Is this the ultimate iPad stand? INVZI cradle has a USB-C hub built in with 4K HDMI, 100W power delivery, and more

INVZI MagHub 3
(Image credit: INVZI)

There is no shortage of options when it comes to picking a new iPad stand. There are stands designed for just holding your iPad still while you watch your latest Apple TV Plus guilty pleasure and there are stands designed to help your iPad replace your laptop. There are stands designed for different sizes of iPad, too. But whatever category you're shopping in, some iPads are better than others. And the new INVZI MagHub 3 has the potential to be at the top of the pile.

The tablet is currently part of an Indiegogo campaign and has already managed to gather almost $500,000 across its two crowdfunding platforms. It's from INVZI, a company based in California, and certainly seems to tick all of the major boxes for most people.

That is, it'll work with iPads. But it can also be used with your Kindle and even an iPhone if you want. Anything with a screen size between 4.7 inches and 12.9 inches should be OK, which covers all of Apple's most recent models. But that's just the start.

Connect all the things

There are plenty of reasons to take a look at the MagHub 3 stand including a space for connecting your Apple Pencil and the ability to freely rotate your device. The modern, aluminum design also means that you can use the stand's arm to move your iPad into a range of positions including one that's perfect for drawing and note-taking using the aforementioned Apple Pencil. But that's not all that this stand has going for it.

At the bottom of that movable arm, you'll find a USB-C hub with a whole raft of options. Those options include 100W USB-C power delivery as well as a USB-C port with support for 5Gb/S throughput. There's also a pair of USB-A ports with the same data transfer speed as well as a Micro SD UHS-I card slot with a speed of 104MB/s and an SD card slot capable of the same speed. And we aren't done yet thanks to a 3.5mm audio jack and the most important of all, a 4K, 60Hz HDMI port.

All of that means that this stand could well take your humble iPad and turn it into a workhorse machine for connecting to an external monitor and more. And because the whole thing can fold to almost nothing, it's easily moved around. That means you can throw the stand in a bag and take it on your travels, whether that's to the office, a coworking space, or a coffee shop.

As you might expect though, all of this doesn't make the MagHub 3 cheap. It's available via Indiegogo now for $89, with the normal price set to be $149. Those who just want the stand without all of the hub ports can go that route, however, with the price falling to $49. That'll apparently cost $89 normally though, which might be enough to put some people off.

Price aside, this hub does have more going for it than most. And with the new iPad Air 6 and OLED M3 iPad Pros on the horizon, maybe it's time to treat yourself to a stand so you can make the most of your new tablet.

Oliver Haslam
Contributor

Oliver Haslam has written about Apple and the wider technology business for more than a decade with bylines on How-To Geek, PC Mag, iDownloadBlog, and many more. He has also been published in print for Macworld, including cover stories. At iMore, Oliver is involved in daily news coverage and, not being short of opinions, has been known to 'explain' those thoughts in more detail, too. Having grown up using PCs and spending far too much money on graphics card and flashy RAM, Oliver switched to the Mac with a G5 iMac and hasn't looked back. Since then he's seen the growth of the smartphone world, backed by iPhone, and new product categories come and go. Current expertise includes iOS, macOS, streaming services, and pretty much anything that has a battery or plugs into a wall. Oliver also covers mobile gaming for iMore, with Apple Arcade a particular focus. He's been gaming since the Atari 2600 days and still struggles to comprehend the fact he can play console quality titles on his pocket computer.