StarTech.com 3.5in Black USB 3.0 External SATA III Hard Drive Enclosure with UASP for SATA 6 Gbps – Portable External HDD Review 14

[section_title title=Introduction]

Introduction

Storage, there are so many options. Internal, external, 2.5″, 3.5″ HDD, SSD, USB, SD cards and so one. So how does one decide what they actually need? Well, it normally comes down to a specific use they have in mind. If you are buying a new camera or phone, you will more than likely need some sort of SD or similar card. Want to transfer files between two PC’s as easily as possible without taking up too much space? Well, a USB stick may be just perfect for that. However, some may want a bigger amount of storage and yet still need to be portable at times and that is where today’s review will come in handy.

Today I am taking a look at the 3.5in Black USB 3.0 External SATA III Hard Drive Enclosure with UASP for SATA 6 Gbps – Portable External HDD which simply put, is a hard drive caddy designed for 3.5″ drives, so it will also work with 2.5″ drives and uses USB 3.0 with UASP support to offer some pretty impressive transfer speeds, depending on the drive inside of course. The Hard Drive Enclosure features hot swap capability, up to 6 Gbps transfer speeds and is mains powered. All in all, it seems like a decent drive so why don’t we have a quick look at the specifications before jumping into the closer look!

 

Specifications

Warranty Information
Warranty 2 Years
Hardware
Chipset ID ASMedia ASM1053 – 6G
Compatible Drive Types (Type and Rate) SATA
Drive Installation Removable
Drive Size 3.5in
Interface eSATA
USB 3.0
USB 3.0 & eSATA
Number of Drives 1
Number of internal 3.5 inch bays 1
Performance
Hot Swap Capability Yes
Maximum Data Transfer Rate 5 Gbps
Type and Rate USB 3.0 – 5 Gbit/s
SATA III (6 Gbps)
UASP Support Yes
Connector(s)
Drive Connectors 1 – SATA Data & Power Combo (7+15 pin) Female
Host Connectors 1 – eSATA (7 pin; Data) Female
1 – USB 3.0 B (9 pin; SuperSpeed) Female
Software
OS Compatibility Windows® 8/8.1 (32/64bit), 7 (32/64bit), Server 2008 (32/64), Vista(32/64), Server 2003 (32/64) XP(32/64), 2000
Apple® Mavericks (10.9) OSX Mountain Lion (10.8), Lion (10.7), Snow Leopard (10.6)
Linux
Google Chrome™ OS
Physical Characteristics
Product Height 138 mm [5.4 in]
Product Length 200 mm [7.9 in]
Product Weight 820 g [28.9 oz]
Product Width 43 mm [1.7 in]
Indicators
LED Indicators 1 – Power/Activity
Power
Center Tip Polarity Positive
Input Current 0.8A
Input Voltage 110 ~ 240 AC
Output Current 2A
Output Voltage 12 DC
Plug Type M
Power Source AC Adapter Included
Environmental
Humidity 20%RH ~ 80%RH
Operating Temperature 5°C to 40°C (41°F to 104°F)
Storage Temperature 5°C to 40°C (41°F to 104°F)
Packaging Information
Shipping (Package) Weight 1.4 kg [3.1 lb]
What’s in the Box
Included in Package 1 – HDD Enclosure
1 – USB 3.0 Cable
1 – eSATA Cable
1 – Universal Power Adapter (NA/UK/EU)
1 – Instruction Manual

 

Packaging

The packaging is rather simple and has a sort of business feel to it if you ask me. Looking around the box there is not a whole lot of information on what the product inside does, but at the end of the day it is pretty self-explanatory. If you are looking for a 3.5″ USB 3.0 SATA HDD Caddy, you probably have a clue what it does! 
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Inside the box users will find the power adapters, USB 3.0 Cable and even a stand to help them get it all set up on their desks! 
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Closer Look

The actual enclosure itself is made from a black aluminium and features the StarTech.com logo on one side.

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Looking around the sides and we can see one has a bit of a plastic vented area, I would imagine the little vents are to help with a bit of airflow while the plastic tray is inserted in the enclosure.

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On the other side, we have the power and USB connections and an on/off switch so users do not need to have the device on at all times.

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Removing the tray from the enclosure we can now see the PCB which features a standard SATA connector so users will be able to plug in both 3.5″ and 2.5″ hard drives if required. We all know SSD’s are the way to go if you want speed so it is nice to see they are easily supported with this device.

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