What are the best options for expanding the number of USB ports available on a JETCORE without compromising data speed or power delivery?
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If you’re looking to expand USB ports on JetCore without sacrificing data speed or power delivery, you’ve got a couple of solid options:
1. Powered USB 3.0 Hub (with good chipset)
This is probably your best bet. Go for a high-quality powered USB 3.0 hub — something with a reliable chipset like VL812 or GL3520. These maintain solid data rates across all ports and ensure each device gets enough power without stressing JetCore’s onboard supply.
2. Use the USB Type-C port (if available on your module)
If you’re using something like Orin NX or Xavier NX, the USB Type-C port can support additional USB lanes (depending on how it’s configured). You can use a Type-C hub that breaks out to multiple USB 3.0 ports and still maintains good throughput and power — especially if it’s externally powered.
3. PCIe to USB Expansion (advanced)
If you’re doing something more custom and using the Jetson’s PCIe lanes, you could add a PCIe-to-USB expansion board, but this gets a bit more complex and is only worth it if you’re already working with a custom carrier or doing something very bandwidth-sensitive.
Pro Tip: Avoid cheap unpowered USB hubs — they’ll bottleneck your data and can cause undervoltage issues or flaky device behavior, especially with cameras or external drives.
I’ve used Anker and Sabrent hubs with Jetson boards before and they’ve worked great. Let me know if you want recommendations based on how many ports you’re looking for or what devices you plan to connect!