Have you tried checking to see if you can't boost power to your USB ports?
1 Open the Device Manager by clicking "Start," "Control Panel," "Hardware and Sound" and "Device Manager."
2 Expand the "Universal Serial Bus controllers" tree by clicking on the arrow next to that heading. Here, you will see all USB controllers and USB root hubs (USB ports) on your computer.
3 Right-click on the "USB Root Hub" you want to change, and then click on "Properties" to open the USB port's Properties dialog box. Under the Power Management tab, you will see the option for restricting power to the USB port to save battery power. Choose your desired settings using the checkboxes and then click on "OK" to save these settings.
4 Repeat Step 3 for all USB Root Hub devices to customize the power output to your computer's USB ports.
You can always try later down the road a device like this that plugs into your laptop and not only adds more usb ports, but also gives you power from a wall outlet as well boosting usb port powers and data transfers. Something to consider for the future. http://www.amazon.co.uk/Satechi-Power-Ad...
~Gadget~