USB ports extensions?

Is there any reason to pay for the more expensive USB port splitters that allow you to turn 1 usb port into several? Some of these are very expensive while others seem reasonable - is that just about the quality of the hardware, or is there something more going on?

 

Some laptops have a very limited number of USB ports. One of mine has two in total, so external mouse, dongle and then if I want to use a USB pendrive, camera etc, I'm out of luck.

One thing that the more expensive external USB hubs can do that is very useful is provide an external power supply. If you are running something like an external DVD drive or HDD it can use more power than your laptop can supply. This depletes the battery quickly and if you run it directly through your laptop from the mains, it can cause heat problems and performance issues. Plugging an external USB drive with its own power supply in between them can remove the strain on the laptop.

Another advantage is that some of the USB hubs also come with inbuilt multi-card readers which can be very useful if your laptop doesn't have one, but it pushes the price up.

And finally, some of them have breakers, preventing a power surge from a USB device tracking back into the PC. I've blown out a couple of cheap hubs used for that, but the more expensive ones can sometimes be reset.

 

Have never thought of getting an USB extension before, but that is interesting to know there are products out there for this. I have two USB ports on my laptop at the moment, and I don't use them all the time either. This would be a great thing to have for those that need more USB ports.

 

My laptop has no USB ports because they are disabled. But we have that in our home computer. In buying gadgets and computer accessories, we sometimes buy the cheap ones on the logic that it is all right if they break down because it is cheap. But lately, we realize that buying expensive computer accessories is better because it is like a gamble when you buy cheap items that you never know when it will break down.

 

Well there has to be some use for them if they are out there. I am trying to imagine a scenario where I would need to be using multiple USB ports at the same time, but I guess if I was running a lot of different devices maybe for some work areas out there. I would guess that if you are finding yourself asking the question then you probably are not really in need of something like that, but I could be wrong.

 

The decision can't be made on price alone, but often the cheaper items are of poor quality and can introduce new problems to the situation.

 

Great stuff here, thanks.

I especially love the idea of using the extra USB port for power supply, as that is one of my chief concerns in the coming months, as I will be traveling with my laptop quite a bit. I am more interested in them for multiple purposes, but the thought of an external power supply had initially slipped my mind.

I had assumed the price difference had something to do with quality, but I always assume that some people are trying to rip me off regardless.

 

The USB port hub/splitter is a great tool for allowing you to connect additional devices to your laptop, especially when your mouse and keyboard and external hard drive are taking up all the space. Just be careful what you buy. While I purchase most of my electronics on eBay, make sure you don't buy the really cheap USB hub because most of them just don't work. It's a clear case of you get what you pay for.

 

I have only used one once, it came with a magazine I bought and it was free. It ended having a mind of it's own, I think like anything, there are things that are more expensive for a reason. For now I don't need one but when I do I will buy something a little better.