Sharing devices such as printers and external hard drives between computers has always been a bit of a hassle because it involves setting up… ugh, a network. But that tedious task may soon become a thing of the past (at least for simple networks), as SMSC has just announced chips for the first USB MultiSwitch Hub. The hub has two upstream and four downstream ports, which means you can plug two desktops, laptops, or game consoles into it and then up to four USB devices such as printers, cameras, or hard drives. Both computers can then share any USB devices connected to it — no network setup necessary. Both computers can share the devices simultaneously, so your little brother can save his Xbox 360 games onto your external hard drive while you're downloading music, for example. The hubs will be released this fall; no prices yet. — Adam Frucci

MultiSwitch hub will allow LAN-less USB sharing, via Engadget