The iTwin comes in a nice little box.

When you open up the box you’ll find the instruction manual and the iTwin nestled in a foam package.

The iTwin looks like a USB drive except with two ends on it. The housing is anodized aluminum making it fairly rugged and durable.

Here’s the iTwin with my Kingston DataTraveler for comparison; the iTwin is a little bigger, but not much.

What’s special about the iTwin is that it splits in half, you leave one home or at work and you take one with you. I did find the connection here is rather lose actually, but they’re not meant to be together permanently just temporarily.

On the back of both is a special connector sort of like a puzzle piece, this syncs them together.

Specifications:

iTwin

A Revolutionary USB Device. Remote File Access Made Easy.
Files on the go, without limits or worries

iTwin allows you to securely access your entire hard drive. It’s as if you are carrying an access-key to all your files in a device that fits in the palm of your hand. And unlike portable storage, iTwin lets your data stay put safely at home (or in office).

Remotely edit shared files
Remotely edit any shared file from any location. iTwin allows you to keep a single version on one computer, with you and your chosen iTwin partner collaborating directly on this version. Say goodbye to multiple versions of files flying around by email. Say goodbye to the headaches of needless re-work. Say hello to iTwin.

Backup your data from anywhere
When you are on the road, you can use iTwin to move copies of files from your laptop over to your home or office computer. If you are traveling and taking lots of pictures, you can free up your SD card by moving files onto your laptop and transferring them back home. It keeps your data safe and secure.

One-time cost. No fees, ever
Don’t pay for cloud storage. Don’t pay subscription fees for online services. Don’t get locked in. You have all the storage you need on your computer and home hard drive. With iTwin, share it and access it from anywhere. Create your own personal cloud. Secured by hardware-grade encryption.

Windows compatible
iTwin works with Microsoft® Windows® XP, Microsoft® Windows® Vista, Microsoft® Windows® 7, both 32-bit and 64-bit versions. It uses the familiar Windows Explorer, with drag’n'drop functionality. There’s nothing to learn and nothing to configure.

Data Security
iTwin doesn’t store any data on itself.  It just enables a secure connection between your two computers.  Your remote data can only be accessed if you have the physical iTwin with you.  Additionally, you can set up your iTwin to require a password.  We also allow you to remotely disable iTwin with our remote disconnect feature.  So you can rest assured that your data is safe, even if you lose your iTwin device.  If you have ever lost a portable memory device, you know that terrible feeling.  We want to make sure this never happens to you again.

Specifications:

Dimensions & weight:
Depth: 0.8cm
Width: 2.1 cm
Height: 9.0cm
Weight: 50g

Breakthrough connector
Designed by the iTwin team, the iTwin connector is completely symmetrical and the first of its kind in a consumer gadget. The connector makes the two halves of iTwin completely identical (just like identical twins). When the 2 halves are connected via this connector & plugged into a USB port, a unique encryption key is set & shared (only) between the halves.

Hardware-enabled data encryption
State-of-the-art, AES-256 encryption of all data sent & received. When the 2 halves are connected to 2 computers, they function as
encryption tokens.

Storage capacity
iTwin does not store any data on itself. Rather, it allows remote access to your data. The only storage limit is the capacity of your computer and the hard drives connected to it.

Anodized aluminum body
iTwin’s casing is made of anodized aluminum, which not only provides a great finish and look, but is also highly scratch-resistant and tough. The logo and text are laser-etched for maximal sharpness. Two colors: Lime Green and Gunmetal Gray.

System requirements:
Windows XP, Vista or 7 (32 or 64 bit)
Fast broadband connection
Computer with USB port & 5MB storage space
NOTE: iTwin for Mac OS X is in the works!

Price: $99

Installing the iTwin is simple, just plug it in like you would nay other USB drive and it should pop up with the autorun to install the software.

Installation only takes less than a minute, while installing it checks for updates as well.

Before you finish the installation you’ll need register an email address so you can disable it if need be.

Once installed the iTwin puts an icon down in the taskbar area for quick access.

When you go to My Computer you’ll see the iTwin appears to be another drive or system folder actually.

