3Com 3C16700A OfficeConnect 8-Port Ethernet Hub

Works well, as most early 3Com products... needed it to sniff network traffic. Otherwise a switch is better suited.

When I first decided to put together a home network, I only had three computers to worry about, and a LinkSys 5 port mini-hub was all I needed. But as time wore on and the number of computer grew, I outgrew the 5 port and purchased the "3com 8TPC OfficeConnect 8 port Ethernet hub."This hub has a very small footprint and was a snap to get up and running; I just plugged my server into the back and then connected the rest of the PC's, in no particular order. There was no software to configure and no hardware interrupts, or jumpers to set. I suppose to some that like to monitor the status of their hardware from one central location, this can be a shortfall, but it is one that can be overlooked given the of home networking. The hub is equipped with front panel lights which give the status of active connections, tell you when packets are being passed over the network, warn you of packet collisions, and let you know when there are problems, such as excessive network traffic, via a read alarm indicator. And of course there is a power indicator.When my needs changed again earlier this month (I got married and needed to add my wife's PC to the network), I plugged my old five port LinkSys hub into the back of the "3com 8TPC OfficeConnect 8 port Ethernet hub," and away I went. Throughput is only 10 megabytes per second, but for the home-networking environment, this is fine. I recently had ADSL installed and traffic through the hub is as fast as it always has been, without collisions!I would high recommend the "3com 8TPC OfficeConnect 8 port Ethernet hub" as a low cost, reliable, compact hub suitable for both the home and small office environments.

I use this for a 4 computer LAN at home. Set up was simple, the software was not only good, but automatically updateable and both intranet and internet speeds are excellent. In short, I have no cpmplaints.