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USB Hub Mac Mini 2012 Late
- Thread starter Patth9
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Just make sure it's USB 3 and has a power supply. The power supply is important as USB doesn't supply much power by itself and certain devices won't receive enough power to work. Something like this will work fine and should enable you to use your superdrive too.
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The official Apple USB Superdrive uses a non-standard power configuration and works very inconsistently with USB hubs. It's really intended to be plugged directly into the Mac and will work best that way. If you must use an external DVD drive through a USB hub you'll probably find it's easiest to get an aftermarket drive that is more compatible with standard USB.
I don't use the USB SuperDrive. I bought an LG slim external Blu-Ray burner that was on sale at Best Buy for $80. You get a lot more bang for your buck. I can even play Blu-Ray discs (thanks to the Leawo Blu-Ray Player freeware app; it can even play the Blu-Ray discs bypassing the HDCP thing on my 20" Apple Cinema Display!) and burn them (thanks to Roxio Toast Pro; a few months ago I burned my first Blu-Ray disc on my Mac Mini, of the HD videos I shot of my mother's 60th surprise birthday party.)
But for USB hubs, I use a Fideco hard drive docking station that includes two regular USB 3.0 ports and one for just charging devices. When the internal connections on my Seagate external USB 2.0 desktop drive (7200 RPM, even) failed, I was able to remove the drive from its case, plug it into the docking station, and it works very well, maybe even better due to the USB 3.0 connection! (Since it's a 7200 RPM drive, I use it for a lot of my video production work.)
But for USB hubs, I use a Fideco hard drive docking station that includes two regular USB 3.0 ports and one for just charging devices. When the internal connections on my Seagate external USB 2.0 desktop drive (7200 RPM, even) failed, I was able to remove the drive from its case, plug it into the docking station, and it works very well, maybe even better due to the USB 3.0 connection! (Since it's a 7200 RPM drive, I use it for a lot of my video production work.)
The OP didn't say she wanted to replace a hub, she said she wanted to buy one.
How many things do you need to connect to your Mini? Regardless, seems like you could plug the superdrive directly into one of the four built-in ports and use a hub (if needed) on another port.
Exactly +1
I have my superdrive in a mini usb port, and actually everything else in the amazon basis 3.0 hub. Runs perfect