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This will probably sound familiar to most of you... In my home, we have a whole bunch of devices that can be charged via USB (two iPhones, a BlackBerry, an iPod Touch, etc ad nauseam). We also have a bunch of USB chargers, each of which has a single USB port on it. I'd like to have something permanently connected to AC power with at least 4 USB ports on it, so we can just plug devices in and don't need to go looking for a free outlet.
So here's the question: if I buy a powered USB hub, will that do the job even if I don't connect it to a PC? Ideally if you have a hub that you can personally verify will be suitable, let me know the manufacturer and model :-)
Thanks in advance!
EDIT: The solution I eventually went for was this:
Kensington 4-Port USB Charger for Mobile Devices (Europe)
There's also a US version here:
Kensington 4-Port USB Charger for Mobile Devices (USA)
It arrived yesterday, so I used it to charge the following devices, all at the same time, overnight last night:
32GB iPhone 3GS
16GB iPhone 3G
First-generation iPod Touch
I can't say anything about the charging speed (as I left it overnight) but all devices were fully charged this morning.
What will mark a USB hub as having this feature (USB controller, is it)? Do they advertise it? – palswim – 2012-06-26T18:16:02.907
4It should be noted that not necessarily any USB hub will work for charging. Many devices actually need to connect to a USB controller to negotiate how much current they will need. Many cheap hubs and wall warts don't even use the 2 data pins, and for the devices that need it (for example, DualShock3), they will not charge. I can say that Logitech makes USB hubs that have the required controller, and are small and inexpensive. – Stephen – 2010-01-17T00:07:03.200
@Stephen, that is very true. One near example is my Sony Bluetooth handsfree device. Does not charge off a USB wired to the PC either -- must use the charger. – nik – 2010-01-17T01:27:04.890