Introducing … Pi Zero USB Docking Hub!

The Pi Zero USB Docking Hub is a stackable USB Hub that comes with 5 x USB 2.0 data and charging ports, a micro USB port for power input, an RJ45 port for Ethernet, and a 3.5mm audio input/output jack. Installation would take only seconds. Just snap your Pi Zero onto the top of the docking hub station, the four pogo pins on the hub station will connect to the signal pads on your Pi. There is no soldering required!

We launched the first 4-Port stackable USB Hub HAT for Raspberry Pi Zero with the pogo pin approach back in March 2016. It has been extremely popular with our customers and the Pi community. Since then, we have shipped over ten thousand units of Pi Zero Hub HAT around the world. We have received many requests for supporting more USB ports, especially when you are dealing with fat USB dongles which may block and waste the adjacent ports.

Features

Technical Specification

• 5 x USB 2.0 data and charging ports 
• 5 x electrolytic capacitors to filter electrical noise and stabilize voltage 
• an independent protection circuit to limit total current to 2.3A 
• an RJ45 Ethernet port with Realtek RTL8152B 10/100M chip 
• a 3.5mm audio jack, supporting both recording and playback 
• a micro USB port for power input up to 2.3A consumption 
• compatible with Raspberry Pi Zero v1.3 (with Camera Connector) and Raspberry Pi Zero W/ Pi Zero 2 W (with Bluetooth and WiFi) 

• Qualified design against the latest Raspbian OS 

No Soldering Required!

Simply mount the USB Docking Hub under the Pi Zero using the bundled spacers, screws, bolts, and your Pi Zero will get 5 extra USB 2.0 ports and two more peripherals! The USB Docking Hub has been carefully designed with four custom-made pogo pins, and the four supporting poles have been elongated to further increase the headroom between the Pi Zero board and the USB hub board. Hence, longer header pins are allowed for the Pi Zero header.

More Space!

The Docking Hub spaced over 6cm + 6cm in length. Even the fattest USB stick can be hosted by the USB Docking Hub with no judgment.

USB Audio

The USB Docking Hub has a built-in C-Media HS100B audio chip and a 3.5mm audio jack for headsets, speakers or microphones. This is perfect for your next audio projects, such as a Pi MusicBox, OSMC Kodi, or XBMC Media Server. What about building your own Google AIY Voice Kit and Amazon Echo? The audio output jack is wired as TRRS CTIA/Apple standard. It takes majority of the mobile phone headsets, audio speakers or microphones with a 3.5mm audio plug. There are also LED indicators on the USB Docking Hub that show if the HS100B is enabled properly by the OS and the status of input/output audio signal.

Ethernet LAN

Want to get a more reliable Internet connection for your Pi Zero or want it to be online all the time? The RJ45 Ethernet port will do the job! The Realtek RTL8152B 10/100M LAN chip on board is fully supported by the latest Raspbian OS. You can also build an OpenWRT WiFi-based access point or firewall with simple configurations.

Power through USB

One of the major issues about bringing USB devices to Pi Zero is "Power Supply through USB". If you are using an external USB hub, unless powered separately, the power is delivered from the Pi Zero. So if you have some power hungry devices like USB hard drives or WiFi adapters, such setting could easily load down your Pi Zero and the unintended reset could damage the OS image on the SD card.

Why should I get a Docking Hub instead of a Pi 3?

Raspberry Pi 3 does not have audio input and output built-in and it is designed for higher performance applications with a greater power consumption (see RasTV - How Much Power Does Raspberry Pi3B Use? How Fast Is It Compared To Pi2B?). Many makers who bought the 4-port hub hat for their Pi Zero is for low power and long-running applications (e.g. IoT hub, Alexa Pi ). This docking hub takes several steps further to provide more connectivities for Pi Zero. 

Another good reason for choosing our Pi Zero Docking Hub rather than just using a Model B device: the USB ports on the hub are spaced further apart than those on a Raspberry Pi Model B, making it easier to connect multiple USB devices including chunky flash drives.

Applications  

with Pi Zero Docking Hub, you can create amazing projects like these

http://www.instructables.com/id/Alexa-Voice-Assistant-on-Raspberry-Pi-Zero-Docking/

https://www.instructables.com/id/DIY-Google-Home-With-Bluetooth-Speaker-on-Raspberr/