Using the iTwin is very simple, to set your files for sharing you just drag and drop them. Anything you want to be able to access while you’re away you just grab the folder and drop them into the iTwin folder. You can’t get any simpler than that. The folder is labeled Local Files and the each shared folder has the logo on it.

Installation is the same on the remote computer, just let it do its thing and ion about a minute you’re ready to go with access to your remote computer and its files.

On the remote computer the folder looks a little different, at least the labels are; they’re aptly named Remote Files.

To transfer files from the computer you just drag and drop them to the computer you’re on, simple and easy to do. It’s a two way process, you can drag and drop both ways meaning you can update the files on the remote computer easily.

I did notice one small thing that bothers me about the remote access, you can’t see the thumbnail views from the main computer while viewing remotely.

I also found that you can’t stream directly from the remote computer, for example you can’t listen to music or watch videos from the remote computer without downloading it first. Depending on the speed of the internet connection this could take a while.

Conclusion:
The iTwin is an inexpensive and and easy way to enable remote access to your files and folders while you’re away. The iTwin works by simply plugging it in and selecting what you want to share, it couldn’t be much easier really. When you’re connected simply drag and drop the files you need just like you would normally.

The iTwin makes networking easy for even the most novice of computer users, you won’t need any special skill of training to share files across the world.

Sure the iTwin isn’t perfect, there are some changes I’d make like enabling streaming and the ability to see thumbnails, but those are small things that I can live with I think. The iTwin costs about $100 and I think it’s worth it for the quick and easy access to your files and folders while you’re away.

Pros:
+Very simple to use
+Quick and easy remote file access
+Inexpensive for what it can do
+Drag and drop just like your main computer
+Secure AES-256 encryption

Cons:
-Can’t see thumbnails on remote view
-Can’t stream music or videos directly

Grades:
Overall
Design
Performance

To learn more about our review policy please visit this page HERE.

Review of iTwin Remote File Access System is a post from: Testfreaks | The Blog

USB Thumbdrives are nice, but there are times when they just aren’t big enough. Yes they are getting bigger, but not like hard drives, if you need to transport or store large amounts of data a hard drive is the way to go.

Today for review I’ve got the Iomega Silver Portable Hard Drive, it’s a 2.5" drive with a 160GB capacity and a USB interface. It comes in a nice silver enclosure that is supposed to protect it from damages and included with the drive is useful piece of software to help you backup your files.

No video for you today, just the regular old still pictures…

The box for the Iomega Silver Portable Hard Drive is covered with information, and a few pictures.

The drive is packed fairly well, I was expecting some sort of foam packing, but they’ve got the hard drive sort of floating in there on a cardboard platform, I guess that works.

Included with the hard drive is a USB cable, software disc and user manual.

There’s not much special about the hard drive case really, it’s silver as the name suggests and it seems well made, it’s fairly heavy for such a small drive. On the back end is the USB port, optional power connection and an LED indicator.

Specifications:

Silver Portable Hard Drive

Iomega 160gb 2.5" Silver Portable Hard Drive USB

Perfect for the mobile professional, the pocketsized Iomega Portable hard Drive requires no external power supply – just plug it and go. With Drop Shock technology, it is rugged enough to safely store large amounts of data.

Iomega’s Portable Hard Drive is sleeker than ever before! Take files and applications anywhere! This portable hard drive requires no external power supply—just plug it in and go. It’s a high capacity travel companion that lets you take your important files, photos and music anywhere—a perfect storage solution for the mobile professional.

At-A-Glance:
* Easy to Use—no external power supply required
* Compact—Fits easily into a shirt or briefcase pocket
* Secure—Professional level backup and disaster recovery software included
* Durable—Drop shock technology included

What You Get:
* Iomega Portable Hard Drive
* Connnection Cable
* Supplemental power cord
* Quick Install Guide
* HTML User Manual and Help Files
* Backup software
* One year warranty
Price: $74.99

I was curious as to what’s inside so I popped it open, I was half expecting an IDE drive, but it’s actually an SATA hard drive. It’s a Seagate Momentus 5400.3 drive to be exact.

