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Advice for a USB Hub purchase?

K

keowee

macrumors member
Original poster
Do I need to purchase a hub which specifies Mac compatibility? Does anyone have recommendations? Thank you for your help!
 
USB hubs do not have OS requirements. You should be fine getting about any hub. If this is for a desktop make sure to get a powered one.
 
Any hub will do, but I particularly like the Kensington DomeHub. It's quite large for a hub, but the added weight keeps it from being dragged off the desk (which I've had happen with every other hub I've ever purchased), and it also has a convenient port on the top to stick flash drives and such. Kind of a luxury hub, but well worth it. 🙂



irmongoose
 
I love how it says "Vista Compatible". The kitchen sink must be vista compatible too.
 
Don't buy an NON-powered hub (one without a power brick) IF you intend to use several devices at once like cameras, scanners, card readers etc.....

also, for the best possible performance, only connect a hub directly to your computer's on-baord usb ports, not to other hub-ports, like those on your keyboard or monitor 😛

And NO, hubs are not OS specific, just plug & play !
 
SmurfBoxMasta said:
Don't buy an NON-powered hub (one without a power brick) IF you intend to use several devices at once like cameras, scanners, card readers etc.....
Click to expand...
That's only an issue for bus-powered USB devices without their own power bricks. Self powered USB devices (like cameras and scanners) don't need a hub to be powered.

I have a powered hub with 2 hard drives and 2 USB printers attached. But I don't bother to use the hub's power brick since it isn't needed. If I were attaching several portable USB drives without their own power supply that would be different.
 
Problems I experience with noname

You can say "What does it matter if it is no-name or known name? The technology is the same." This is not true in my experience and USB hubs. I have clients who use cheaper USB hubs and run into loss of connectivity. There are power issues and device driver issues over time. So I now have my clients buy a notable brand (Belkin) because they just work and continue to work for years.
I suggest you always going with Belkin since they pay for better manufacturing, and charge you more for it.
 
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