This is a very impressive little device! - The piece is very well built and obviously using high quality USB ports and other first rate materials. This USB hub also provides some nice unique touches you won't find on other brands like a numbered port display spanning 1-7 with blue LEDs sitting under each character that backlight each port's number when an active device is plugged into that position.
Everything is housed in a solid, glossy white, hard plastic chassis comprising the smallest footprint of any active/charge capable 7 port USB hub I have ever seen. Much smaller than I was expecting from the product photo. The device is powered by an external AC supply (wall wart) that attaches to the hub via your typical two pole female connector. The power connector itself is located on the top end of the chassis next to the USB input/output cable that connects the hub to your computer.
And Yes... as some of the whinier more anal reviewers have made abundantly clear to everyone, the AC adapter is one of the large ones and if you happen to own one of those odd power strips with the AC plugs aligned parallel to the row of female AC receptacles, then yes, this adapter is going to cover up several of the empty AC receptacles below where you plug this power supply in.
My suggestion to those who consider this to be a deal busting design flaw... How about buying a better power strip? One that is designed to work with a collection of AC power supplies? They even make some strips that have swiveling receptacles to allow you to configure your power strip to suit what you are plugging into it! Amazing what technology can do eh? Problem solved and disaster averted! For whatever reason, Anker has chosen to use that specific AC power supply, so I assume there must be a very good reason for its addition to the package.
So far I have been very pleased with the performance of the hub and have even done some hard drive backups through it using one of my Touro S Mini USB 3.0 hard drives just to see how the hub handled read and write to and from a 3.0 spec.hard drive. It performed just as fast as the dedicated USB 3.0 ports on my Macbook Pro do, so no complaints there.
All in all, I am very pleased with this sleek little USB hub and have been very pleased to confirm that we are most definitely getting the quality and performance we are paying for here. If you are looking for a sleek, small and well built USB 3.0 hub with some nice added display features, I think you have just found what you have been looking for! And as others have said, Anker appears to be an up and coming small component manufacturing company who is specializing in first class quality devices for just a little more $$ than your typical Chinese stuff everyone else is offering these days.
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This product has sustainability features recognized by trusted certifications.
Carbon impact
Carbon emissions from the lifecycle of this product were measured, reduced and offset.
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Climate neutral by ClimatePartner The Climate neutral label by ClimatePartner certifies that the carbon footprint of a product was calculated and all associated emissions were offset. Additionally, ClimatePartner encourages companies to set ambitious reduction targets and reduce their products' carbon footprints. The certificate number can be entered on ClimatePartner’s website for additional information such as the supported carbon offset project(s). ClimatePartner is improving lives by helping companies tackle climate change with practical solutions.
Certification Number
743M8T Part of
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- Anker 4-Port USB 3.0 Unibody Aluminum Portable Data Hub with 2ft USB 3.0 Cable for Macbook, Mac Pro / mini, iMac, XPS, Surface Pro, Notebook PC, USB Flash Drives, Mobile HDD and MoreAmazon's Choicein USB Hubs$6.99 shippingGet it as soon as Tuesday, Nov 26
Sustainability features
This product has sustainability features recognized by trusted certifications.Carbon emissions from the lifecycle of this product were measured, reduced and offset.As certified by
Climate neutral by ClimatePartner
The Climate neutral label by ClimatePartner certifies that the carbon footprint of a product was calculated and all associated emissions were offset. Additionally, ClimatePartner encourages companies to set ambitious reduction targets and reduce their products' carbon footprints. The certificate number can be entered on ClimatePartner’s website for additional information such as the supported carbon offset project(s). ClimatePartner is improving lives by helping companies tackle climate change with practical solutions.Certification Number743M8T Sustainability features
This product has sustainability features recognized by trusted certifications.Carbon emissions from the lifecycle of this product were measured, reduced and offset.As certified byClimate neutral by ClimatePartner
The Climate neutral label by ClimatePartner certifies that the carbon footprint of a product was calculated and all associated emissions were offset. Additionally, ClimatePartner encourages companies to set ambitious reduction targets and reduce their products' carbon footprints. The certificate number can be entered on ClimatePartner’s website for additional information such as the supported carbon offset project(s). ClimatePartner is improving lives by helping companies tackle climate change with practical solutions.Certification Number743M8T- Anker USB C Hub, Aluminum USB C Adapter with 4 USB 3.0 Ports, for MacBook Pro 2018/2017, ChromeBook, XPS, Galaxy S9/S8, and More$6.99 shippingGet it as soon as Tuesday, Nov 26
Sustainability features
This product has sustainability features recognized by trusted certifications.Carbon emissions from the lifecycle of this product were measured, reduced and offset.As certified byClimate neutral by ClimatePartner
The Climate neutral label by ClimatePartner certifies that the carbon footprint of a product was calculated and all associated emissions were offset. Additionally, ClimatePartner encourages companies to set ambitious reduction targets and reduce their products' carbon footprints. The certificate number can be entered on ClimatePartner’s website for additional information such as the supported carbon offset project(s). ClimatePartner is improving lives by helping companies tackle climate change with practical solutions.Certification Number743M8T
Simple Plug and Play Device
Running short of open USB connectors is a nightmare. This is a USB port expander, requires only one free port on your PC (ancient Desktop in my case) and an AC power outlet.The included AC adapter powers the ports, and the USB data flows back and forth to your computer.The ports are blue, indicating higher speed "USB 3.0" data speeds are permitted, depending up the performance of your USB devices, and on the speed of the PC. Connect the expanders plug to a blue port on your PC (if fitted)The blue LEDs show which expanded ports are in use. If you plug in a USB cable, that is not connected at the other end, the blue LED (for that port) will not light.One Port is for USB charging, but that not a feature I need today.This took less time to hook up than you have spend reading so far. Truely a solid unit with "Plug and Play" (no software or other configuration needed)
Top reviews from the United States
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Reviewed in the United States on February 4, 2015
Reviewed in the United States on July 12, 2024
Reviewed in the United States on March 7, 2014
Since Amazon combined the two products I'm reviewing, I have no option but to add my new review to my existing review.
