to spend a ridiculous amount of money, I highly recommend this one.

I have gotten a lot of USB-C cables over the years, and this was an early one that touted “240W charging”. I have nothing that uses that much power, I didn’t really get it for that, I got it to be future proof. So I can’t really rate it on that claim, I’ll have to take their word for it. The same for the 8k display resolution. I only have a 4k monitor.Overall, it’s a decent cable. My only issue is that it’s rather stiff. So if you are going to use it on a fixed computer and monitor, that won’t be an issue. But with smaller devices, it may cause extra strain on the USB-C connectors.

USB type C cables are are no longer simple and interchangeable. Design, specifications, and build quality are all important, and all factors in the pricetag, too.Over the past two years or so, the Plugable brand has been often recommended in reputable forums as a reliable choice. While I generally trust such niche sources as generally reliable, third-party certification is even better, and this has it. USB-IF certification is expensive, but also worth it, as it provides you--the consumer--with a reliable third-party validation of performance. You can search for this certification, yourself; I searched for this product's model, "USB4-240W-1M" and found it (certified 6/29/2022).I strongly recommend paying for a reputable manufacturer's quality, certified cable that will perform as expected. One of the most common tech troubleshooting tips is to try a different cable, often because they're the problem. Instead, in my opinion, your time is better spent on buying something that you know works.

I bought this cable hoping to speed-up updates/backup/etc. between my 2020 iMac running iMazing and my iPhone 15 Pro Max, and iPad Pro M4.It does show the advertised speed when I look at USB connections on the iMac, so meets claims there.But it fails when iMazing puts the iPad Pro into recovery mode in order to install an OS update. I can only proceed by detaching from this cable, and attaching using a genuine Apple cable.It does work on the iPhone Pro Max.I think Apple changed something to better check for compatibility. And, so I question whether this is really an Apple-approved product for use with iOS devices.I give two stars, only because it's a fat cable probably capable of the rated current capacity. But not fully compabible with iOS devices.