StarTech.com5 ft Black Desktop SuperSpeed USB 3.0 Extension Cable - A to A M/F - USB 3.0 Extension Cable A Male to A Female - 5 feet (USB3SEXT5DKB)

I've been playing with Windows 10 bio metrics and wanted to use a fingerprint scanner to log in. When looking at fingerprint scanners (I purchased a PQI model - ASIN B06XG4MHFJ) this was a suggested purchase to go with it and I couldn't agree more.Essentially this is a USB 2.0 extension lead with a weighted base that has a vertical mounted female USB port. Perfect for plugging a USB fingerprint reader into the top, or any other USB device or dongle that you want easy access to. If you want to use memory sticks and other high-speed devices then you should probably pay the extra and buy the USB 3.0 version of this cable, providing that your devices support that speed. For my Fingerprint reader USB 2.0 is fine.The base is made from textured plastic, shaped like a small pear and weighs about 70g so it doesn't slide off the desk like a regular USB extension would. The cable is an odd length at 5ft (which is about 140cm) but it's long enough to get from my desk to my PC so perfect for my requirements. It also seems well made with a relatively thick cableMy only criticism is the large StarTech branding printed on one side of the base. It's not very subtle and I would have preferred that to be printed on the bottom of the base instead. If it bothers you it can be positioned to the far left of your desk so that it is less visible.Pros:- Decent quality- Weighted base (70g) that doesn't slide around easily- Perfect for USB Fingerprint readers, dongles, memory sticks etc.- Available in USB 2.0 and USB 3.0 variantsCons:- StarTech branding in big letters down one side which isn't very subtle

I had a USB 2 version of this that came with a wireless adapter years ago so when I needed a USB 3 extension I hunted out this style as I know it works well.The packaging was a plain box inside a standard Amazon box. Not much to get damaged here in transit anyway!Description states 5ft and that's exactly what you get.Nice heavy unit means this will stay put on your desk and doesn't skit around as you plug your flash drive etc. It gives full USB 3 speeds when used with compatible equipment. This is backwards compatible with USB 2. Even if your PC or laptop doesn't have USB 3, I'd recommend buying this as your next one is bound to have it and this will be future proof and not landfill.The gauge of the cable is decent and there is nothing cheap about it. I would recommend.Hope this review has been helpful. If it has, please give it a thumbs up so I know I'm on the right track. Thanks, Anthony

When mice and Keyboards were wired the USB ports being mounted as the back of PC cases was not an issue, but with the advent of wireless version of such products the installing of the radio transmitter behind the PC meant for poor reception and loss of signals. This cable and its sturdy base means that the receiver can be bought around to front of the case and or monitor giving less loss of signal, or for those that need additional USB storage interface ports easily accessed connections to the motherboard. The heavy base to the socket end of the cable means it's more likely to stay where it's put on your work environment.

This works really well to raise a wife dongle to a position where it will work effectively. It has a useful weight and won't fall over accidently.However the shape isn't very pretty, and the large Startech.com logo is quite unnecessary unless you need to be reminded of who not to buy visible IT components from. Fortunately I don't get to see the logo in the position that the USB extension sits.I've bought many Startech items over the years, they specially in good quality, slightly obscure cables, adapters and cards.

These USB extenders with their solid bases are great for many uses, In my case I bought them to use for extending the USB port on two new servers at work to enable the hub with the keyboard and mouse plugged in to be easily switched between systems. Just added a label so I knew which was which.These are also really god for plugging in a USB Wireless adaptor which you want to distance from you system to get better performance.

On testing this by benchmarking a SSD USB3 drive and comparing it to connecting the drive directly into the same USB3 port i am alarmed to report that this cable is REALLY SLOW, when connected by the cable my write speed is reduced by 4 times, without the cable it is 500MBps, with the cable it is used the speed is reduced to only 120MBpsI have repeated this test 5 times each on 2 laptops and 1 desktop and the results are the samei therefore do not recommend this products and i regret buying it

A few weeks later, and both purchases are behaving erratically; in some cases one refuses to connect with a pendrive while the other has no problem... as I spend a lot of my time transferring data, I can only assume that they are wearing out through constant use.EDIT - both units have now started to fail completely, with corrupted data messages appearing on one machine. Binned.

I bought a couple of the USB 2 versions of these a couple of years ago and they were perfect. Now I have a Desktop computer with USB 3 ports but unfortunately they are situated on the back of the tower so I bought two of these ones. No more messing about trying to access the ports. With a 5 foot cable these are now placed perfectly on my desk in easy reach and the heavy female end sits there without too much movement. I have found no loss of data transfer speed using these units. One is connected directly and the other is connected via an Amazon Basic 4 Port powered Hub and both perform with no problems at all. It is a solid and well made product and in my mind well worth the money.