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Unitek USB 3.0 Hub 6 Ports + iPad Charging REVIEW (Y-3181):

3,149 views · Published 5 October 2014 · 5:30 · Indexed 31 October 2026

Channel: OSReviews · 2014 · Science & Technology

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The UNITEK Y-3181 hub offers 6 USB 3.0 data transfer ports (compatible with PCs/Macs), and 2 high-speed charging ports (8 ports total). The charging ports are highlighted red, and quickly charged even power-hungry tablets and smartphones. The USB 3.0 file transfer ports, marked blue, were speedy in performance, and allowed use of 6 USB devices (Thumb Drives, HardDrives, accessories) simultaneously. Overall, buyers looking for an inexpensive, yet solidly-built USB 3.0 Hub, should take a closer look at the Y-3181.

Detailed Review:
Street Price： ($35)
Packaging-
UNITEK's colorful packaging presents the product in an organized fashion. Inside, one will find access to one USB 3.0 cable connecting the Hub to a computer's USB port, one AC power adapter for the HUB, the HUB itself, and a warranty guide.

Set-Up-
Because the Y-3181 allows for speedy charging of tablets and smartphones alike, it needs to physically connected to a wall outlet, for maximum performance. The included AC adapter connects to the right side of the HUB, and a green LED will illuminate when the HUB receives power. One thing I will note is that the AC charging adapter is quite large (roughly the same size as a computer charger/the HUB itself). Although portability suffers slightly from this, the upside is increased durability, and a longer wire length.
The HUB can also be directly connected to a computer without the AC charger, although only the USB 3.0 file transfer ports will work (the red charging ports will not receive sufficient power).
The right side of the HUB also features the USB connection to a computer. This is a plug & play device, which means no software is needed to the computer to recognize the HUB.

Design-
The Y-3181 is made out of both plastic and metal components. The bottom of the HUB features 4 rubber feet that prevent the HUB from sliding around on tabletops, a detail that I'm happy Unitek included here. The spacing between the eight total USB ports is reasonably wide, meaning users will also have no issues with using all of the ports simultaneously. Overall, the design is professional, yet portable in size to carry around.

Functionality-
The blue USB 3.0 data ports yielded close to the advertised 5 GBPS speeds, during our testing. The HUB was also compatible with all of the various Harddrives, and USB memory sticks we threw at it. This allowed for super quick file transfers (videos, files, programs）between the computer and the USB device. The HUB was supported on most computer OS's as well (for Windows this was Windows 8 down to Windows XP). A job well done, Unitek.

On a similar note, the red charging ports provided charging speeds that matched, or even exceeded traditional AC wall chargers for iPads and larger tablets. A complete charge for the iPad took us roughly 1.5 hours to complete, which is an impressive rate. These red charging ports, which provide a 5V/2A output, will also work with all smartphones (ie; Galaxy, Nexus devices).

On the other hand, the red charging USB port, does not offer that ability to sync info. with a computer. In other words, plugging an iPad into the red port to charge it, will not both charge and sync the iPad. To get the iPad/tablet to sync with a computer, one must disconnect from tablet's USB cable from the red charging port, and plug it into one of the blue data ports. Syncing will then occur, although charging will then take a longer period of time.
UNITEK has also built a surge protector into HUB, which means using all 8 ports simultaneously, will still be a safe ordeal.

Conclusion:
Although not without some minor shortcomings, the Y-3181's ability to offer high-speed file transfer AND high-speed charging, makes it a convenient all-in-one 3.0 USB HUB.

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