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Mobee Debuts Discreet 'Magic Hub' for iMac/Apple Display With 4 USB 3.0 Ports

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Apr 12, 2001
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Mobee, a company that makes a range of chargers for Apple's peripherals, today unveiled its new Magic Hub at Berlin's IFA trade show. The Magic Hub is designed to attach to the back of an iMac or Apple Thunderbolt Display, housing four separate USB 3.0 hubs.

The Magic Hub, which matches the finish of Apple's own products, does not require an external wall adapter because it gets its power from the main power cord of the iMac or Apple Display. It's also able to recharge devices through USB when the iMac or display is powered off.

magichub.jpg
The Magic Hub features:
- 4 Ports USB 3.0 Hub.
- 2.1 Amps power output on each USB port.
- Directly powered by the Apple iMac or Apple monitor, doesn't require any additional wall adaptor.
- Remains powered while your Apple iMac or Apple monitor is turned off.
- Matches perfectly with the design and finish of Apple products.
- Doesn't restrict the swivel of your Apple display.
Click to expand...
The Magic Hub will retail for EUR50, which is just over $65. The product is expected to ship in October, and should be listed for pre-order on the Mobee website shortly.

Article Link: Mobee Debuts Discreet 'Magic Hub' for iMac/Apple Display With 4 USB 3.0 Ports
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2014/09/03/mobee-magic-hub-for-imac/
That is an interesting design, how you plug the original power cord into the hub and the built in "extension" into the iMac itself. The next thing that they need to do is figure out how to manage the cord for the USB ports effectively, like b u having a flat USB cable with an adhesive to keep it tidy.
 
Glassed Silver said:
That's all I really need atm.

Bloody hell...

80€ for the first guy to pass me a TB->USB3.0 4x hub.
The docks always come with ports I already have or the dreaded USB 2.0 ports... Pfft...

Glassed Silver:mac
Click to expand...

You may know this but thunderbolt is expensive because of the controller chip. In usb the controller chip is in the computer so the actual drives are really cheap. For thunderbolt the controller chip is in the device! And since apple owns/controls a lot of the supply its really hard for third parties to get bulk cheap chips for all their devices. That said thunderbolt can realize speed and other benefits from the setup. But the point is it will never replace usb
 
I like the fact that it draws power from the display power cord. But I'd honestly rather have a hub sitting on the desk if I need it to be accessible or one hidden away somewhere if I need it for HDDs and such. This one will probably look pretty messy with cables plugged in, and it's not very easily accessible.
 
Will this hub charge my iPad? And power my hard drives? And support the USB super drive every hub that I have owned do NOT do these things and end up being returned because I can't plug any high powered devices into them.
 
DeanCorp said:
Will this hub charge my iPad? And power my hard drives? And support the USB super drive every hub that I have owned do NOT do these things and end up being returned because I can't plug any high powered devices into them.
Click to expand...

From the article:

MacRumors said:
The Magic Hub, which matches the finish of Apple's own products, does not require an external wall adapter because it gets its power from the main power cord of the iMac or Apple Display. It's also able to recharge devices through USB when the iMac or display is powered off.
Click to expand...
 
coolspot18 said:
What about a Thunderbolt to USB 3.0 version?
Click to expand...

Uh, why? If you just want Thunderbolt-to-USB-3.0, those already exist.

domo-origoto said:
wonder if this is apple approved
Click to expand...

It doesn't need to be - it's just a bone-stock USB 3.0 hub, using a bone-stock IEC C14 plug. Then shaped so that it fits in place by wedging in to a circular opening. No Apple approval needed.

While this is slick, it is also horribly overpriced. It's just a USB 3.0 hub with a good form factor. It has no special characteristics over any of the many cheap USB 3.0 hubs you can find, other than the form factor. I can just as easily use double-sided tape to put a small-footprint USB 3.0 hub on the back of my iMac...
 
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Matches perfectly with the design and finish of Apple products.
Click to expand...

Uh except the huge seam running completely around the device and through the USB ports.
 
So wait... is this a 4-port USB charger... or a USB hub ???

There's no mention of the connection to your computer to turn one USB port on your iMac into 4 ports on the hub.

Or is there?
 
Wonder if this will affect the computer in regards to power in any way; I'm remembering the XBox360's 3rd party cooling fan attachment that attached to the back between the console and the power adapter (power adapter plugged into this fan, and the fan into the console, and the fan ran on the main power.)-- bad reviews came from that, and many high claims that it broke the consoles over time since the main power supply is not to be tampered with.
 
I wonder if you can stack them? So stick one on the back of the display, and then the 2nd into that, and the 3rd, etc and then finally the power cord. You could easily get 8 or 12 ports that way, eh?
 
Its a nice design, but I gotta say its a rare problem for me. My imac has enough usb ports. I have 2 plugs always connected and 2 which I use on/off.
an extra thunderbolt though would be nice.

But, if you want a good tip, this is what you should buy for your iMac USB's. Just having one usb in front of the machine for those things you are connecting on/off regularly. Best peripheral I even bought for my iMac :)
and its hardly noticable.

http://www.bluelounge.com/products/jimi/
 
roland.g said:
And if your Mac is wall mounted?
Click to expand...

I'm not an expert nor do I play one on tv but I'm pretty sure that this would not work. But again I'm not an expert, I'm just kinda OK at looking at things and using my brain. Not even that good at that but I'm almost positive it's not for you. Actually, I'm sure it is not for wall mounted macs. Great question though!
 
what about this is usb 3? the only thing this does is charge usb devices while the imac or thunderbolt display is OFF.
 
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