What is TetraHub™ 4-Port Hub T4 Technology? TetraHub T4 (Turbo Transaction Translator Technology) provides you with the best of USB 2.0 and 1.1 technology in one solution! What is the difference between the standard USB 2.0 hub and the Belkin TetraHub™ Hi-Speed USB 2.0 4-Port Hub? The TetraHub provides 480Mbps for all your Hi-Speed USB 2.0 devices such as Hi-Speed USB 2.0 scanners and hard drives.
Unlike other USB 2.0 hubs, the TetraHub™ Hi-Speed USB 2.0 4-Port Hub also supplies a guaranteed 12Mbps to each port so you can connect full-speed USB 1.1 products, like USB speakers and USB video-capture devices that require full bandwidth to operate. Traditional hubs share 12Mbps bandwidth among all the ports.
Advantages - Guarantees 12Mbps bandwidth to each port for USB 1.1 devices
- Identifies the speed of connected devices with advanced speed indicators
- Works with all your USB 2.0 and 1.1 devices
- Transfers data at up to 480Mbps for USB 2.0 devices
- Saves space on your desktop with stackable design
- Connects most devices without requiring an external power supply
- Includes a top-quality, Belkin Hi-Speed USB 2.0 Device Cable
- Supports Plug-and-Play specifications
- Allows "hot swapping" of USB devices
- Protects your equipment with over-current detection
1 Bilked
I concur with the previous reviewer's points that the device's weight and ports arrangement make the hub seem cheap and limit it's usage. I'll add that Belkin has misleading advertising for the product and that I recieved rather poor customer service from them.
First off, the hub functioned, but not until I plugged the AC adapter in. I have a basic MS optical mouse, a Lexus Jump Drive, a digital camera and an SD card reader. None of them work with the hub unplugged. I'm 0 for 4, even though 'most devices work without power supply'...
Second, after I plugged the hub into one of my rear USB ports, the other went dead. Since I've decided I didn't want to use this piece of junk, I've been unable to plug any of the other devices directly into either of my PC USB ports anymore. These other devices work when going through the powered hub (or the new drive bay ports), but not otherwise.
I emailed Belkin and they responded by telling me to call the helpline. After 10-15 minutes on hold, the CSR had me plugging and unplugging things for another 15 minutes until he drew the conclusion that "our device is working properly, contact your PC manufaturer to find out what's wrong with the PC". A half hour on the phone to determine the problem was what I originally described in my email...
I have no idea if the technical fault is with the hub or the motherboard, but I've used the USB ports for over 2 years without a hint of trouble until I plugged the TetraHub into them.
BTW, I eventually found a drive-bay hub that plugged directly into the motherboard and suited my needs perfectly for half the price. I'm not sure what could make the TetraHub worth the price, even if it didn't have problems, unless you have some affinity to pretty lights...
2 Poor design
This hub has several rotten design features. First, it is extremely lightweight, and the weight of its own cord makes it tip on its back. Thus,you have to set something at least as heavy as a coffee mug on top of it. The USB ports in the back are in two pairs. Unfortunately, the ports in each pair are so close together that unless you have a super-flat USB plug, you cannot plug in two USB devices in a set, effectively making your four port hub a two port hub.
It works okay, I really don't find a difference in speed from a cheaper port I had, and I don't care about the lights. I usually really like Belkin products, but this one is trying to fake us out with bells and whistles (or in this case, ports and lights).
3 Work Great!
The hub works as advertised and the price was right. Reminder, you don't need the external power supply if you don't have devices such as external disk drives connected. PDA's, printers, scanners, etc. will work just fine without the external power supply.
4 Belkin has another winner in Tetra Hub!
Here are a few details you should know about the Tetra Hub. You have to buy the darn thing to figure this out.
The Tetra Hub must be connected to a USB 2.0-compliant host in order to function in high-speed mode (480Mbps data rate). If the Hub is connected to a USB 1.1-compliant host, it will operate only in low-speed or full-speed mode (1.5Mbps/12Mbps).
Note: The Hub itself will always connect to the host as either a full- or high-speed device, never as a low-speed device. Any idiot that tries to use this with an old USB 1.0 PC port will find it does not work, duh! These are the people who write Amazon reviews denigrating a product and they have not a clue as to how it is supposed to function. I really like the one where someone at Belkin tech support said to take it back and go buy someone else's hub, i.e. "GO AWAY!"
The Belkin Tetra Hub provides four downstream USB ports that offer backward-compatible, Plug-and-Play connectivity with all USB devices, including USB 1.1 (or low- and full-speed) devices, as well as with USB 2.0 (or high-speed) devices. This includes such peripherals as scanners, printers, mass-storage devices, and high-resolution cameras.
The Hub is self-powered if you use the supplied AC adaptor, which allows the cascading of devices with additional hubs, so that up to 127 USB devices may be connected to a single port.
The Hub features neat multicolor LEDs that indicate the operating speed of each connected USB device and the speed of the link to the host computer. More on this feature in a minute.
The TetraHub offers several important advantages over traditional USB 2.0 hubs. Most important is its implementation of the new "Quad TT" architecture. Simply stated, when connected to a USB 2.0 host controller, each of the TetraHub's four downstream ports deliver a full 12Mbps of USB bandwidth for low- and full-speed devices while still providing total support for high-speed devices. This is especially important when connecting multiple, bandwidth-intensive, full-speed devices such as USB webcams, speakers, scanners, and external storage devices.
BACKGROUND
The USB 2.0 specification includes three separate modes of data transmission. These are defined as low-speed (1.5Mbps), full-speed (12Mbps), and high-speed (480Mbps).
The Belkin TetraHub appears to be the only USB hub on the market today that provides a visual indication of a connected device's speed. This is accomplished using Belkin proprietary speed indication circuitry. Each downstream port on the Hub has a corresponding LED that changes color according to the speed of the connected device.
Connection Speed - LED color
Low - Green
Full - Red
High - Amber
In addition, the upstream port has a corresponding LED that indicates the speed of the computer's USB host controller.
Host Controller Speed - LED color
Full - Red
High - Amber
IMHO this is an unusual USB hub that is worth every penny Belkin gets. I just wish they had built this technology into the 7-port hub that features two ports on top for my flash drive.
I do not work in the computer industry or for Belkin. As I look at my desk, I notice I have a few other products from Belkin that have been very ssatisfactory over the last few years. I hope this Tetra USB HUB continues that experience over time.
Vic
