How can I use my MacBook Air in closed-display mode with an external display if I only have one USB-C port on the side?

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Level 1

17 points

How can I use my MacBook Air in closed-display mode with an external display if I only have one USB-C port on the side?

I am able to connect the power supply through the monitor and I have a wireless magic mouse.... BUT how can I connect a keyboard if I don't have any other available USB port? Only with a bluetooth keyboard that doesn't require a USB connector?

This is the whole situation: My cat bite the screen of the MacBook Air so is not working. I am able to connect an external monitor but is very annoying to work on the MacBook Air with the broken screen, so I wanted to use an external mouse and keyboard so I can close the MBA and put it behind the external screen but I can't because I can't plug a keyboard.

Any one that can help me on this?

Thanks in advance.

Posted on Aug 7, 2020 1:33 PM

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Answer 1

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JDee

Level 5

6,479 points

Aug 7, 2020 1:55 PM in response to jedghill

Bluetooth keyboard would, as you suggest, do the trick. But what about connecting your USB-C port to a hub/dock to make many more ports out of one port? I'm probably missing something obvious here, and if so I apologize, but wouldn't that solve your issue? (If the stability of the connection is an issue when the MBA is closed, you can connect the hub/dock with a short extension cable so it is not directly connected to the MBA and held suspended by that connection, but is instead lying flat on the desk or other surface where your monitor is situated and only the cable is connecting it to the MBA.

E pluribus unum. (Out of one, many. In reverse.) :-)

-- JDee

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Answer 2

MBA-20

Level 1

4 points

Sep 9, 2020 3:35 PM in response to jedghill

I'm short on ports too! Here is my setup - I could use a few tips. Did you figure it out?

Port 1:

USB for mouse

Port 2:

USB for keyboard
power supply
monitor via hdmi

I'm considering another Apple adapter with VGA so I can free up the HDMI. Any thoughts?

(Printer is completely wireless! 😁)

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Answer 3

jedghill Author

Level 1

17 points

Aug 14, 2020 10:02 AM in response to JDee

The situation I'm having is that in order to have the MBA working but closed I must have it connected to a power source. But I cannot connect the power source because i'm using the only available connector to connect the monitor...

I have a hub, that allows me to connect the external monitor and keyboard or mouse BUT the hub I got did not have a pass through USB-C connector... I believe that is one solution but i didn't knew at the time I bought my hub.

Another solution is to use an external monitor that powers the MBA through the cable. Didn't know neither.

One thing I find out is how confusing is the so many different USB-C and thunderbolt types of cables that looks almost identical. If is not for a small pair of pins inside the connector you can't really tell what cable is just for data or if it can pass power through. After checking my cables I was able to put them in the right order and then I was able to use one cable to power the monitor, then another cable to connect data and power to the MBA. But then I have no USB to connect the keyboard. Bluetooth will work but I don't have a Bluetooth keyboard/mouse, so at the end I ended up buying the right USB-c hub with power-pass-through and regular USB connectors.

Thank you for your input trying to help me solve my problem. Have a great day.

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How can I use my MacBook Air in closed-display mode with an external display if I only have one USB-C port on the side?

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