Customer Reviews

Targus 7-Port USB 2.0 Desktop Hub with Audio Pass-Through ACH81US (Silver)

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

I personally tested 8 different 7 port usb hubs for use in
a computer science testbed and this is the only one that
actually behaves properly according to the USB specs
in terms of supplying power from the external transformer.
All the others drew too much current from the USB cable,
didn't communicate properly with our devices or stopped working after a few months. The testbed has been running
for a few years and these hubs have been working great.
I use them myself also. I highly recommend them.

On seeing this hub online, I thought the design strange, but since it seemed to have everything I wanted, I decided to risk it. What I was looking for: a 7-port 2.0 hub that would accomodate my extra USB devices safely and firmly. I've been using it for about a month and have no complaints. One of my pet peeves with USB hubs are ports that are too closely spaced, not allowing wider devices -- case with my SDHC card reader -- to be attached along with other devices. No such issue with the Targus. It works extremely well (so much so that I tend to forget that it is there), sits solidly on my desk vertically, which means a small footprint and simply does what it has to do. I use the external power connector that shipped with the product, as I figured that 7 ports would be too much for a USB-powered hub to handle. The two "always on" ports are a particularly good idea, as they allow you to charge USB-powered devices (such as an MP3 player) even when the computer is off. I haven't tried the mic and headphone jacks because there was no need, but all else works just fine.

Works well without the extra power. Tossed several hubs over 3 year period. This looks like a keeper.

Like many computer accessories this one has an appealing list of features. Too bad it doesn't always work. The first one I received operated for a couple of weeks and then died. None of the LEDs would light and no USB traffic would pass. The replacement worked for a couple of months during which period I experienced odd delays and failures when restarting my computer or waking it from sleep. It even made Vista blue-screen with a USB device error. I've replaced the Targus hub with a 7-port hub from Tripp-Lite and all the problems instantly disappeared even though all of the same USB peripherals are still in use. This indicates that the problem was definately the hub. Your experience may be different. Just be advised that this hub won't always work as advertised. By the way, my computer is a $5000 Dell M1730 laptop running Windows Vista Ultimate/32bit.

Another interesting observation: Since this (and the replacement Tripp-Lite hub) are both powered hubs, I assumed that I could plug my Sony MP3 player into the hub and have it charge without having the computer powered-up. But with either hub, the MP3 player refuses to charge unless the computer is powered-up too. This makes it pretty useless as a USB charger since I could just as well plug the MP3 player into the computer as having a computer powered-up seems to be a requirement in either case.

Bought this item around Christmas. It stopped working around March. Emailed Targus about problem. They asked me to identify Operating System, how many devices were attached and how many devices were plugged in simultaneously. I didn't know when it had stopped working. I noticed it when I went to access data on an external hard drive and couldn't find it listed. No lights on Hub were working and hub/attached devices did not appear on Device Mgr. Hub was installed on a desktop PC that receives light usage. Operating System is Vista (the main reason I purchased this product was that it ran on Vista). I had about 5 devices attached including an external drive, a printer and scanner. I have not used the scanner or printer since adding the hub. I highly doubt that any devices were working simultaneously.

Targus response was "Having all of those devices connected has resulted in overtaxing the hub, causing it not to work. With the overtaxing, the hub is not covered under the conditions of the warranty. I apologize for this inconvenience."

Nowhere in the user manual were there any warnings about damage occurring from plugging certain devices into certain ports. Nor is there any clear language in warranty that says "overtaxing" hub is not covered. So now I have a Targus paperweight.

I bought the hub when one of the little, cheap hubs burn't out. This one seems well made, has special sockets for equipment that require a bit more power, has inputs for microphone and loudspeakers that I don't understand, and has been fully used and used hard now for some time.
It's pricey compared to the $5 to $15 USB hubs you can get, but I don't regret having bought it. I like it and it works well.
Leon

This hub does everything it claims to do and performance wise it is a good buy. I don't get the angle design as with all the connections attached it will have a tendency to fall over but its curved body means it does not lie down flat on a desk. IMHO not a practical case design.

I did a lot of research into the "best" USB hub, and the Targus consistently showed up at the top of the list. I agree. I purchased this for my wife who was having trouble with an unpowered hub not providing sufficient power to a backup hard drive and other devices. We plugged in the Targus, plugged in her USB devices, and all problems vanished. The unit is well designed and does all that is necessary. There are cheaper hubs, but since spending hours diagnosing USB problems is not something I care to do, the Targus represents money well spent. If you're having USB problems, an AC-powered hub is probably the solution, and the Targus is ideal. Highly recommended.

Along with the other reviewers here, I purchased this to charge/connect a few idevices and a blackberry (powered) and connect an external drive or two (non-powered). The USB connection works as expected. The power does not.
I cannot get any device to charge alone much less two or more. I have tried all the usual different outlet, cable, one device at a time, etc. Contacted Targus support, no help.

I do not recommend this product.

Incredibly poor build quality. I've gone through two of these already, and in both, the "high power" ports begin to fail, and shortly thereafter, the entire device fails.

I'm not sure if its just poor grounding or what, but something in this design reeks.