Final answer:
The device that stores hardware or physical addresses for connected devices in a star network is a switch. It uses MAC addresses to manage network traffic efficiently.
Step-by-step explanation:
The device that stores the hardware or physical address for each device connected to its ports in a star network is a switch. Unlike a hub, which broadcasts data to all of its ports, a switch is intelligent enough to identify which port to send specific packets to based on the stored MAC addresses (Media Access Control addresses) of the devices. This helps to manage the network traffic more efficiently.