4 issues you possibly can plug into your Android cellphone’s USB port (that are not chargers)

As a platform, Android’s key energy is arguably flexibility. The software program on one system can look radically totally different from one other, even when there is a core underlying interface. There’s typically extra leeway in what Android apps can do than ones on an iPhone, and there is additionally a wider vary of {hardware} specs — every little thing from the most affordable doable funds telephones to foldables that price as a lot as a gaming PC.

Android additionally adopted USB-C a few years earlier than Apple did. That has given the platform plenty of flexibility in what customers can join, and — the truth is — you are not taking full benefit of your cellphone if you have not tried to plug in something extra subtle than a charger. Not that it is required — it is simply that your cellphone can deal with much more than you would possibly notice, typically changing a laptop computer in a pinch. I will really begin with that one as a style of the probabilities.

Displays and lapdocks

Work from virtually wherever

One thing that fries my mind in a small manner is that for a few years now, Samsung’s Android telephones have supplied DeX, a characteristic that tasks a Home windows-style desktop interface if you’re linked to a monitor or TV. It could actually’t go toe-to-toe with Home windows 11, but when you must get some writing, spreadsheets, or shows executed, it may be a lifesaver. I do know I would not try to churn out an article if I needed to cram all my writing and analysis onto a six-inch cellphone display.

What’s good is that Google lastly determined to bake this into Android 16 by way of Desktop Mode. In case your cellphone is appropriate, the mode switches right into a tablet-style interface with help for a number of app home windows and a taskbar. Any latest flagship cellphone, corresponding to a Pixel 9 or 10, ought to be capable to run a number of apps without delay, together with video games.

There are just a few catches right here. Chances are you’ll want a USB-C-to-HDMI adapter for some shows, and in a desktop surroundings, you will in all probability need to route every little thing via a USB-C hub for the sake of connecting a mouse, keyboard, and energy provide. A substitute for this can be a lapdock, which will get you a display, keyboard, and trackpad in a single shot. Consider it as a laptop computer the place your cellphone offers the processing.

Be aware that if you do not have a hub, you can even join mice and keyboards to your cellphone by way of Bluetooth. Simply do not count on your cellphone to final lengthy in DeX or Desktop Mode if it does not have a way of charging concurrently.

Exterior SSDs and card readers

Prepared to dump (and onload)

Gone are the times when you can rely on an Android cellphone having a microSD card slot. Some comfort, nevertheless, is you can join nearly any exterior SSD (solid-state drive) or card reader to an Android cellphone, providing a manner of transferring images, movies, music, and different recordsdata to and out of your cellphone’s inner storage. The truth is, for those who’ve obtained an motion cam or an expert digital camera, you could possibly switch content material instantly.

Do take note of the USB speeds of your cellphone, cable, and something you join, nevertheless. Whereas some telephones and equipment could also be able to knowledge transfers as much as 10Gbps or increased, you will extra possible be working 5Gbps. That is nonetheless quick, however might be inconvenient if you must switch dozens of gigabytes of 4K footage.

Watch out for something limiting you to USB 2.0 speeds, which peak at simply 480Mbps. That sounds fast relative to your web connection — however a 50GB switch that may take 40 seconds at 10Gbps will stretch out to almost 14 minutes. You may in all probability need an improve for those who’re utilizing your cellphone for skilled work, and even for those who’re simply offloading PEV group ride footage frequently. USB 2.0 dates again to the yr 2000 — nobody ought to be together with it on trendy {hardware}. I am taking a look at you, Apple.

Sport controllers

Who wants a console?

Credit score: Pocket-lint / Spine

Though you possibly can at all times pair a Bluetooth controller together with your cellphone, a USB-C based mostly “vice” controller just like the Spine One or Razer Kishi V3 is often preferable for just a few causes. The obvious one is comfort — you needn’t prop your cellphone up someplace, and you may at all times decide up your complete setup and go, a lot as for those who had been enjoying on a Switch 2 or Steam Deck. Chances are you’ll want to make use of passthrough charging to keep away from draining your cellphone in a rush, however some extra superior fashions sport their very own batteries.

Different perks embody the bottom doable enter latency, and my favourite watchword for this text, flexibility. All you must do to modify between units is clamp within the new one, so long as it suits the controller’s most dimensions. Chances are you’ll even be capable to play Home windows video games utilizing your controller so long as you’ve got obtained a spare USB cable.

Some form of devoted controller is actually necessary for those who care about gaming. When you would possibly be capable to play one thing like Civilization VI with contact gestures alone, platformers like Blasphemous and shooters like Fortnite are going to be depressing with out D-pads or analog sticks. If you wish to run a traditional sport emulator, most of the titles you will be enjoying had been by no means designed with touchscreens in thoughts.

An workplace or lounge TV

No media streamer mandatory

Google discontinued all of its Chromecast dongles in August 2024, which is a disgrace — they had been a extremely moveable manner of bringing your favourite media streaming apps to any TV. You’d plug one into an HDMI port and growth, Google TV simply the way in which you prefer it. In case you did not need to use the bundled distant, you can undertaking absolutely anything onto a TV utilizing Google Solid. The Chromecast has since been changed by the Google TV Streamer, however that is not practically as simple to stuff in a bag or pocket.

If all you could have is your cellphone, many TVs now have Google Solid built-in, and you might also be capable to use Samsung DeX or Android 16’s Desktop Mode, as I discussed at the start. When none of this stuff are an possibility, although, a USB-C-to-HDMI adapter ought to allow you to instantly mirror your cellphone’s display, which can be adequate for those who’re attempting to host a presentation at work, or watch a film at residence. As a bonus, this can allow you to play media that may in any other case play badly over a wi-fi connection or solely be accessible on-device. For a gaming setup, this and a Bluetooth controller could also be all you want.

Take note of the output specs of your cellphone and adapter, and the enter specs of the HDMI port you are plugging into. For a easy expertise, all three of those ought to help 4K decision at a 60Hz refresh price or increased. 30Hz is useful, however will not be capable to sustain with graphics operating past 30 frames per second. Some adapters are already able to 4K at 144Hz. At that degree, it is extra possible that your cellphone and TV would be the limiting elements, particularly since few video games run a lot quicker than 60fps.