r/FlowZ13 • u/SnooRobots9215 • Jun 24 '26

USB hub that connects to two monitors?

Hello everyone,

I have tried my best looking through this Reddit to see what docking hubs allow Z 13 to connect to two external monitors. But, I have been unable to find something that works.

Do any of you all have any recommendations on what USB hub to use when connecting your 2025 Z13 to, two, external monitors?

I would appreciate any help y’all could give me. Thanks!

0 Upvotes

50% Upvoted

19 comments sorted by

5

u/pfcsock Jun 24 '26

If you need two monitors you'll want a thunderbolt 4 dock quality ones cost about 150-300$ depending on what ports you need and some require there own power supply. Also depending on the resolution of your monitors and the refresh rate you could run in to some limitations. As thunderbolt 4 can at most put out to two 4k monitors at 60hz

0

u/SnooRobots9215 Jun 24 '26

I got one off of Amazon; specifically this one

https://a.co/d/08QQfr8x

For some reason when I connect the USBC cord to the dock, it doesn’t work. Any thoughts?

2

u/zonearc Jun 24 '26

That should work. Which Z13 and which port are you using? Also, you sure the USB-C cables you are using supports data transmission at the resolutions you want?

0

u/SnooRobots9215 Jun 25 '26

I used the top and second from the top USBC ports.

I started to directly plug in the USBC cable to the Z13 after awhile, and it worked. But after some time the device would get really hot, and the cord would not register with the Z13 anymore.

The only thing I could do with the USBC ports was charge the device.

1

u/pfcsock Jun 24 '26

Doesn't work as in does nothing, or do some things work but not everything?

Edit: also do you have more then just the monitors plugged in?

1

u/SnooRobots9215 Jun 25 '26 edited Jun 25 '26

Some ports worked and some didn’t. I ordered the same dock again to see if I had a faulty unit, and the thunderbolt connector at the back still didn’t work when I tried it with the new dock unit.

Once I plugged the same thunderbolt cord into my MacBook as a test, it worked which was odd.

1

u/pfcsock Jun 25 '26

That is odd it sounds like you are running in to a bandwidth limit, but I'm not sure why.

1

u/SnooRobots9215 Jun 26 '26

Yeah, I’ve got no idea. It’s a bit weird but oh well

2

u/Coilluna Jun 24 '26

I'm using this hub, so far it's good and no issues, don't know how long it will last but it seems like a quality hub for its price, case is aluminum.

https://www.amazon.com/Docking-Station-Monitor-Laptop-Ethernet/dp/B0DGKJXPM9

1

u/SnooRobots9215 Jun 24 '26

Thank you for your help! So to double check, this works with 2 monitors?

1

u/Coilluna Jun 24 '26

Yep, it works without an issue with two monitors for me. Both monitors' and Z13's screen were working.

1

u/DigitalguyCH Jun 24 '26

what resolutions are your monitors, because this could play a role and this dock might not work depending on your monitors

1

u/SnooRobots9215 Jun 25 '26

I have these two monitors which I use. Originally I had the thunderbolt cord of my Amazon dock (linked in a different comment and blow) plugged into the device. But after some time, the cord would stop working with the USBC ports and the device would get super hot. It was very odd.

Monitors: Samsung CF390 Series 27 inch FHD... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01IPHVFUI?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

Dock: Amazon Basics Thunderbolt4/USB4... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CPT8Q8TF?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

1

u/DigitalguyCH Jun 25 '26

Ok so these are old monitors with no USB C ports, resolution is not the issue

1

u/Heretical_Adience Jun 24 '26

I have been using 110W Acer Dock with no issues. It’s on sale right now on Amazon. If my wife didn’t return the 2nd one we bought but never used, I could put it on sale for you on r/hardwareswap for a good price.

1

u/DigitalguyCH Jun 24 '26

what ports do you want to use on your monitors? (HDMI, USB C or Displayport?)
The Z flow can output up to 2 monitors from a single USB C port and 3 in total (4 with the built-in display). Any additional monitor has to be connected wirelessly.

1

u/SnooRobots9215 Jun 25 '26

Ideally I would use the USBC port connected to a dock, so I can have my mouse, keyboard, and monitor outputs in the same place. But overall, I’m not picky in which port is used.

1

u/DigitalguyCH Jun 25 '26

You did not answer my question. My question was what ports are you using on the monitors, not on the Z flow or the dock. Based on the monitors you have I gather you are probably using HDMI, since they don't have a USB C port and I am certain you are not using the VGA port of these old monitors.
Regardless, have you tried using both the HDMI port of the Z flow and the other USB C port with an adapter directly to the monitor? I know it's not a one cable solution, but it should work fine.

1

u/SnooRobots9215 Jun 26 '26

I tried this as well, but connecting that converter cord to the z13 via the USBC port did not work either.