Goodock USB-C to HDMI Adapter Review

I recently purchased a Goodock USB-C to HDMI adapter.  The package just included the adapter itself with no brand specific logo on the package or device.  The adapter has a USB-C plug/cable (for connecting to your phone), a HDMI port, a USB-A port and a USB-C port (for connecting power to the adapter which also charges the phone).

Adapter

Right to Left: USB-C Power, HDMI and USB-A

The adapter is marketed for specific devices such as the Nintendo Switch, Samsung Galaxy S8/S8 Plus/Note 8, Macbook, ChromeBook, Dex Station.  The part that really caught my attention is the adapter was marketed as being able to put the Samsung S8/Note 8 into the DeX mode in addition to the normal screen mirroring of most HDMI adapters support.

USB-C to HDMI -> HDMI to VGA -> VGA monitor

As soon as I got the adapter, I started to play around with it.  I had a Samsung S9 Plus, a HDMI to VGA adapter, USB-C power supply and a Dell computer monitor that I used for my test setup.  Based on my initial tests here is what I noticed:

1) If you connect the adapter to the phone, but do not connect a USB-C power to the USB-C to HDMI adapter, it seems to only work in mirror mode.

2) Once you connect power to the USB-C to HDMI adapter, it goes into DeX mode.

3) If you do not connect a USB mouse, the phone screen will turn into a pad that you can use to control the mouse.  Once you connect a mouse, the screen just goes dark.  For my test setup, I used a USB keyboard (that has two built-in USB ports) and a wireless mouse (receiver plugged into the ports of the USB keyboard).

4) There were a few random disconnects but they were very quick.  I am not 100% sure I can blame it on the USB-C to HDMI adapter, since I also have a HDMI > VGA adapter in my setup, but I never had this issue using the same HDMI > VGA adapter with my Raspberry Pi so it was probably the USB-C to HDMI adapter.

The DeX mode is pretty cool.  I am not going to go into all the expected features, because you can probably find other websites / reviews with details or just read the Samsung info ( http://www.samsung.com/global/galaxy/apps/samsung-dex/ ).  I will share a few high level things I noticed so far using DeX:

Some of the applications seem to open in a window that basically looks like it would on your phone, but others (such as Chrome) allow you to resize the window.  Using Chrome on DeX was very similar to using Chrome on a computer.  I also liked the fact you can have multiple windows open - for example Chrome and another application.  Using Google Play Movies, I was able to put a movie on full screen.  I did run into a few application that would not run at all, but none were apps I felt that I would have missed - and of course they are still usable on the phone when you leave DeX mode.

While you are in DeX mode, the device is still works as a phone.  I was able to receive and send text messages, and answered a test call just fine.  If most of your computer apps are web based or available in Android, I think DeX is a great way to leverage the power of your existing smartphone.  I wrote this blog post in DeX mode, and really after using it for a while you just feel like it is a normal computer.

At the end of the day, I don't know if I will find DeX mode to be useful or just a neat gimmick but either way the Goodock adapter is much cheaper than the official Samsung options and is a great way to play around with the capability.  Even if you don't like DeX mode, the adapter supports screen mirroring.

Bottom line: If you are interested in playing with DeX mode, then this Goodock adapter is a great low cost option.  Just keep in mind, you may see random disconnects.

Amazon Product Page: https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B074ZP5Q51

Choetech USB Type-C to HDMI Cable Review (Model XCH-1201BK)

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this product for free in a giveaway. I was not required to write a review, but I chose to do so since the product aligns with my blog. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's requirements.

I recently received a Choetech USB Type-C to HDMI Cable Review (model XCH-1201BK) in an online giveaway.  The company Choetech has many different adapters, so make sure you look at the various options to determine which works for your intended use.

Carrying case

Cable and open carrying case

The cable itself came in a nifty little round case that has enough space to hold another small cable or maybe a memory card making it a useful carrying case.  The cable itself has a USB-C plug on one side, and a HDMI connector on the other side.  You can read all the details on the company or Amazon page ( links at the end of this post ) but here are some key points:

- Supports 4K @ 60Hz resolution
- Support DP Alt Mode ( NOT MHL or Slimport, make sure your device is compatible )
- Does not charge your device while playing video, but Choetech does have other adapters with that option

To test the cable, I connected it to my HDMI TV and my Samsung S9 Plus.  The video immediately came up on the TV, then I proceeded to test multiple video applications:

- Google Play Movies
- Netflix
- YouTube
- Crackle
- Movies Anywhere
- Hulu
- Tubi TV
- PUGB Mobile

All the applications displayed on the TV with no problem.  I didn't get any error messages or warnings from the movie apps.  I don't remember the exact adapter, but I know that in the past I would run into issues using HDMI adapters ( MHL or Slimport I can't remember which ) because certain applications would not output video.  I think this was some sort of security related feature, so I was happy to see that this Choetech adapter worked just fine.