It’s very easy to use, just plug it in and you’re ready to go, it was already formatted to FAT32 when it arrived, the LED indicator lights up when powered on of course.

For comparison I’ve got another SATA 160GB 2.5" hard drive in a Vizo Shuttle enclosure, it also happens to be a Seagate Momentus 5400.3 hard drive. So the drives are the same, but the chips aren’t so that’s what we’re comparing here today.

First up is SiSoft Sandra 2009 SP2 Removable Storage Benchmark

They’re the same drives but we’ve got different performance, as we can see the Iomega clearly wins out.

Next up is DiskBench disk test, we’re testing the Copy To, Copy From and read From speeds of both drives. I used a 350MB .AVI video file for all tests.

First graph is times, so lower would be better of course:

Very close times for both drives, but the Iomega leads by a few 10ths of seconds.

Here’s the actual transfer rates in MB/s for the above test, higher is better.

As you can see the transfer rates of the Iomega are a bit faster overall.

Iomega did include backup software with the hard drive, it’s called EMC Retrospect Express and here’s a little info I grabbed from the EMC site:

EMC Retrospect Express Edition is available exclusively with leading hardware manufacturer backup devices and is designed for home environments. It protects a single Windows or Macintosh desktop or notebook computer by backing up to internal and external hard drives and CD/DVDs. Retrospect Express delivers proven data protection capabilities in an easy-to-use software package.

If you wish you can visit the EMC site HERE to read the full information about the software.

The interface is rather simple but it does provide a very important service, and that’s to backup and protect your data.

The main features are Backup, Duplicate and Disaster Recovery. Backup is self explanatory, while Duplicate is kind of like a manual Raid with an external drive, it creates a duplicate of the hard drive. Disaster Recovery is after you’ve made your backup, you then can create a CD to help restore your computer. Overall it seems like a very good piece of software.

There’s really nothing wrong with the product, I could say that it’s only USB, but I think everyone by now has a USB port so it’s universally compatible. I could say it would be nice to have a case with it, but the enclosure seems very well made and durable so it should protect the drive very well.

Conclusion:
The Iomega Silver Portable Hard is a nice choice when you need to transfer large amounts of data to and from places, and it also makes a nice backup drive as well. The speeds seem to be very good, and the included software is a nice added bonus to help protect your precious files.

Pros:
Fast transfers
Well made enclosure
Aesthetically pleasing

Cons:
None really

Grades:
Overall
Design
Performance

Iomega 160gb 2.5" Silver Portable Hard Drive USB is a post from: Testfreaks | The Blog

There are many external drive cases on the market today, and I’ve taken a look at a lot of them, a couple from Geeks.com in the past actually. Usually with cases though you’ve got to provide your own HDDs, whether it be SATA or IDE hard drives, but I feel it’s better that way really, at least sometimes, because many times you’ll get overcharged for a pre-built combo. Then again you could run into a nice deal like Geeks is having on a Multimedia Enclosure and Hard drive combo, why get a regular external case when you can get one that is so much more useful and at a great price!

Today for review I’ve got a combo, Geeks is running a special until the 15th of February on the Mediagate MG-35 and 500GB IDE hard Drive for $119.95. I’m not going to really focus on the hard drive, as well, it’s a hard drive, the real product review is the Mediagate MG-35. The MG-35 is a much more than an HDD enclosure, it’s also a multimedia player with networking functionality as well so it can be used as a NAS device or even a streaming media player.

Of course we’ve got an video unboxing and tour for this one, so check it out and the still pictures, specs and then move on:

Oh, and here’s the actual advertisement for this special, had to break it up in two parts as it’s rather large. The saving code is on the second part below:

Specifications:

MediaGate MG-35 3.5" USB 2.0 Multimedia External IDE HDD Player

MediaGate MG-35 3.5" USB 2.0 Multimedia External IDE HDD Player w/LAN – Store & Play Videos, Music or Photos Anywhere!

This MediaGate MG-35 Digital MultiMedia Player supports dual data access mode via a 3.5-inch IDE hard drive (not included) and built-in 10/100 Mbps Ethernet. The MG-35 makes it easy to enjoy the digital movies, music, photos on your 3.5-inch hard drive and network PCs. Its USB 2.0 interface makes it quick and easy to download digital contents from your PC.

