Trendnet USB 3.0 to Gigabit Adapter + Hub - Performance Testing and Thoughts

Performance:

For performance testing the Trendnet TU3-ETGH3 we hooked it up to a couple of different machines and found the performance to be consistent under both Windows 8.1 and Windows 10 preview platforms. Out of curiosity, I tried it on a Chromebook as well and discovered that it worked flawlessly and was automatically installed instantly. The USB 3.0 functionality and performance on any of the platforms we tried was exceptional and there was no difference in performance when devices were plugged directly into the machine or the USB 3.0 Hub. In terms of networking performance, I had my doubts however.

Often times, a Gigabit port in a USB adapter is not quite up to the task and the performance of an on-board solution through a laptop mainboard or a desktop mainboard is much better. The Trendnet TU3-ETGH3 surprised me though and the performance numbers are below. For all of our network performance data, we use a program called "iperf" and run a server instance and push data using a single instance and then five instances to gauge single and multiple connections. It really stresses the connection and we run a minimum of five separate tests and average the results.

For this short comparison, we used a Killer e2200 on-board solution found on our MSI Z97 motherboard. This is a better solution than many other motherboards and the Trendnet USB 3.0 proved more than adequate and out-performed in overall throughput when testing multiple simultaneous file transfers. I was very impressed.

Final Thoughts:

The Trendnet TU3-ETGH3 is a simple product that offers a lot for a little. It lists at ~$40 currently and for that price you get three USB 3.0 ports and a very fast Gigabit Ethernet port. Granted, if you are maxing out the USB 3.0 connections you're going to see a bit of a slowdown on the network and vice versa, but in reality, there will be very little reason - or duration of such a load if you are using it for some extra connectivity on your Ultrabook or Chromebook.

Trendnet makes no mention of compatibility with Google's ChromeOS, but on the Acer CB5-311 13.3-inch 1080p Tegra K1 powered machine, it worked perfect. It gave me the wired connectivity for my network that I wanted as well as an additional two USB 3.0 ports on this machine.

The build quality, price, performance and general usefulness of the USB 3.0 to Gigabit Ethernet Adapter + USB Hub is fantastic. While it will not be required for desktop applications; Laptop, Windows Tablet, Ultrabook and Chromebook users can gain a lot of extra connectivity without shelling out a lot of money, and that is a great big win.

Pros:

• Extra connectivity
• Great performance
• Low cost
• Awesome compatibility

Cons:

• None

This product score a perfect 10/10 as there is nothing wrong with any piece of it in terms of hardware, software or performance. It is top-notch and a "Gold" Editor's Choice Winner!

I'd like to thank Trendnet for sending over this product for a review. While it may seem more like an "advertorial" than a review, the reality is that it just works and does everything they claim and more. It's a great product that any geek would love to have in their toolkit.