“what's the reason for connecting the hub to AC power? this is a 7 port hub connecting to a laptop”
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If you have a lot of power-hungry USB devices, like a Webcam, External Hard-drives, microcontrollers, wifi dongles, etc, the current draw will overload the 500mA available through your typical USB port. Especially if you are using a netbook.
Sorry, there was a problem. Please try again later.The AC power gives a boost to the speed and time to post or retrieve data. I do photography using 18 mp images and have 4 extremal hard drives hooked in, the smallest being 1TB. This hub has reduced my retrieval time by 75%
Sorry, there was a problem. Please try again later.Many USB devices allow you to charge their internal batteries via USB. Laptops and Desktops do not provide sufficient power to charge some devices and you must plug those devices into an AC outlet. The power provided eliminates that need and now I can connect anything to a single USB device and consolidate all the cables to one location. This includes iPads, iPhones, Bluetooth speakers, etc.
Sorry, there was a problem. Please try again later.The Hub must have its own power source to run the devices; it cannot "steal" enough energy from the system if attached directly to the computer. This is a limitation of physics, not of the computer! The Hub simply needs its own source of juice to converse with its attachments.
Sorry, there was a problem. Please try again later.While power supplied through a USB port is generally sufficient for one device (such as a mouse, keyboard, joystick or gaming device, portable external hard drive, etc.), splitting that limited power among multiple devices causes them to work erratically or not at all. Most USB connected devices also require electricity to function, and unless they have their own dedicated power such as a battery, that low-volt / low-amp electricity is supplied through the USB "plug". A Multi-port unit powered ONLY through the USB connection to the computer is limited to the power of that one USB line. Think of watering a lawn with lots of hoses and sprinklers attached to only one faucet; the water pressure out of any one sprinkler is very low because all the sprinklers and hoses are sharing one source and that source only has so much to give. A good multi-port USB hub has external power to evenly distribute sufficient power to all the ports in the hub. This is true whether the hub has only one device plugged in, or many devices. Avoid multi-port units that have no external power. You'll save yourself time and money!
Sorry, there was a problem. Please try again later.You'll need the AC adapter if you'll be connecting peripherals/accessories that draw extra power. A standard keyboard, mouse, or small peripheral (in my case, a mini music keyboard) draw a smaller amount of power. A larger accessory (in my case, an audio interface box) needs more power than what is coming through the USB port passively. Overall, keep in mind that you're plugging in 7 different units into a single port, so that port's power is being split 7 ways. The AC adapter ensures that all 7 devices will get the power they require.
Sorry, there was a problem. Please try again later.Most USB ports only have 500 milliamps per port, so if you plug in an USB switch and plug in several items to the switch that draw more power than the originating USB port can supply, it will shut down devices plugged in. The AC adapter allows the switch to supply power to each port so it isn't relying on the originating USB port to supply power to all the devices plugged in to the switch.
Sorry, there was a problem. Please try again later.If you are using low power devices you can use this hub with out the wall power. the host system will power the hub and share the 500mA of host power with your devices. However if you have high current devices, for example iPad or iPhone you will need the added power that the wall adapter gives to boost the power available at each of the hubs ports.
Sorry, there was a problem. Please try again later.Since it is a USB 2.0 device it requires more power to run the hub.
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