Question USB Male to USB C cable

[simontompkins]

Hi,
I have a new macbook pro that only has USB C.
I have a 2.5 inch hard drive that connects to the TV by usb b.


Now I want to connect the hard drive to the mac. Now I could just USB c cable ( both ends) when connecting to the Mac and then change the cable to usb c - USB b when connecting to the TV but I would need to keep on swapping the cable on the external hard drive and over time the connector gets loose ( that's been my experience)
So question:
1. Can I just use a shortish (0.5 metre) USB b (male) to usb c (female) cable on the TV. That way I wouldn't need to swap out the cable on the hard drive when I want to connect to the mac. Will the usb b to usb c cable connected to the TV send enough power to the external hard drive?
I like that option because the cables are very cheap.

2. I could get a usb hub for the mac but I don't need the extra ports. However, if I did get a usb c hub ( unpowered) would it have enough power to power two 2.5 external hard drives?

I should note that my macbook pro is the m3 2023 model.

Any help much appreciated.

 

[simontompkins]

I should note that I know you can get usb b (female) to usb c (male) adapters but the ones I've tried don't seem to be satisfactory - since usb b is asymmetrical they seem very prone to damaging and in any case the ones I've tried don't seem to connect to my mac properly and won't data transfer

 

[NedSmelly]

Are you sure you meant USB-B (square profile connector with two beveled corners), and not USB-A? Very odd for a TV to use USB-B only, with no USB-A. It’s usually on printers, scanners, and older 3.5” external hard drives.

I have seen monitors with USB-B ports but that is usually as interconnect for a USB-A hub in the monitor bezel.

Your description makes it sound like your hard drive uses USB-C, but your wording is confusing. Could you please describe exactly what hard drive you have (brand, model, and year), and the shape of the USB port on your TV?

If you got your terminology incorrect and actually meant USB-A (instead of USB-B), then the simplest solution is to get the Apple USB-A to USB-C dongle (or generic equivalent) for the MacBook.