Provides a low-profile, space-saving platform for stacking your Mac mini
Features USB and FireWire® front-loading ports for easy access
Combines FireWireand USB technologies in one easy installation
Connects up to 4 high-speed, low-speed, or full-speed USB devices
Adds 2 FireWire ports to your Mac mini
This review is from: Belkin USB 2.0& Firewire 6-Port Hub For Mac Mini1. The hub itself does not have its own power source, restricting its [reliable] use to self-powered devices. So if you add this device to your system, you still run the risk of all your portable USB and Firewire goodies (the reason you need a hub, right?) flaking out from lack of power.
2. Although having the hub in a form factor complementary to the Mac mini is an attractive feature (and probably the major reason for purchasing it), placing it under the Mac mini limits access to the ports you are adding because you will have to fight the cables in the back of the mini to plug anything in. Apple does not advise putting anything on top of the mini because of interference issues with Bluetooth and Airport, so below the mini it must go. I am thinking I may be able to rotate it 90 degrees to get better access to the ports, but then the cable tangle will spread.
Really nice design, but the reality is that you'd probably be better off focusing on ease of access than a nice-looking hub. If you need a hard drive too, the better option is something like the NewerTech miniStack that adds powered USB and Firewire ports as well as a larger external hard drive....
This review is from: Belkin USB 2.0& Firewire 6-Port Hub For Mac MiniI took the leap and bought this hub, even after reading an unfavorable review here at Amazon. The hub is a bit odd because it does not have its own power source. After researching all over the net, I realized this was actually good design, not a defect. It's actually very nice to have one less power cord hanging from the desk top.
I have a pair of speakers, a wireless keyboard, a digital camera, and a USB pen drive plugged into the hub now for over a month without any problems. I also have a firewire iPod plugged in. I have had no power issues. My guess is that the combination of power from the firewire and USB cords that plug into your Mac Mini work together to send power where its needed. I tested the hub with a "Kill-A-Watt" meter and found that it only raised the power consumption of the Mac Mini by about 3 watts while in standby mode.
The one annoyance I will report is going to be with the USB standard in general. It appears that some USB devices have a "slightly" shorther plug than others. This difference is in millimeters, but it was an issue with my "Lexar USB pen drive." The pen drive will not plug into this hub and power on every time. This is because the Belkin hub has a very thin skin of plastic between the USB ports and the device plug. I've read other reviews with other hubs where this is an issue. You should take a couple of your USB device cables and hold them next to each other to see an length difference. If you find any plugs that are slightly smaller then the rest, it may not work with this hub. This issue is annoying, but easily fixed. I just plugged the pen drive into an USB extension cable, and then plugged the cable into the hub. I don't fault Belkin on this issue. I fault Lexar for not making the plug long enough. All the rest of my devices fit fine.
This issue of the USB plug length may be confused with other power issues in reviews for this hub. I believe that the hub provides plenty of power for it's devices. I just think some older devices may not have a long enough plug to fit those last couple of millimeters into the socket....
This review is from: Belkin USB 2.0& Firewire 6-Port Hub For Mac MiniI'm using mine with my PowerMac G5, where it fits perfectly on the top, right under the carrying handle, to bring a ton of ports to the front of the machine. I have no use for the short, tiny patch cables in this installation, but they make a great addition to my Road Warrior kit!
Incidentally, complaints about power limitations on this hub are misplaced. The hub draws power from the Firewire port if its connected, which has much more power than a USB port.
The only down side is that it only has two firewire ports....
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