Belkin Updates Wireless USB Hub, Maybe This One Works

Belkin has been good at creating hype for their wireless "cable-free" USB hubs utilizing Ultra-wideband. As you might remember from my review in February, Belkin sent me their 199 4-port wireless USB hub to review. I essentially deemed it an utter failure. It only worked with Windows and the drivers and software for that were extremely flaky and crash-prone. Even when I was able to get them working, transfer speeds were appalling. I stated that perhaps Belkin would be able to fix the issue with firmware updates but that wasn't the case.

Belkin had apparently been paying attention to what people though of their failed first foray into the world of wireless USB hubs. They have announced an updated version of the expensive 199 wireless USB hub scheduled to start shipping in late August.

The updated hub.

Bottomline - if you have any interest in purchasing this updated hub, wait until the reviews come out. I'm still skeptical. Hopefully Belkin changed some of the hardware in this revision. Other than that, it looks identical do the old version with the exception of the antennas (perhaps they ditched UWB for Wi-Fi?), a restyled USB dongle and replacing an orange LED for a blue LED.

More impressive than this USB hub is an upcoming Belkin wireless router with an "interactive network display".