Comments on: FTW USB hubs on monitors

Question: FTW USB hubs on monitors

zackola — Fri, 16 Nov 2007 07:19:19 -0800

Is there any way that the USB hub built into one of my monitors can remain on, while the monitor screen is turned off?

I have a Dell 2007WFP and a BENQ fp241w. Both have USB hubs built into the monitor. I'd like to use them to charge/sync my iPod overnight, but when they are turned off, there is no power flowing to the USB hubs built into them. Setting the screen saver to blank is not an option as that still gives off a lot of light (in a studio apt). What am I missing here? This seems like a huge design flaw.

By: b1tr0t

b1tr0t — Fri, 16 Nov 2007 07:31:19 -0800

Setting the screensaver to blank isn't enough. You need to tell the system to send the off signal to the display as well. On windows XP, there is a "power" button below the screensaver settings. Click that, and set the power off time for your monitor.

Alternately, use a separate hub.

By: wfrgms

wfrgms — Fri, 16 Nov 2007 07:33:12 -0800

Have you tried setting your OS to power down the monitor?

That may work... Otherwise, no, there is no way to turn off the monitor while leaving the USB ports powered...

And yes, it is a design flaw.

By: zackola

zackola — Fri, 16 Nov 2007 08:11:24 -0800

Power settings in XP seem to cut the power the hubs in addition to the monitor :-(

By: missmagenta

missmagenta — Fri, 16 Nov 2007 08:31:37 -0800

I don't really see it as a design flaw - off means off. If the light is bothering you - throw a sheet over it while you sleep. I bet you can even get a fancy 'monitor cover' or something.

By: TomMelee

TomMelee — Fri, 16 Nov 2007 08:44:14 -0800

Not maybe the answer you're looking for, but buying a small cheap charger from ebay will present you with a LOT of savings over running your computer all night to charge your iPod.

I hibernate my system every night and use a wall charger for my Vision:M---but TEHO.

By: mphuie

mphuie — Fri, 16 Nov 2007 09:06:03 -0800

Yes, the monitor being turned off means no power to the USB ports. Makes perfect sense.

Either tell your computer to turn off any output to the display in powersaving, tell your computer to sleep, or turn your computer off.

By: happyturtle

happyturtle — Fri, 16 Nov 2007 10:59:52 -0800

Or stick a piece of electrical tape over the led to block the light.

By: zackola

zackola — Fri, 16 Nov 2007 13:13:09 -0800

The LED is not the problem. the blanked screen just showing black is. Besides being charged, it is would be nice if my iPod were synced in the morning. The computer also functions as a server the majority of the time it is not in use directly by me.

Seriously, this is a design flaw. If it only had one USB port I could imagine that would mean the manufacturer only thought people would plug stuff in while they were sitting in front of it. To have a full hub with 4 ports implies a different use case.

There must be some standby mode for the monitor that keeps the USB hub on, but the screen off. I think I am going to try writing a small program like this to see if it works.
http://www.codeproject.com/system/display_states.asp

By: Cyrano

Cyrano — Fri, 16 Nov 2007 14:48:02 -0800

Or you could just uplug the display cable from the monitor.

By: Cyrano

Cyrano — Fri, 16 Nov 2007 14:56:08 -0800

Or, buy a cheap two input KVM switch and only hook up one monitor. Hit the button and the output goes from the machine to nowhere but the monitor power stays on.

By: itheearl

itheearl — Fri, 16 Nov 2007 15:34:08 -0800

Seems to me that you might be better off just plugging the ipod directly into the computer.

By: spiderskull

spiderskull — Fri, 16 Nov 2007 20:36:28 -0800

Have you considered just buying an AC to USB power adapter?