Hey,
I'm looking for a USB 3.0 hub, anyone have any recommendations?
I'm hoping to plug in two USB 2.0 hdd, among other things, would the computer be able to access these at full (USB 2.0) through the USB 3.0 hub and port? In other words, would there be a bottleneck with them attached as would be the case if they were plugged into a USB 2.0 hub and port?
Thanks
Not enough USB ports. My computer is a MacBook..
My hdds aren't USB powered, but 3.5" externals. I want a USB 3.0 hub, but am interested to know if the hub would allow the USB 2.0 hdds their full speed while both are being accessed, instead of slowing them down as according to available bandwidth if they were both connected to a USB 2.0 port.
USB 3.0 hubs don't seem to be in lack, however with a plethora of options, does one stand out in terms of reliability and speed?
Thanks
I bought the one from Catch of the Day. 10 hubs with 4 ports of USB 3.0. I like it because it is a powered hub and it has individual switches for each hub. Hope it helps.
http://www.catchoftheday.com.au/End_of_Financial_Year_Techno…
PS you have to wait it is on sale again from COTD.
I've found that one on eBay. Does it work well?
Ultimately you are going to be limited by the USB bus, ie its a pipe of data.
Because you attach a hub to the end doesnt make the pipe bigger or faster.
If this is not a problem please ignore :)
Would also be interested in an AC-powered usb 3.0, with at least 4 usb 3.0 ports if anyone knows any bargains.
Disclaimer: I have not read up on USB3 as much, but this is my understanding.
USB while not a bus in the traditional sense is in that data from all devices uses shared bandwidth. The exception here is USB3, which has it's own new data channel. So if you use a USB2 device and a USB3 device they can both flood the bus. Two USB2 devices will be competing.
The possible exception here is that if you have a computer with USB2 and USB3 there is a good chance that they are separate controllers, so the best solution is to connect one drive to a USB2 port and one to a USB3 port.
Connecting both to USB3 will be no different to connecting them both to USB2.
Hope this helps.
So if I have a USB 3.0 hdd and a USB 2.0 hub connected to a USB 3.0 port, the USB2 drive will bring down the speed of everything attached to be as if it were a USB2 hub? Hmm. That sucks. Good to know. But sucks.
What now, if I only have USB3 hdds plugged in, but also have a wireless keyboard receiver, iphone data cable, etc. connected? Will those limit the speed as a whole as well?
See below.
I don't think so no. If you get a USB3 hub and change one of the devices to USB3 it should allow you to use it as USB3 even if another device on the HUB is USB2.
To help explain, USB1/1.1/2 all use the same pins for data. USB3 uses a completely different physical connection (if you look closely at the plug, it has more contacts). It would help to think of them as completely different systems, but plugs can either provide 2 and 3 or just 2.
does your computer even support usb3? if not you should be able to buy usb3 pci card off the chinese sites cheaply. eg http://buyincoins.com/details/new-4-port-usb-3-0-pci-e-pci-e…
Irrelevant. If the devices are not USB3 it makes no difference.
Yes, indeed it does. But it is a laptop, so I cannot attach a PCI card.
Thanks, though.
few other options comining up:
- see if there is a usb3 hub that connects to eSata (if you Mac does have eSata)
- have those drives in a mini-NAS (enclosure for 2 HDDs that is connected to network)
- or cheap (free) model: put those HDDs into an old small desktop PC (Dell or HP) and connect it to LAN
USB3 does not connect to eSata, but just using eSata instead of USB is a MUCH better idea (involves changing products though).
What's the main problem? Not enough USB ports, slow speeds or distance from PC ports?
Note: if they are usb powered, there might be problems with HDDs switching off due to insufficient power supply.