avengine

I have the macbook pro 2010 15" pass to me from my son after he upgrade to a macbook air.
I am using LR4 with all the photos and catalog save in 1 300g external drive, and I have another 500g 2.5" seagate drive for time machine to backup both the macbook pro and the external drive.
I also has a mini-display port adapter to connect thru HDMI to a 42" LCD TV, make the photo edit easier on the big screen.

all this thing is nice and good, but this macbook only has 2 USB 2.0 port 480Mbps, I like to use a mac keyboard with a mouse connected thur a long usb cable, but when I use the keyboard, I have to take the time machine out. I did try to use a usb hub (they call it 2.0, but it is very slow) is there some better way or I have to buy some specific usb hub to fix this problem.
Thanks.

Dal1970 Loc: UK

Have you tried using a powered USB hub? The standard ones are just extensions and can lack power and speed

avengine

never try before, any model or brand name suggestion?

Dal1970 Loc: UK

Not sure where you are located, but I use this one http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0058HTJNO/ref=wms_ohs_product_img?ie=UTF8&psc=1

jethro779 Loc: Tucson, AZ

Why not get a bluetooth keyboard & mouse? They would work wirelessly and you would still have your usb ports.

avengine

I did think about this too. but in the long run I guess USB only 2 is a problem.
thanks.

eldridgea Loc: Canberra, Australia

I have a Belkin powered USB hub with 4 slots, I run my small printer & 2 HD from mine without any problems.

ejrmaine Loc: South Carolina

I've got a 15" MacBook Pro, I use a 4 hub Belkin USB hub with a wired keyboard. Everything works just fine. My Apple wired keyboard also has 2 USB ports that are easily accessible. The Belkin was a cheap investment.

William Pritchard

make sure to get a powered USB 3 hub. The 3 is faster than the 2 and backward compatible. I just purchased a 7 port hub by Satechi on Amazon and am impressed with the quality. The ports are already filled.

stephena Loc: Carmel, Indiana

You might want to purchase Apple's "magic" mouse. Only down side I see is that it chews up AA batteries fast. I changed to rechargeables and solved the expense problem. Also, the note above re: a multi input hub is a good one and work well with the Mac. Steve

UtahBob Loc: Southern NJ

I have a prior model MBP and have the same setup with the display port to a large screen. I've been using a laptop cooler with 4 ports in the back. I use the joined wireless mouse and keyboard and keep than in the cooler. One port on the MBP is used up by the cable that connects to the cooler. I use the other port on the MBP for drive connections. Printers and scanners get connected to the laptop cooler. The cooler is powered so the speed is fine. I have had usb ports go because of use and like the cooler with the ports because if I break it, it is cheap to replace.

The other plus is that if you are doing heavy processing, the cooler keeps the unit at a low temp with the lid down but I have to keep my power supply plugged in to run the dvi with the lid closed (sometimes it will work being unplugged and of course the battery runs down to nothing since you think you are plugged in so I think that's why apple chose to require the power when the lid is down).

I've been running this way for years and it works great. I never hear the MBP fan turn on since it runs nice and cool.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

:thumbup: Indispensable.

Sheila Loc: Arizona or New York

My Macbook pro 15" also has a "firewire" port besides the two USB 2 ports. I have a Segate external hard drive that came with both USB cord to attach and a separate firewire cord. This is a faster port than USB 2 but I don't know how it compares to newer equipment.

I don't know how my Macbook compares to yours because I can't remember exactly when purchased. On my computer, starting from the left screen end is the connector for power, a wire slot if you need to connect to a modem and next the firewire slot. I also use an adapter cord that fits into my USB port. At any given time I need a slot for the plug in that my mouse uses, a printer connection, a place to attach my card file reader for Compact Flash cards and my basic backup external hard drive. When I use Lightroom, I attach the harddrive with my catalogs and files to the firewire port and use a different external hard drive for Lightroom only back up.

avengine

I like your setup too, can you tell me which laptop cooler did you buy? I am in toronto Canada. I don't mind to take a look at it.
you know what the mean reason that I have to buy the new macbook air for my son, is all because of the heat problem related to MBP 2010 i7 model, since the heat is relatively high than other i5 model and he was using it for graphic intensive application, after 3 yrs the graphic chip start to having problem, and it will reboot itself, ton of people has this problem, when I bring it to apple store with all the history and how some people get it fix for free, they refuse to do anything and said you are 2 months over to what they can do, and I need to pay $680 to replace the logic board.
make the long story short, I end up follow what some other people did, reflow the board in the oven for 8 min at 375F, replace 2 new cooling fan and buy the new thermal compound and install osx 10.9.1.
believe me it is a major rework, at least the machine is almost back to normal, but to play save I would invest what you have to keep it going at least few years I hope.
I find the osx 10.9.1 has another problem that the mouse and keyboard will freeze once in a while, a lot of people compliant but no fix yet.
I suggest anyone use macbook, keep it cool is always better than run it over 110F.
Anyway enjoy the good shot and thanks for your suggestion.

Cameoblue Loc: British Columbia Canada

This also works for well me. You could also get a blue tooth 5x5 touchpad for the perfect setup.