I plan to continue testing the adapter, including watching a full movie or multiple TV episodes to see if I run into any issues and will update my review as necessary.

Here are the main points I noticed about the adapter:

Built-in HDMI connector: You don't have to carry around a bunch of extra cables, just this one adapter that can plug into the HDMI input that most TVs / projectors have.  I do have a HDMI to VGA adapter (for a computer monitor) that had a male HDMI connector so I couldn't plug it into this cable, so depending on your scenario you may want to consider other Choetech options.

Angled connector: If you are going to use this with a smartphone, the connector will help keep the cable out of the way if you are holding the phone.  It should also help keep the plug tidy coming out of a laptop since you can run it along the side of the laptop instead of just sticking out.

Easy to use: On the Samsung S9 Plus there was no special software or configuration required, it worked as soon as I plugged it in.

Bottom line: Great USB-C to HDMI option to consider, and if this isn't exactly the right one for you Choetech has other options.

Choetech Product Page: https://www.choetech.com/product/usb-c-to-hdmi-nylon-braided-cable-4k-60hz.html
Amazon Product Page: http://a.co/4yy2Nbg

Inateck USB-C Wall Charger Review (Model UCC1004)

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this product for free so that I could provide product feedback to the company and post a product review. I was not required to write a positive review and I do not rate products higher than they should have been. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's requirements.

I recently received an Inateck USB-C wall charger ( model UCC1004 ) for a product review.  In addition to the wall charger itself, the package came with a long ( approx 6ft ) USB-C to USB-C cable.

Charger and USB-C cable

The wall charger itself was much larger than my factory Samsung S9 Plus charger.  The larger size makes sense because the Inateck charger supports USB Power Delivery (USB PD) at a max of 60W for a range of voltages (5V, 9V, 12V, 15V, and 20V) up to 3A.

Folding plug

For my first test, I used the charger on a 26800 mAh battery pack that was at 2 of 4 LEDs charge level.  After about 3 hours, the unit was fully charged.  Using the stock Samsung S9 Plus charger on the same battery pack was much slower.

I also tried the charger on my Samsung S9 Plus, and compared it to the factory charger.  Here are the numbers I came up with:
- Inateck charger.  Charged from 49% to 98% in 55 minutes.  Approx 53% per hour.
- Samsung S9 Plus factory charger.  Charged from 60% to 100% in 61 minutes.  Approx 39% per hour.

Based on both tests above, it seems clear that this charger can provide faster charging over factory chargers that normally come with your smartphone.

Left: Stock S9 Plus charger
Right: Inateck charger

Here are the main points I noticed about this product:

Travel friendly: Charger has a folding power plug, making it travel friendly.

Long cable: The charger comes with a USB-C to USB-C cable that is approx 6ft long.

Device support: Support USB PD 3.0, up to 60W so it can work in devices like laptops / tablets that require more power than a standard wall jack.

Bottom line: If you have a device that requires USB PD this is a great charger to consider, but even devices that don't require PD could potentially benefit from the charger.

Inateck Product Page: https://www.inateck.com/inateck-ucc1004-black.html
Amazon Product Page: http://a.co/b17Td7o

RAVPower Multi-Purpose Pocket Tool Kit Review (Model RP-TL001)

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this product for free so that I could provide product feedback to the company and post a product review. I was not required to write a positive review and I do not rate products higher than they should have been. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's requirements.

I recently received a RAVPower Multi-Purpose Pocket Tool Kit for a product review. In addition to the main tool itself, the package included a pouch and 9 screwdriver bits in a little holder.

The tool itself is wide.  To compare, I grabbed a pocket knife and multi-tool that I had and together they were about as wide as the RAVPower pocket tool.  The pocket tool also combined features of both - it had some of the tool of my multi-tool, and had a larger blade like my pocket knife.

I haven't used the pocket tool heavily, but for tasks around the house ( cutting open boxes and tightening screws ) it works just fine.

The only real problem I had with this pocket tool is the pouch itself.  The design of the pouch makes it stick out a good bit.  Additionally, inside the pouch there is a little part for the screwdriver bits but the piece of material that holds it in also causes the pocket tool to catch the material when you try to put it in.  In additional to this, the tool fits deep into the pouch.  So basically putting the pocket tool in and out of the pouch isn't as easy as I would expect, but you can still do it with one hand.

I plan to keep using this pocket tool and will update this post as needed.  Here are the main points I noticed about this pocket tool:

Knife: As a knife, the blade is sharp and has a saw part to help with cutting.

Multi-Tool: As a multi-tool, it has the common items you might need ( for example pliers/wire cutters, and can/bottle openers ).  The multiple screw driver bits also make this a handy single tool for many different quick jobs.

Pouch: The pouch could use some design changes, but overall it works.

