Satechi 4 Port SuperSpeed USB 3.0 Hub Review

Use, Final Thoughts & Conclusions

Using the Satechi four port USB 3.0 hub is no different than any other hub, it’s plug and play all the way. The hub plugs into the host computer and the flash drive plugs into the hub. No need for the power cable for just a single thumb drive but using devices that require more power (i.e. iPad), or connecting several devices may draw more power than the since host USB hub can support. Since there were no real directions provided with the hub, users aren’t really given direction on this matter.

One gripe we have about this (and many other) hubs is that the ports aren’t spaced out very far so larger devices block adjacent ports. This is a blessing and a curse because while this can be an issue, spacing them out too far would make the hub much larger and less travel friendly. With the single hub on the opposite side, users should be able to utilize at least three of the four ports simultaneously, even if they are bulky drives.

When in use, the hub lights up via LEDs inside although it’s a bit tough to see while light is plentiful. A lower light situation yields a warm yellow glow. If yellow and black are your favorite color scheme (Steelers fans?), this’ll do nicely. Build construction seems to be solid and it doesn’t feel flimsy at all nor does it feel exceptionally solid. It should stand up just fine to accidental drops and hold its own in a backpack full of various items but stepping or sitting on it will almost certainly result in damage. Not really any different than the vast majority of hubs out there in this regard, nor is the fact that it’s manufactured in China. Neither is a knock against it, just information.

In terms of performance, we didn’t find any indications that the hub impeded data speeds so the Genesys Logic GL3520 hub controller handling the load in the device was more than up to the job. This is very important as the last thing you want is to have an intermediary device scrubbing off speed, or worse yet, corrupting data. We played around with it a bit, moving large video and audio files and no corruption was evident. Always a good thing. For $39.99, if your machine is limited on USB 3.0 ports, we see no reason not to recommend the Satechi four port USB 3.0 hub.

Legit Bottom Line: The Satechi four port USB 3.0 hub does exactly what you’d expect from a quality hub – expanded port availability without hindering performance.