iLYNX USB/FIREWIRE HUB by MOSHI
Gives you 4 USB and 2 Firewire ports, (2 USB, 1 firewire each side)
Cost approx. $45
Rob’s Rating 9/10
There comes a time in every computer owner’s life when you run out of ports for all your USB and Firewire peripherals. Eventually you must buy a hub, but finding a good one can prove a challenge since they all seem to be made from cheap plastic with connections that just can’t hold up to any wear or tear.
So it was with some trepidation I started looking for yet another hub to replace my current one that had developed some faulty connections. One problem I find is that most hubs are so small they are easily yanked down behind my desk by the weight of the wires attached, and it’s a jungle back there! I really didn’t feel like forking out another ten or twenty bucks to buy another hub of dubious quality...and then I discovered the Moshi iLYNX.
Not only is this hub a thing of beauty (that blends in with any Mac should you be of the Mac persuasion) but it is also well designed and solidly built. While it is still constructed of plastic, and quite light, the flat design makes it sit solidly on the desktop. Two cables emerge from the back, one USB and one Firewire 400. Additional cables come in the box that will let you adapt the Firewire 400 plug to fit an 800 port, and two short USB extension cables, all of which proved very handy! The hub is powered through these cables and the name MOSHI lights up on the front to let you know it is powered on.
Once I received the hub I immediately started plugging in all manner of peripherals and it worked just as a hub should work - perfectly. Some people might balk at paying $50 for a hub but I have a feeling this one is going to last for the long haul and be worthy of such an investment. I will get back to you on that however should I find any problems with it over the next few months.
PROS:
• Great design, solidly constructed.
• Powered via USB and Firewire cables so no external power supply.
• Extra cables let you plug into either firewire 400 or 800 ports, and extend USB length.
CONS:
• More expensive than most of the competition, but of course the competition has often been pretty crappy.