The MediaGate MG-35 supports the most popular formats such as MPEG 1, 2, 4 (MPG, MPEG, AVI, M2V, DAT, VOB, etc.) DivX, XviD video formats and MP3, OGG Vorbis, WMA music formats. It also supports JPEG photo formats.

With the NDAS (Network Direct Attached Storage) function you can use the MG-35 as a file server or media server in your house and office!

Features/Specifications:
* General Features:
* PC interface: USB 2.0 (USB 1.1 compatible)
* Data Transfer Rate: up to 480 Mbps
* Compatible with 3.5-inch IDE hard drive (supports up to 750 GB)
* Hard Drive File System: FAT32, NTFS
* RJ-45 10/100 LAN port
* With the Network Direct Attached Storage function (software included) you can use the MG-35 as a file server or media server in your house and office

* Supported Formats:
* Movie: MPEG 1, 2, 4 (MPG, MPEG, AVI, M2V, DAT, VOB, etc.) DivX, XviD (Except GMC, Qpel option applied)
* Music: MP3, OGG Vorbis, WMA
* Photo: JPEG

* Video Out:
* Composite: 1Ch: 1.0Vp-p (75«ø load)
* Component: Y: 1.0Vp-p, Pr: 0.70Vp-p, Pb: 0.70Vp-p
* S-Video

* Audio Out:
* Left and Right 2CH Stereo
* Coaxial Digital Audio Out
* Optical Digital Audio Out
* Audio Sampling Rate: 32, 44.1, 48, 88.2, 96 KHz
* S/N Ratio: 99 dB
* Dynamic Range: 92 dB
* Harmonic Frequency Distortion: 0.01 %

* Dimensions:
  * 7.5 x 2.2 x 6.1-inches (H x W x D, approximate)

Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 500GB UDMA/100 7200RPM 16MB IDE Hard Drive

With a huge 500 gigabyte capacity, 16 MB buffer and 7200 RPM spindle speed, this Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 IDE Hard Drive delivers superb performance, efficiency, speed and durability for all your application needs!

Other features of the Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 IDE Hard Drive include an 11.0 ms random read seek time, whisper-quiet operation, enhanced G-Force Protection against handling damage, and Clean Sweep calibration and Directed Offline scan diagnostics!

Features/Specifications:
* General Features:
* 500 GB formatted capacity
* UDMA/100
* 7200 RPM spindle speed
* 16 MB buffer
* < 11.0 ms random read seek time
* < 12.0 ms random write seek time
* 3.5-inch form factor
* IDE interface
* Superb reliability
* Whisper-quiet operation
* Enhanced G-Force Protection against handling damage
* 78 MB/s maximum sustained data transfer rate
* Clean Sweep calibration and Directed Offline scan diagnostics

According to the instructions included, you just slip the hard drive in, connect the data and power cables and you’re all done basically. I’m not too fond of that as it isn’t very secure, you can easily remove the white plastic tray by removing three screws, then you can attach the hard drive to the tray with the provided screws, it gets attached up through the bottom.

Some might complain about the fact that the Medigate uses an IDE hard drive, I see no problem with it, you don’t need the speed of an SATA drive for playing movies and music really, it’s not a computer system that’s built for speed, it’s just a media server basically. In fact I already have a media player similar to this one from Mvix that uses an IDE drive, I’ve had it for a couple years now and I’ve had no problems at all with it.

While I had the tray out I figured I would take a peek at the chipset, it’s a Sigma Designs Real Magic EM8511LF Media Processor and we can also see some Samsung Ram Chips in there as well.

I didn’t find much on the actual chip, just this from the Sigma Designs website:

EM8510 Series
Digital Media Processors with MPEG-4.2 and MPEG-2

The EM8510 family provides highly-integrated solutions for products requiring MPEG-4.2, MPEG-2 and DVD decoding.

Incorporating flexible, advanced audio/video processing, the EM8510 family enables cost-effective solutions for consumer products, such as portable media players, digital media adapters, and networked DVD players.

