A USB/Firewire Hub for What the Mac Mini Lacks

I love my Mac Mini, but it has one really dumb design flaw—it has just two USB ports. My solution was a cheap four-port USB hub, but I am not happy with having yet another small box sitting on my desk. Which is why I was really pleased when Belkin—a company that has many interesting computer accessories—sent me its new (take a breath) Hi-Speed USB 2.0 and FireWire 6-Port Hub for the Mac Mini (four ports are USB 2.0; two are FireWire). What makes this $59 hub better than most is its shape: It has the same footprint as the Mac Mini, and being only three-quarters of an inch high, tucks nicely underneath the Mac. This really seems like a no-brainer buy for Mac Mini owners.

If I’m going to nitpick, it would be nice to have more than one USB port out the front; I wish the small power light (which matches the Mac Mini’s) did not say on, even when my Mini is off; and though it is colored in Apple white, it would have been nice if the hub’s rim matched the Mini’s metallic silver.