Belkin High-Speed USB 2.0 7-Port Mobile Hub
by Belkin Components
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List Price: Our Price: $17.31 You Save: $12.68 (42%) Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours Buy Used: from $8.89 (click here) Category: CE See more product details |
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Customers in the UK,
Buy this product at amazon.co.uk
for British Pounds
Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Belkin High-Speed USB 2.0 7-Port Mobile Hub
Customer Review: Poorly constructed USB hub
Summary: 1 Stars
I don't usually like writing bad reviews (I feel that people generally only say something if it's bad, so why not combat that trend?), but as I'm sitting here searching Amazon for a hub to replace this one, which has *never* worked properly, I thought I'd throw in my 2 cents.
The basic problem is that the ports are very loose. I suppose making them shallow (the plugs don't slide in as far as on regular-sized hubs) is what allows them to make it so small. And it is *very* small. But because the USB cables I have plugged into it don't sit snugly, they're very loose, and because of that, the connection isn't solid. I was using it for external hard drives, and I was constantly getting warnings that I hadn't ejected the drive before I unplugged it, and i hadn't unplugged it!
And if it doesn't work to the point of unusabiility, than I think it gets one star and a warning to my fellow shoppers. I recommend going with something a little sturdier.
Customer Review: Does the job perfectly
Summary: 5 Stars
If you need a USB hub (we all could use one to be honest) then please, look no further. This little hub has saved me. I do most of my work from my laptop and therefor have all my peripherals plugged into it. With only 3 USB ports on my laptop I was hot swapping peripherals as I needed them. With this little beauty, I have no more need for that.
PROS: Packing 7 USB ports and having it's power source this thing is beautiful. I have a Logitech MX510 Mouse, Dell Printer, External HDD, iPod, 8gb thumb drive & LED Light all plugged into this bad boy and nothing skips a beat. The plastic is durable and has a nice contoured look to it. Even the cable length (which can be quite short on hubs) raises no complaints.
CONS: None so far.
A definite buy whether you're mobile like I am or tied down by a desktop. Not to mention Belkin has been in the computer accessories department a long time and they know how the game is played.
Customer Review: Full power
Summary: 5 Stars
I ran out of ports on my PS3 and was looking for a powered hub to extend it. As a geek with an engineering degree, I read the USB standard. The voltage level is 5V and the maximum amps spec'ed is 0.5A. So 2.5W/port. This has 7 ports and I checked the "wall-wart" specs for this unit and it does provide 17.5W to the hub. The key problem with most hubs is that they either are "vampire" powered, dependent on your computer, or that the power they provide is less than what the USB standard says it should be.
<sidenote>
It is true that many devices do not follow the USB spec and draw more power. Most famously Apple's iPod and iPhone devices, but also most smartphones that charge via USB. So it is possible to come up with more power draw than this hub can provide. And a word to the wise: cheap car chargers will provide more than 5V and can damage your equipment.
</sidenote>
Customer Review: Works as expected, with a few flaws
Summary: 2 Stars
The hub works as expected -- you can plug in multiple devices, nothing too complex.
But the power cable is WAY too short. Also, the USB connector that plugs in to the computer doesn't fit my Macbook Pro very well. Barely jiggling the wire causes it to come lose and disconnect all my devices. It's a shame, too, because I have a WD Passport HD plugged into the hub, and disconnecting without ejecting it can cause some serious problems with the drive. Luckily nothing has happened yet.
Update (Dec 1, 2008): I thought that a loose USB connection into my Macbook Pro was the reason all of my devices would be come disconnected, but it seems like that's not the case. Now, at least 2-3 times a day, each device that's plugged into the hub (hard drive, iPhone, and printer) will disconnect and I'm 100% positive the cable is not coming loose. This thing sucks.
Customer Review: small but not put together well
Summary: 4 Stars
this was probably a fluke, but since it affected me, I still feel compelled to put it in the review. When I got my product, I immediately went to plug it in. However, when I plugged the power cord into the hub, I discovered the inner card (with all the ports and power plug on it) was loose in the outer casing. Apparently the outer case hadn't been snapped together completely. After some fiddling around though, I finally got it together, but it took a relatively large amount of force and several minutes of trying to line up the snaps just right, which was difficult since the stubborn ones were in the middle on the inside and therefore blocked from view. Just shouldn't have had to spend my time doing that.
Also the usb cord is only like 15 to 20 inches long, not enough to even go from a tower sitting on the floor to the top of the desk.