Bottom line: As a pocket tool with a knife, this could be a useful tool to have around the house or in the car.

RAVPower Product Page: https://www.ravpower.com/RP-TL001-Pocket-Knife-Plier-Kit.html
Amazon Product Page: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B078YVDWRP

Inateck 2.5" HD RAID Enclosure Review ( Model FE2101 )

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this product for free so that I could provide product feedback to the company and post a product review. I was not required to write a positive review and I do not rate products higher than they should have been. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's requirements.

NOTE: Inateck provided a 10% coupon code for my blog readers!  Code is at the bottom of the page.

I recently received an Inateck 2.5" HD RAID enclosure ( model FE2101 ) for a product review.  Here is what came with the product:

- FE2101 Enclosure
- USB-A to USB-C Cable
- USB-C to USB-C Cable
- Screwdriver and 4 HD screws
- Instruction Manual

FE2101 Enclosure

Reset Button  / USB-C / microUSB for power (optional)

USB cables
Plastic bag: 4 HD screws and a screwdriver

Little optional stand you can put under the enclosure

The drive supports 4 modes, you can read the full descriptions on the product info but my quick explanation is below:

NO-RAID: Basically you see the two independent drives as if you had two external cases/drives.
JBOD: Shows up as one large drive.
RAID0: The data is striped across the two drives, which should give a performance boost but a failure of either drive would cause data loss.
RAID1: The data is mirrored on both drives.

This is important.  The drive supports a maximum height of 8mm HDD/SDD drives.  So make sure your drives are compatible.  The two 7200RPM 160GB drives I had for testing were not compatible, so I had to get a bit creative.  Long story short, I removed the circuit board from the enclosure assembly and was able to do my testing that way.

Try slides out of the enclosure

Other side of the tray

Removed 2 screws to see the internals

This is where the magic happens

Once I had the two 160GB drives installed, I ran some quick benchmarks.  Here is a summary of what I noticed:

- NO-RAID mode performance was similar to the speeds I saw with my Inateck FD2002 HD dock.
- JBOD mode showed up as a 320GB drive, and had similar numbers as the NO-RAID mode which makes sense because JBOD just seems to write the data sequentially on one drive then another.
- RAID0 mode showed up as a 320GB drive, but there was a definite increase in performance.  For example, it went from an average of around 65 MB/sec to 126 MB/sec basically doubling the performance.  The burst rate also increased but not as much.
- RAID1 mode showed up as a 160GB drive, and showed no real performance difference from the NO-RAID mode.  I did not expect performance increase here, but it was nice to see that there was no major decrease either.

One interesting thing I noticed is that the drive hardware (in Windows) has "ASM1352R" in the name, so at least my unit seems to be using the ASMedia ASM1352R host controller.  I also noticed the name would be different depending on the mode, for example RAID0 showed "ASM1352R-Fast" while RAID1 showed "ASM1352R-Safe".

For now I am going to keep the drive in RAID1 mode and keep playing around with it.  While I do NOT recommend you do this, I was able to cut the plastic tray and get my drives to fit.  I almost had to shove it into the enclosure so I would not recommend you do this as the unit was only designed to handle 8mm (maximum) drives.

Update: I decided to test the RAID-1 (mirror) mode to see how it would react to a drive failure.  Here is how I tested:

- Started with two drives (160GB and 320GB) and installed Ubuntu.
- Removed 320GB drive from Disc 2 slot, simulating complete drive failure
- Disk 2 blue light stopped blinking, error light went solid red
- Ubuntu did not crash, it kept running fine
- Inserted another 160GB drive into Disk 2 slot
- Both blue lights begin to slowly pulse, red error light is still solid in Disk 2.  I think the RAID array is rebuilding itself at this point
- After a while the red error light goes off, the RAID rebuild is done.  I didn't time it.

I know this doesn't exactly simulate a real world failure since the drive would likely still work but have bad sectors, but it was still fun to try.

Here are the main points I noticed about this product:

Modes: Offers 4 modes to handle a variety of use case scenarios, but most users will probably use one of the two RAID modes.

Setup: Other than my issue with drive size (keep it under 8mm) the setup was VERY simple, just install the two drives and follow the directions on how to configure the unit.  Make sure you do not have data you need on the drives since it will need to be formatted.

Design: The case is small, and in addition to the USB-C port it has a standard microUSB port for power in case your USB port on the computer can't provide enough power.  The case itself looks nice, and comes with a little stand you can mount under it if you want.

Bottom line: Nice HD enclosure that supports two drives, and can support RAID 0 and RAID 1.

NOTE: Inateck provided a 10% coupon code for my blog readers!  Use the code "FE10OFF" on https://www.inateck.com/

Inateck Product Page: https://www.inateck.com/hard-drive-accessories/hdd-enclosures/inateck-fe2101-dark-gray.html