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CyberPower High-Speed 7-Port USB Hub by Cyber Power
List Price: $49.95Our Price: $25.56You Save: $24.39 (49%)Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Category: CE See more product details
Digital Photo Product DetailsManufacturer: Cyber Power Audio: English (Original Language) Format: CD Platform: Windows Model: CP-H720P Product features: - 7-port USB hub
- Works with all USB 2.0 and USB 1.1 devices
- LED status indicators for each individual port
- Plug-and-play installation
- Lifetime warranty
Accessories:
Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of CyberPower High-Speed 7-Port USB HubCustomer Review: A proven winner that's worth the slight premium in price. Summary: 5 Stars
[After over 2 and one-half years of service from this hub, I'm raising my rating to 5 stars. Below is my review from January 2008 followed by my revaluation from Sept. 2010.]
I realized I needed a 7-port hub and checked out the D-Link, Kensington, Belkin--the usual suspects. Then I chanced upon this unlikely contender, looking more like a jukebox in Amazon's picture than a hub. I was intrigued by the off-beat design and noticed that the price was competitive (though a couple of the others are presently offering rebates, a free flylight, and other sweeteners). Now that I'm looking at the CyberPower USB port "in person," I can provide a few initial impressions:
1. It's a lot smaller than the picture might imply. Compactness is nice, but you also want a hub that will stay put and that allows sufficient space between adjacent plugs.
2. Although the hub is designed for either vertical or horizontal use, the added and welcome weight of the detachable base makes vertical use the more sensible option. Otherwise, you've got a lightweight (and fairly generic) loaded-up plug which could easily move around, dislodging the USB mini-plug (a necessary evil except for small cameras) at one end of every USB 2.0 cable.
3. It seems to handle my equipment off of the USB power supplied by the computer, but I still breathe easier using the included AC power adapter. (To the manufacturer's credit, it's one of the slimmer, lighter wall-warts that I've seen.)
4. The flash drive mount is practical (but not unique). Now I can finally use that old Sandisk thumb drive that formerly was taking up the space of two USB ports.
5. The individual port lights are on all the time and, unlike most hubs, are not indicative of the presence or absence of a USB device.
In conclusion, it's a reliable performer and a convenient as well as eye-catching device--providing you go for the vertical look. If I were to suggest one design improvement, it would be to "fatten up" the tower so that it would be wide enough to permit horizontal insertion of USB devices with the hub in vertical position. Doing so would assure unforced accommodation of all your USB plugs, even the most space-devouring ones. Biggest "gripe": the vertical design is not real stable. The hub is easily dislodged from the base and bounces around quite a bit. If I had to do it over, I'd look at the heavy, dome-shaped Kensington.
[Revaluation after almost 3 years: I tried the Kensington. It was no more stable but less reliable. So I returned to the CyberPower, but without the base or vertical position. I velcroed its back side to the wooden surface behind my desktop machine, with printer and two 500GB storage drives inputted to the rear, one USB cable from the front side to the USB of my iMac, and a flash drive connected to the top side of the hub. Absolutely no problems. This item continues to rise in both popularity and price because it's so good. Should it ever fail, I doubt there's any other hub available that could surpass it. Forget the "cuteness" factor; this thing is all business.]
Description of CyberPower High-Speed 7-Port USB HubCyberPower's High-Speed 7-Port USB Hub offers connectivity up to 480Mbps, which is 40 times greater than legacy hubs. Dual-speed compatibility means this hub works seamlessly with all your USB 1.1 and USB 2.0 devices. The CP-H720P weighs only 2.5 ounces and can be conveniently mounted with the included USB stand. Freely connect your USB devices such as: digital cameras, flash/thumb drives, personal printers, CD/DVD drives, mice, keyboards, scanners, iPods, or any other device that is USB compatible. Plug-and-Play technology ensures easy installation, and the device even comes with a flash-drive port that is quickly and easily accessible on the front of the hub. Monitoring your device activity has never been easier, with LEDs that indicate power status as well as activity on each individual port. This device is perfect for stand-alone PCs with inconveniently located USB ports, or for laptops where the additional USB ports are needed. The CP-H720P can be powered via your PC/laptop, or with the included AC power adapter.
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