Introduction: USB Hub Quit Working

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About: I miss the days when magazines like Popular Mechanics had all sorts of DIY projects for making and repairing just about everything. I am enjoying posting things I have learned and done since I got my first to…
I have a Dynex add-on four port USB hub. After about a month, the ports stopped working one by one. This is a common complaint among those who have reviewed this hub at Amazon.com. But, all is not lost.

Step 1: What Happens

You insert your thumb drive and nothing happens. The thumb drive you see in the hub here has a blue LED inside its end that is supposed to flash when plugged into the hub. Sometimes it does not. No box appears on my computer screen asking me if I want to play or view files on the drive.

Step 2: Read the Manual

The brief manual Dynex included with the hub actually addresses the problem, giving both a reason for it and a solution. My finger is pointing to the power plug and the plug connecting to the USB port on the back of the computer. The third plug in the picture connects my MP3 player to the computer.

Step 3: The Solution

Static electricity causes ports in the hub to stop working. Disconnect the power plug and the plug connecting the hub to the USB port at the back of the computer. Wait a few seconds. I like to wait about 30 seconds, although that is more than what the manual requires. Put the power plug back into the hub. Then put the USB connection plug back into the hub and everything will work again until static electricity somehow builds up and incapacitates the ports again. This is not such a bad hub, after all and I was not ripped off. Other hubs may experience static electricity problems, too.