I recently bought a Winbook (TW801) which amazingly has one USB 3.0 port, the only high-bandwidth port on the tablet. Due to this and the fact that I planned to leave this as an HTPC running Plex and for Steam streaming, I needed more USB ports and a gigabit ethernet port. This Anker device is perfect and due to their amazing reputation (my house is quickly becoming an Anker home catalog). I get full gigabit speeds for file transfers (up to 120MB/s to my Synology 1812+) and the USB 3.0 ports also give me full speeds on my ultra-fast Sandisk Extreme USB drives. I love performance with no compromises and this product works perfectly.
FOR USB TRANSCEIVERS (like the Logitech K400 I'm using):
USB 3.0 emits 2.4GHz interference that reduces 2.4GHz transceiver range significantly. My K400 keyboard/trackpad's range dropped from around 10-12ft to around 1ft or less when plugged directly into this plastic ethernet/usb hub so I had to get a USB extension cable to move the USB transceiver further away. THIS IS NOT ANKER'S FAULT. The USB 3.0 standard simply did not plan ahead with proper shielding and plenty of new AC wireless routers with USB 3.0 ports have had issues due to this as well. Perhaps the newer version of the aluminum unibody hub fixes this but I still preferred this black/white plastic look since I'm not using a Macbook or other aluminum-trim products.
ORIGINAL POST (6-Port + 1 BC 1.2 Charging Port Hub)
I had originally purchased the Anker 4 port bus-powered USB 3.0 hub but found that its connection wasn't stable enough to allow HD Tune to run its read benchmark or error scan without failing on a Sandisk Extreme USB stick. I still needed a USB hub and Anker deserved another chance so I got this 7-port powered-version instead.
This version is much nicer for a few reasons:
- While still plastic, the casing is more attractive to me in the white/black shell. It also feels more substantial and planted, so it doesn't seem to be as prone to tilting over. If this becomes an issue, I may stick some velcro tape to attach it to my desk.
- There are 7 lights that light up next to each corresponding port to indicate when it's plugged in. The blue light is bright but not too distracting and lets me know that things are plugged in properly.
- The USB cable is longer on this version (the 4-port was definitely made for laptops) and is just the right length to go from the back of my PC to where I need it on my desk.
Both the power and USB cables plug into the body and have a snug fit, it doesn't feel like it's going to fall out even when I pull against it to the limits of the USB cable's length.
By being a powered hub, I can also feel comfortable that each of the USB ports are being supplied enough power to charge/power my peripherals. I haven't tried the fast 2.1A charging port since I charge my iPad upstairs with its included charger.
The same HD Tune error scan test on the same Sandisk USB stick passed on the first try on all 7 ports. I plugged 2x Silicon Power A80 1TB drives and the Sandisk Extreme USB stick and ran the HD Tune read test one at a time until all three were being benchmarked at the same time. This is where I found that the hub seems to max out at around 250MB/s for concurrent transfers. I don't have a 2.5" enclosure and a free SSD to try to see if a single connection can go any faster but this will restrict you to using only 2 (maybe 3) external USB 3.0 hard drives before they start to affect each other's sequential read speeds. In practice, if you're transferring small files, your hard drives won't reach their max speeds and you should be able to have more drives connected concurrently. I'll upload photos of the HD Tune benchmarks running at the same time to illustrate my point.
Overall though, despite seeing a bottleneck in transfer speeds, this hub works really well, gives me more ports, and lets me connect my drives, card reader, USB sticks on my desk instead of the front of my PC. Since I've accidentally turned around and kicked my USB drive before while it was connected, this hub definitely adds a lot of convenience in a compact package.
