Kensington DomeHub 7-port USB 2.0 Hub with FlyLight
by Kensington
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List Price: Our Price: $31.25 You Save: $7.74 (20%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $19.99 (click here) Category: CE See more product details |
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Customers in the UK,
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for British Pounds
Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Kensington DomeHub 7-port USB 2.0 Hub with FlyLight
Customer Review: stylish, 7 ports, free flylight, sturdy won't come off desk
Summary: 4 Stars
Need a hub that holds plenty of your USB cables, won't slide off the desk because it's too light, and even comes with a free light to see what you're up to? Then Kensington knew what you, and me had on our wish lists.... Their new DomeHub USB 2.0 answers all these requests perfectly.
This weighted base with non skid feet is stylish, stays put, and organizes up to 7 devices in USB plugs, works for either Mac or PC too. It handles older USB 1.1 as well. I installed it easily by plugging the power source into my power strip, then plugging the USB cable, provided, into a USB slot in my iMac, then plugged the included free Flylight on the top slot of the Dome Hub; then I plugged some various USB devices into it, they worked! I had no issues of low power either. Green lights show which of your 7 ports are being used, so you know how many are free. Helpful! I called Kensington's Tech toll free Tech Support to ask about one remaining light not described in the instructions that accompanied the DomeHub; it wasn't lighting, so tech support said mine was defective, but the power was only used for high power required devices, like a printer or scanner, both of mine are plugged directly into the wall outlet, what HP told me to do. The only other issue was that the plugged into devices are flush, so can pull out, but with the green lights letting me know when one wasn't working, it's ok. All in all, a well designed and executed Hub.
Customer Review: Misleading claim
Summary: 4 Stars
It may look like a rock, and Kensington may package it with hype proclaiming that it's "rock-solid" and "stays put," but this otherwise well-conceived, smartly designed dome is, despite its own protestations, a comparative lightweight. It will accommodate 7 plug-ins, and yet a mere 4 will cause it to capsize, or to teeter precariously on the the back edge of the base. Apart from epoxying the dome to your desk, you can get it to stand straight by inserting the flylight on top and maneuvering it so that it acts as a counterweight against the side that's tipping. The only problem is that now you've eliminated the ideal port for plugging in a small flash storage drive.
All in all, this is a good value, especially with the flylight thrown in along with some of the rebates Kensington is prone to offer. If only they had the sense to make it a couple of ounces heavier (or not to portray it in their literature as a small Gibralter) and perhaps added a port or two on top (there's certainly plenty of surface area) to accommodate extra thumb drives.
I'm auditioning the Kensington after knocking over my "phone-booth shaped" CyberPower hub a few too many times. But aside from a better center of gravity, the Kensington hub doesn't feel any heavier than the CyberPower. It does, however, illuminate the ports that have been plugged into (the CyberPower simply has all of the ports light up continuously).
Customer Review: Seems alright so far...
Summary: 4 Stars
I think I may have received an updated version of this USB hub. Mine doesn't have the cool red USB ports, the ports on mine are white. Also the little light that came free with it does not cast a blue beam, the light is white. It also came with a 6 ft USB extension cable because the USB cable built into the unit is very short. Why is the USB cable fixed permanently to the hub? I can see this becoming a failure point in the future where the cable goes into the hub. Just like on corded mice the cord going into it always fails and the mouse stops working, and the cord going into this hub is not even as thick as the cord on a mouse. It also comes with its own power supply for A/C. Like others have said the unit is not really that heavy. It is weighted, but they make it seem like it is really weighted in the product description. It also has 4 little rubber feet on the bottom to help keep it in place. Mine says made in China on the bottom but unfortunately no manufacture date.
We'll see how it performs over the next while. Most USB hubs that I own now I have had for 3-4 years. I seem to have good luck with USB hubs compared to some of the reports I read from users here on Amazon. I am not giving this hub five stars for the fact that it is not as heavy as they make it out to be, and because of the USB cable being fixed permanently into the hub.
Customer Review: It Sucks!!
Summary: 2 Stars
I bought this accesory in Amazon.com, cause I need it to enhance the performance in my laptop... Ths desing it's cool, no doubt about it... it has seven ports, so i thought that this could do something for may USB port trouble. I put it in my notebook (plug and play, like it said), and then i began to conect a few small things in it (an inalambric USB mouse, an numeric pad, a pen drive, etc)... all seems to work fine.. BUT!!!! when i tried to connect a DVD recorder, or a Floppy Drive, or a External Hard Drive, the result couldn't be worst... firstable, the DVD burner don't work... i lose 3 DVD-R trying to record soomething... then, I put the floopy drive... AND IT COULDN'T READ A SINGLE FLOPPY DISK..!! You could imagine what happend when I connect the External Hard Drive... Didn't work...
Obviously, later I connect all this item to the direct USB port in my notebook, and all (with no exception) work fine...
So... I don't now.. I regret that I don't buy a PCI card with USB port... because that would be the solution to all my problems... This Device (USB HUB) only works with the small things... Don't try to use this to connect unit that requires a mayor perfomance in it use...
Think twice before you get it one of this... and considered a PCI card instead a USB HUB (I think all USB HUB have this problem...)
Customer Review: Well thought out & fun
Summary: 5 Stars
Great hub, looks great sitting on the desk near my PowerBook. I bought this rather than a desktop Dock, because now I can just hook up one cable and get to all my devices.
I like the weight of the hub -- it doesn't fall off your desk when you use it! The power adapter brick thing is small, as well, which is very nice. However, note: the power adapter will probably only fit on the END of your power strip because it it one of those that points off to the side rather than a huge square.
PROS: Works as advertised, nice quality, top port is awesome for... everything, includes short built in USB cable and a USB extension cable if you need it, free FlyLight might be useful for something
CONS: Can't see the lights on the front well (you have to lean over), might come scuffed (see below), kind of expensive (but what good thing isn't?)
Be warned: I bought one through Amazon, and loved it -- so when we needed another USB hub in a little office emergency, I ran to a local office store and picked one up -- they had all been scratched pretty badly by their own packaging. There wasn't a single one that didn't look like it had been scuffed really bad. Kensington just didn't pack them well. This wasn't a problem on the one I bought from Amazon, but I think I might have lucked out.