Satechi 7 Port USB 3.0 Premium Aluminum Hub

Satechi is now shipping a new 7 Port USB 3.0 Premium Aluminum Hub($69.99 MSRP, on sale for $54.99) that matches good looks with the speed of USB 3.0. The company came out with a 10 port USB hub earlier this year that comes in a black plastic case and sports special switches for turning various banks of ports on and off; the new hub matches the good looks of most Apple products while also doing away with the extraneous switches.

Design

If the Satechi 10 port USB hub is an 18-wheel tractor trailer rig, the 7 port aluminum hub is a fast German sports car. It looks great -- there are actually two versions, both made of aluminum but one dolled up with white plastic highlights and the other with black. Both hubs come with a SuperSpeed USB 3.0 cable to connect the hub to your Mac, allowing (according to the specs) data rates of up to 5 Gbps.

This is a powered hub, so an AC power "brick" that is almost larger than the hub itself is included. The power plug is on the right end of the hub, while the SuperSpeed USB 3.0 cable plugs into the other end. The 7 ports are on the angled top of the hub.

Unlike the 10-port hub on which each port lights up when something is plugged into it, there's only one LED on this hub that indicates that the hub is plugged in and ready to go. It's totally plug and play, with no drivers required.