USB 3.0 adapter now available

[jrapdx]

From a power point of view the 4 USB ports on the Microsoft DOCK Station draw: 1 x 900 + 3 x 500 = 2400 ma

Could they have gone: 2 x 900 + 1 X 500= 2300 ma?

If that is the case,then perhaps the adapter in question needed to be supplemented with an external power supply to work to full spec: which is not an elegant solution.

A while back I bought a 4-port Targus USB 3.0 hub. The hub is fairly small but connecting to the SP2 requires using a beefy USB 3.0 cable, not nearly as elegant as the plug-in-the-side solution.

OTOH, 4 ports are better than 2. I haven't checked the port speeds, or the power drain. Notably the hub does come with an external power supply--use is optional, and for portability reasons I almost never have plugged it in.

However, I've used the hub quite frequently (powered by the SP2). Haven't noticed a remarkable difference in battery life, but then again, small decreases are hard to measure in light of all the factors affecting battery performance. Wouldn't be surprised if there was--everything has a cost.

 

[olimjj]

My point was in response to "jefart"s contention that the adapter's second port drops to USB 2.0 if the first port is being used with a USB 3.0 device. That means the Surface can safely handle (900ma + 500ma) =1400ma but not the 1800ma required for 2 USB 3.0 devices UNLESS perhaps an external power supply is used to supplement it. My speculation is that with its use(external power supply) one might be able to use both USB 3.0 ports concurrently at rated spec. But as I alluded in my previous post, it is not an elegant solution.