Sometimes, I have to switch USB dongle for keyboard and/or mouse from USB power bar to USB on my PC Laptop. Does anyone know what causes this? (2 Viewers)

[Tony Bensley]

Sadly, if the Windows universal drivers don't work you're left to the mercy of manufacturers, who are all too quick to abandon legacy product support. Sometimes you can find drivers on 3rd party repositories such as Github.

I get caught in the duplicate posts loop from time to time too.

In this case, I think I'll just have to continue making do with USB 2.0, which kind of sucks, as besides needing multiple USB slots, I did get that one with the idea of enjoying faster speeds for my External Hard Drive and External Blu-ray drive. What especially sucks for my Blu-ray Drive, is it has a double USB 3.0 cable and my PC only has a single USB 3.0 slot, so I'm beat for ever enjoying the full 3.0 for this device with my current setup, despite having a USB 3.0 hub!

Oh well. There's worse things.

CHEERS!

 

[Scott Merryfield]

Sounds like time to try a different USB hub. I am using this one on a Dell i7 PC running Windows 11. I have several devices, including two external USB 3 hard drives, connected with no issues. I am using this one on my wife's Blackview mini PC, also running Windows 11. There is a WD Passport portable external drive (USB 3) attached to this hub.

 

[Tony Bensley]

Sounds like time to try a different USB hub. I am using this one on a Dell i7 PC running Windows 11. I have several devices, including two external USB 3 hard drives, connected with no issues. I am using this one on my wife's Blackview mini PC, also running Windows 11. There is a WD Passport portable external drive (USB 3) attached to this hub.

Thank you Scott, but you'll need to note which specific USB 3 hubs for yours and your wife's PCs, as for some unknown reason, lately links posted here have been redirecting me to group pages, rather than the specific item for which the link was intended. Super annoying, I know!

CHEERS!

Edit: Actually, scratch the above, as a second attempt took me to the actual individual USB 3 hubs. So weird!

 

[Scott Merryfield]

Thank you Scott, but you'll need to note which specific USB 3 hubs for yours and your wife's PCs, as for some unknown reason, lately links posted here have been redirecting me to group pages, rather than the specific item for which the link was intended. Super annoying, I know!

CHEERS!

That's odd, Tony. The links work for me. If you copy/paste the descriptions below within Amazon, you should be able to find them.

On my PC, I am using:

Powered USB 3.0 Hub, Wenter 11-Port Hub Splitter (7 Faster Data Transfer Ports+ 4 Smart Charging Ports) with Individual LED On/Off Switches, Power Adapter for Mac, PC​

On my wife's PC, I am using:

USB Hub 3.0, ikuai 4 Port Powered USB C & USB 3.0 Hub Splitter 5Gbps Port Expander with Individual On/Off Switch and 5V AC Adapter for Laptop PC and More​

 

[Tony Bensley]

That's odd, Tony. The links work for me. If you copy/paste the descriptions below within Amazon, you should be able to find them.

On my PC, I am using:

Powered USB 3.0 Hub, Wenter 11-Port Hub Splitter (7 Faster Data Transfer Ports+ 4 Smart Charging Ports) with Individual LED On/Off Switches, Power Adapter for Mac, PC​

On my wife's PC, I am using:

USB Hub 3.0, ikuai 4 Port Powered USB C & USB 3.0 Hub Splitter 5Gbps Port Expander with Individual On/Off Switch and 5V AC Adapter for Laptop PC and More​

As I just edited in my post above, the link redirecting seems to be an inconsistent thing. Several years back, I was experiencing a similar issue, and it seems to have started up, again.

In any case, current lack of funds means I'm stuck with what I have for now, but what you've provided is a good starting point, and I thank you for that!

 

[JohnRice]

Just to toss in my little bit, I've found when there are intermittent problems and a USB hub is involved, almost every time it's the hub that's causing the problem. There are a lot of bad USB hubs out there.

 

[JohnRice]

In fact, I don't think I've bought a decent USB hub in 7-8 years. Even Anker, who had been reliable, have let me down. I've had to resort to much more expensive options, like Docks and extremely expensive hubs like THIS one.

 

[Tony Bensley]

In fact, I don't think I've bought a decent USB hub in 7-8 years. Even Anker, who had been reliable, have let me down. I've had to resort to much more expensive options, like Docks and extremely expensive hubs like THIS one.

That's rather depressing. The price point for that hub is way way way out of my range! At that cost, I'll live with USB 2.0 speeds.

CHEERS!