The newly announced CalDigit TS5 Plus is for very elaborate setups. The sort of professional-grade setups that can make use of 20 ports, including a pair of Thunderbolt 5 ports, five more USB-C ports, 140W charging, a 10Gb Ethernet port and plenty more.
Those who can struggle by with a mere 15 ports might choose the smaller CalDigit TS5 instead.
Thunderbolt 5 hub options grow with 2 new models from CalDigit
Intel launched Thunderbolt 5 in 2023, but only a fairly small selection of hubs that support it have reached the market.
Part of the reason for the slow rollout is that there weren’t many computers capable of taking advantage of the new standard. That changed in recent months. The MacBook Pro and Mac mini with M4 Pro processor support it, as does the 2025 Mac Studio.
A highlight of the newest version is data transfers up to 80 Gbps — twice as fast as the previous iteration — plus a Bandwidth Boost that goes up to 120 Gbps.
CalDigit TS5 Plus
“The TS5 Plus expands Mac and PC workflows with the most advanced port selection ever included on a Thunderbolt dock,” says CalDigit.
In addition to the two Thunderbolt 5 ports already mentioned, the hub has five USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 ports, five USB-A 3.2 Gen 2 ports, 10Gb Ethernet, DisplayPort 2.1, SD and micro-SD card slots, plus audio-in, audio-out and audio combo ports. (Whew!) And don’t forget the Thunderbolt port to connect to the host computer. The design splits the ports between the front and rear of the product.
The TS5 Plus will launch in late April 2025 in the United States via the CalDigit Online Store. It will be available in the UK and Europe in late May 2025. It costs $499.99 in the US, £469.99 in the UK, and €469.99 in the EU.
Buy it from: CalDigit
Chart: CalDigit
CalDigit TS5
“The TS5 is built from the ground up with connectivity in mind,” says CalDigit. “It is packed full of essential ports ready to take your workflow to the next level.”
As noted, the hub includes 15 ports. That’s three Thunderbolt 5 ports, a host Thunderbolt 5 port, three USB-A 3.2 Gen 2 ports, 2.5Gb Ethernet, SD and micro-SD card slots, plus audio-in and audio-out ports. Again, these are split between the front and back of the hub.
The TS5 is scheduled to launch in the US at the CalDigit website in late May 2025. It will be available in the UK and Europe in mid-June 2025. The cost comes in at $369.99 in the US, £349.99 in the UK and €349.99 in the EU.
Buy it from: CalDigit
Chart: CalDigit
Alternatively, those who need even fewer ports can get the CalDigit Element 5 Hub, which includes four Thunderbolt 5 ports, a trio of USB-A 3.2 Gen 2 ports, plus two additional USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 ports. It launched earlier in 2025, and costs $299.95.
Buy it from: Amazon
Ed Hardy has been writing full-time about tech for 25 years, and using it for much longer than that. His intro to Apple was a Macintosh Classic II (which he still has), but now he uses a 13-inch iPad Pro as his primary computer. He’s written for NotebookReview, TabletPCReview, and Brighthand, as well as other sites.
