Can I charge USB devices from a powered hub that isn't connected to a PC?

Check: Transform a USB hub into the ultimate DIY gadget charger

I'm talking about a standard USB hub--those little accessories that multiply one of your PC's USB ports by a factor of four, five, six, or even seven. I took a spare seven-porter--the Belkin F5U701 ($20)--plugged its included AC adapter into a nearby wall outlet, and started loading it up with devices. A few minutes later, I was charging six devices via USB with no apparent problems--and I still had a free port available for yet another device.

Although the voltage is consistent across all USB chargers (5V), I believe the ampage does vary. I have heard reports that iPhones charge really slowly or not at all using a Blackberry charger. Same with Blackberry chargers, they are not all the same ampage for each model.

I would just buy a 4/6-way power surge-protected strip or something and plug all of your existing chargers into that.

TruePower UCS Power Outlet with USB ports from FastMac:

Our custom TruePower power outlet solution includes two Universal Serial Bus (USB) charge ports in addition to the two standard three prong power outlet ports.

Perfect for charging any USB powered device including- mobile, iPod, iPhone, PDA, MP3, PSP, MP4 player & digital camera.

Installation: This item can be installed on any existing wall outlet.

We will have an installation video available shortly so that you can see exactly what is involved and if this is something you feel comfortable doing on your own or if you will need assistance.

Please also note that the USB ports only draw power when something is physically connected to the port. We didn't want a vampire port that continually sucks and wastes power when not in use so this was one of the features on the top of our priority list during the design phase.

Although it says "any USB-powered device including ... iPhone", I'm waiting for my pre-order to ship before finding out whether the iPhone 3G and 3GS will be able to charge through this outlet. The 3G and 3GS have special requirements involving an authentication chip from Apple, which are only in Apple-approved products. I guess I'll just have to wait and see!