Unique features offered by the EM8510 family include analog YPbPr/RGB video outputs with optional scaling up to HDTV resolution and support for external MPEG encoder and networking chips. A wide variety of media types are supported, accessible through a powerful navigation engine.

Once you’re done installing the hard drive you’re ready to go, hook it up via USB and format the hard drive, it’s 500gb so it will take a while. Once that’s done you just need to put your stuff on it and you’re ready to connect to your TV / Stereo or you can also connect it to your network as well, but this requires an additional step. I’m running Vista Ultimate X64 so the included software for networking did not work for me, but it’s an easy fix, just go and grab the new version from the Ximeta website, problem solved in a few clicks. Even if you’re not running Vista x64, there are newer versions of the software available, so it’s worth it to grab them anyway.

One thing interesting about this drive is that it doesn’t appear in your network, even though I’ve got it hooked to my router, it appears as a local hard disk drive:

To get it to work though you’ve got to use the software I mentioned earlier, it puts a small icon in your tray that allows you to monitor, access and configure the Medigate:

The included remote is nice and small, but not too small, it’s actually short and fat. The buttons are arranged logically and easy to reach, it’s simple to use and get everything set up.

I’ve got a brief video of the interface for you, along with several screenshots as well. I did check the MediaGate website and there is a firmware update, but I didn’t apply it yet as the box seems to work fine as is, it’s only one version behind the current.

Here are some shots after I added some music to the Medigate:

This screenshot shows when it’s hooked to your network, the IP address is shown at the bottom:

As you can see from the screenshots and video that there’s not really much to the interface, it’s very easy to use and navigate. It can play most any popular video and audio formats, along with displaying still pictures also. It would be nice if you could display album covers and possibly thumbnails for videos, but as it is is I think basic is easier to use for everyone. The interface is quick and easy to use, it allows fast access to your files.

The networking feature is cool as you then do not have to move the MG-35 back to your computer to transfer files via USB and you can stream to the box as well to play your videos and music on your television or through your stereo.

There’s not much to this product, it works and works well, I transferred a few movies and audio files to the MediaGate and had no problems with them, I used VOB files, MPG and DivX files along with MP3 audio files, all worked fine.
One small complaint I could have about this is that it’s made of plastic and it feels a bit on the cheap side, but considering it’s going to be sitting in one place and not traveling this shouldn’t be much of a concern.

So don’t forget you’ve only got 5 days left for this special, it’s a good deal really, at least I think it is as buying them separately would cost more.

To get the deal you just need to add the MediaGate to your cart, then use the code MGKIT during checkout, the hard drive will be added automatically, and your all set.

Conclusion:

The MediGate MG-35 is a great product overall,  it not only allows you to easily store and play your audio and video files through your TV and stereo, but it can be connected to your network to be used for streaming and network storage.

The combo from Geeks offers you a nice large capacity hard drive and the MediGate for one price. Of course if you need more storage in the future, the MG-35 can support up to 750GB hard drives as well.

The driver / software issue is easy to fix, just hop over to the Ximeta site and get the new software and drivers, though it’s not readily apparent where to go to get them in the documentation. I did have to do a bit of research to figure it out. Also the firmware of the MG-35 isn’t the latest, but as it is it seems to work fine, if there’s an issue you can just head on over to the MediaGate website and get the new firmware. It’s easy to install, just put it on your hard drive and do the upgrade through the setup menu.

Pros:
Very easy to use
Seems well made for what it is
Easily stream your content over your network
Doubles as network storage
Plays all popular formats

Cons:
Case is a bit on the flimsy side
Latest drivers/software not included

Grades:
Overall
Design
Performance

MediaGate MG-35 3.5" USB 2.0 Multimedia External IDE HDD Player / Seagate Barracuda 500GB IDE Hard Drive is a post from: Testfreaks | The Blog

Geeks.com carries many external hard drives, and most are the same with a standard hard drive inside of them and they’ll all perform as you might expect. Today I’ve got a Cavalry branded 500GB USB 2.0 and eSATA External hard drive from them, this drive though is a bit different, it features a Western Digital Green SATA hard drive inside of it allowing the enclosure to be fanless, quiet, cool and use less power. So read on to learn more…

To start I’ve got a brief unboxing video for you, and some still pictures

Specifications:

Cavalry CAXE37500 500GB USB 2.0/eSATA 3.5" External HDD

Super-fast high-capacity storage!