Update 3/11/14
Just wanted to update and say that I'm loving that this hub is long and skinny with ports facing upwards rather than short and wide with ports to the side like many other hubs. This hub saves me a ton of space width-wise on my desk which allows me to put more things within reach. A minor yet significant productivity booster!
2 reviews: An Amazing Ethernet/USB Hub + An Excellent Powered USB Hub That May Have a Slight Speed Bottleneck
Reviewed in the United States on March 7, 2014
UPDATE/NEW REVIEW (3-Port + 1 Ethernet Port)Reviewed in the United States on March 7, 2014
Since Amazon combined the two products I'm reviewing, I have no option but to add my new review to my existing review.
I recently bought a Winbook (TW801) which amazingly has one USB 3.0 port, the only high-bandwidth port on the tablet. Due to this and the fact that I planned to leave this as an HTPC running Plex and for Steam streaming, I needed more USB ports and a gigabit ethernet port. This Anker device is perfect and due to their amazing reputation (my house is quickly becoming an Anker home catalog). I get full gigabit speeds for file transfers (up to 120MB/s to my Synology 1812+) and the USB 3.0 ports also give me full speeds on my ultra-fast Sandisk Extreme USB drives. I love performance with no compromises and this product works perfectly.
FOR USB TRANSCEIVERS (like the Logitech K400 I'm using):
USB 3.0 emits 2.4GHz interference that reduces 2.4GHz transceiver range significantly. My K400 keyboard/trackpad's range dropped from around 10-12ft to around 1ft or less when plugged directly into this plastic ethernet/usb hub so I had to get a USB extension cable to move the USB transceiver further away. THIS IS NOT ANKER'S FAULT. The USB 3.0 standard simply did not plan ahead with proper shielding and plenty of new AC wireless routers with USB 3.0 ports have had issues due to this as well. Perhaps the newer version of the aluminum unibody hub fixes this but I still preferred this black/white plastic look since I'm not using a Macbook or other aluminum-trim products.
ORIGINAL POST (6-Port + 1 BC 1.2 Charging Port Hub)
I had originally purchased the Anker 4 port bus-powered USB 3.0 hub but found that its connection wasn't stable enough to allow HD Tune to run its read benchmark or error scan without failing on a Sandisk Extreme USB stick. I still needed a USB hub and Anker deserved another chance so I got this 7-port powered-version instead.
This version is much nicer for a few reasons:
- While still plastic, the casing is more attractive to me in the white/black shell. It also feels more substantial and planted, so it doesn't seem to be as prone to tilting over. If this becomes an issue, I may stick some velcro tape to attach it to my desk.
- There are 7 lights that light up next to each corresponding port to indicate when it's plugged in. The blue light is bright but not too distracting and lets me know that things are plugged in properly.
- The USB cable is longer on this version (the 4-port was definitely made for laptops) and is just the right length to go from the back of my PC to where I need it on my desk.
Both the power and USB cables plug into the body and have a snug fit, it doesn't feel like it's going to fall out even when I pull against it to the limits of the USB cable's length.
By being a powered hub, I can also feel comfortable that each of the USB ports are being supplied enough power to charge/power my peripherals. I haven't tried the fast 2.1A charging port since I charge my iPad upstairs with its included charger.
The same HD Tune error scan test on the same Sandisk USB stick passed on the first try on all 7 ports. I plugged 2x Silicon Power A80 1TB drives and the Sandisk Extreme USB stick and ran the HD Tune read test one at a time until all three were being benchmarked at the same time. This is where I found that the hub seems to max out at around 250MB/s for concurrent transfers. I don't have a 2.5" enclosure and a free SSD to try to see if a single connection can go any faster but this will restrict you to using only 2 (maybe 3) external USB 3.0 hard drives before they start to affect each other's sequential read speeds. In practice, if you're transferring small files, your hard drives won't reach their max speeds and you should be able to have more drives connected concurrently. I'll upload photos of the HD Tune benchmarks running at the same time to illustrate my point.
Overall though, despite seeing a bottleneck in transfer speeds, this hub works really well, gives me more ports, and lets me connect my drives, card reader, USB sticks on my desk instead of the front of my PC. Since I've accidentally turned around and kicked my USB drive before while it was connected, this hub definitely adds a lot of convenience in a compact package.
Update 3/11/14
Just wanted to update and say that I'm loving that this hub is long and skinny with ports facing upwards rather than short and wide with ports to the side like many other hubs. This hub saves me a ton of space width-wise on my desk which allows me to put more things within reach. A minor yet significant productivity booster!
Images in this review
Top reviews from other countries
David E. Peachey
High quality hub. Fixed my VR issues
Reviewed in Canada on November 19, 2023SR
Appears to be solidly built, works well out of the box.
Reviewed in Canada on February 9, 2021
