Wireless USB Hubs Break Free

Are you ready to cut the cord? Wireless printing, scanning, and other USB tricks are now a reality thanks to wireless USB hubs from Belkin and D-Link.

For those of you that seek the dream of a truly wireless office, technology has taken another step forward with the introduction of wireless USB hubs from several different manufacturers. A wireless USB hub is simply a USB hub that transmits data to the host computer through a radio frequency transmission instead of the old standard USB cables. Don't get too jumpy though, while these new wireless USB hubs cut the cord between your computer and the hub, the old corded connections still exist between the hub and the peripheral. As a result, these new hubs make the most sense for avid laptop users. With a charged laptop a user can now venture as far as thirty feet from the hub and still be able to print, scan, or connect to your PDA's docking cradle.

Already D-Link and Belkin have released for sale versions of their own wireless USB hub technologies. The D-Link® Ultra-Wideband (UWB) Wireless USB Kit (DUB-9240) and the more generically named Belkin Wireless USB Hub (F5U302) both connect to your computer by means of a small thumb drive size adaptor that plugs into an available USB 2.0 slot. Plug the hub into the power outlet, connect your peripherals to it and you are ready to go for a stroll untethered. The Belkin is already on sale for just under $200 while the D-Link is ready to go on sale but not quite in the stores as yet. Other companies are stating that they also have wireless USB offerings in the pipeline. IOGear hopes to release a unit in the near future but no price estimate or release date is available at this time.