Do I need a usb hub?

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timmoy

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Feb 15, 2015
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Hi,

I have
- a wireless adapter without power supply.(Asus Dual Band (2.4GHz 300Mbps/5GHz 300Mbps) Wireless-N USB Adapter )
- a 2.5" extrnal SATA hdd with its own usb enclosurer (Western Digital My Passport 1TB (WDBBEP0010) More or less like this one)
- a 2.5" IDE hdd taked out of a dead laptop, and I will buy a ide/sata-usb adapter (SABRENT USB 3.0 TO SATA/IDE 2.5/3.5/5.25-INCH Hard Drive Converter With Power Supply) with power supply, to connect the hdd to my laptop.

The first two can connect to my laptop without problem. I think the third will also after I buy the ide/sata-usb adapter.

1. My laptop Thinkpad T400 has only one working usb port.
Do I need a usb hub with power supply in the following three cases:
- for connecting a external hdd and the wireless adapter?
- for connecting the two external hdds and the wireless adapter?
- for connecting the two external hdds at the same time?

2. Could you recommend good, portable but inexpensive usb hubs in two cases:
- with its own power supply?
- without its own power supply?

Is this one without its own supply and a good choice?
Sabrent 4-Port USB 3.0 Hub with Individual Power Switches and LEDs (HB-UM43)

3. Can an enclosed external 2.5" hdd (like this one) be self-powered by some way?

Thanks.
 
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SuperSoph_WD

SuperSoph_WD

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Jul 30, 2014
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Hey there, timmoy!

1. To answer your first question, you'd definitely need a USB hub, since only one port on your laptop is working.
2. However, I cannot recommend you any specific hubs but I believe @digitaldoc truly knows what he is doing, so I'd follow the links.
3. Indeed, the WD My Passport and usually most of the 2.5" drives in enclosures don't need additional power supply like the desktop 3.5" drives do. The USB 2.0/3.0 port is enough to supply the Passport with power, don't worry about it! :)

Hope I was helpful!
SuperSoph_WD
 
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timmoy

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Feb 15, 2015
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Thanks.

1. My laptop T400's usb pot is 2.0. If I might buy a new laptop with usb 3.0 sometime in future, shall I buy a usb hub with usb 3.0 or 2.0?

2. I heard some usb 3.0 hubs can't work with wireless devices such as wirelss mouse. Is this acommon problem with all usb 3.0 hubs including the one in the link?

3. The usb 3.0 model of the Amazon basic one in your link has 2 charging ports, while the usb 2.0 model doesn't. What are charging ports used for, compared to other ports?

Shall I connect an external 2.5" hdd without its power supply to a charging port or a non-charging port? Shall I connect an external 2.5" hdd with its power supply to a charging port or a non-charging port?

4. Is vertical configuration better than nonvertical one? The usb 3.0 7 port is not vertical, while the usb 3.0 7 port is.

5. Can a 4 port model of Amazon basic work with all of my devices at the same time? Or can a 7 port device work better?

Thanks again!



 
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SuperSoph_WD

SuperSoph_WD

Glorious
Jul 30, 2014
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1. My laptop T400's usb pot is 2.0. If I might buy a new laptop with usb 3.0 sometime in future, shall I buy a usb hub with usb 3.0 or 2.0?
Well, I believe most new laptops come with both USB 2.0 and USB 3.0. They are backward compatible as well, but USB 3.0 is almost 10 times faster than 2.0.

2. I heard some usb 3.0 hubs can't work with wireless devices such as wirelss mouse. Is this acommon problem with all usb 3.0 hubs including the one in the link?
The most common issue is with the USB 3.0 drivers, not the hubs themselves. That's why most of the newly manufactured computers incorporate both ports.

3. The usb 3.0 model of the Amazon basic one in your link has 2 charging ports, while the usb 2.0 model doesn't. What are charging ports used for, compared to other ports?
This is most probably because it has more ports and it is a USB 2.0 hub. While yours is USB 3.0 and as I mentioned already, it's much more powerful than 2.0.

4. Is vertical configuration better than nonvertical one? The usb 3.0 7 port is not vertical, while the usb 3.0 7 port is.
This mostly for ease of access, I guess. If you put 4 devices next to each other and you want to unplug only the 3rd one, it would be much easier to do so, if the ports are positioned vertically. Otherwise you are risking UN-safely removing some other device which might lead to damaging or corruption of that device (happens usually with external HDDs).

5. Can a 4 port model of Amazon basic work with all of my devices at the same time? Or can a 7 port device work better?
I think that the hub with additional power supply wins here. But it would be much better if you can find a hub with USB 3.0 ports and additional power supply as well.

Hope I answered your questions! :)
SuperSoph_WD
 
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timmoy

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3. For the 3rd question, Shall I connect an external 2.5" hdd without its power supply to a charging port or a non-charging port? Shall I connect an external 2.5" hdd with its power supply to a charging port or a non-charging port?

5. For the last question, the 4 port usb 3.0 also has power adapter. I am not sure choose 4 or 7 ports.
 
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SuperSoph_WD

SuperSoph_WD

Glorious
Jul 30, 2014
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Well, in this case, it's totally up to you. How many external devices do you plan to plug in those ports?
If a 4-port hub is enough, then it is what you need. Since it does have an additional power supply and it's USB 3.0, I believe you'd be much more pleased with its performance though! :)

SuperSoph_WD
 
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timmoy

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Feb 15, 2015
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Added to my last reply to yours:

can a 7 port usb 3.0 hub work with a hdd dock with 2 2.5" hdds (e.g. http://www.amazon.com/StarTech-com-Docking-Station-2-5in-3-5in/dp/B005JFUI6M/)?
 
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SuperSoph_WD

SuperSoph_WD

Glorious
Jul 30, 2014
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My guess is it will work. Unless, of course, there is no additional power supply to those hubs. The USB 3.0 alone won't be enough for a docking station, an AC adapter must be present.

Good luck! Let us know once you come to a final decision! :)
SuperSoph_WD
 
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