The Cavalry CAXE37500 is a 3.5-inch form factor external hard drive featuring 500 GB of storage capacity and super-fast eSATA and USB 2.0 interface options. Connect to high-speed USB 2.0 ports for transfer rates of up to 480 Mbps, or install the included eSATA backplate and achieve transfer speeds of up to 3.0 Gbps!

This external hard drive comes in an aluminum case and lights up with a blue LED when powered on. A vertical stand is included to reduce footprint size. Don’t risk losing your data by going another day without reliable backups!

High-speed storage in a slim and lightweight design, order now!

Features/Specifications:
* Cavalry CAXE 3.5-inch 500 GB USB 2.0/eSATA HDD External Storage
* General Features:
* 500 GB Serial ATA II hard drive
* Aluminum external enclosure (keeps drive cool)
* USB 2.0 interface
* eSATA interface
* Up to 480 Mbps (USB 2.0) data transfer rate
* Up to 3.0 Gbps (eSATA) data transfer rate
* Blue activity LED
* Can be mounted vertically
* Hot-swappable (Plug and Play)
* No software installation required
* Dimensions:
* 7.8 x 4.5 x 1.3-inches (L x W x D)

Price: $84.99

There’s not much for the installation, just plug in the power and plug in the USB or eSATA connection and you’re ready to go. On the front is an LED indicator that lights up blue when powered on and blinks purple for activity.

So I took the Cavalry apart to find a WD Caviar Green hard drive, specifically a Model WD5000AACS with 16MB cache.

I grabbed a little info from the WD site, if you want to read full specs click HERE:

WD Caviar Green

Perfect for external drives – External drive manufacturers can eliminate the need for a fan in a high-capacity product with a WD Caviar Green drive, the coolest and quietest in its class. External drives with WD Caviar Green drives on board can save up to $14.00 per year in electricity costs

WD Caviar Green drives use less power and support quieter, cooler-running desktop PCs and external storage devices.

Perpendicular Magnetic Recording (PMR)  – Employs PMR technology to achieve even greater areal density

Once I started running tests I saw this drive seemed a bit slow, but I did a bit of research and they’re supposed to be slower than standard SATA drives, the ‘green’ drives are low power consumption and they stay cooler at a cost of speed.

So I hooked up the Cavalry via USB and ran SiSoft Sandra 2009 Removable Storage Test, I put it up against the Cavalry drive that I reviewed a while back, a Seagate 200gig SATA drive directly connected to the computer and that same Seagate inside of the Kingwin HDD Enclosure. In the graph the label ‘Calvary #2′ is the one that I’m reviewing today:

As you can see it’s fairly slow, but since it’s a green drive it’s to be expected really.

I pulled the drive out of the enclosure and hooked it up inside the computer via a free SATA port and compared it to the same Seagate SATA drive:

and as you can see even a direct SATA connection doesn’t speed things up much, again this is to be expected from a ‘green’ hard drive.

Conclusion:
These results of the testing might seem bad, but they’re not, they are exactly what was expected of this product. The WD Green drive is meant to be quiet, cool and consume less power than standard drives, and this it does. The WD Green drive might not be the best choice for your main drive but it makes a great drive for extra storage, and it makes an even better drive for an external HDD enclosure with no fan such as the Cavalry.

Pros:
Quiet operation
Runs cool
Great for extra storage and backups
Overall it’s small compared to others

Cons:
Not the fastest storage solution

Grades:
Overall
Design
Performance

Cavalry CAXE37500 500GB USB 2.0/eSATA 3.5" External HDD is a post from: Testfreaks | The Blog

Today for review I’ve got a product that some people might not find very exciting, but I personally find them very useful, especially if you’ve got two of them. It is what’s called a mobile rack, or an internal hard drive enclosure, and they can be useful for easily swapping hard drives as easy as you would a cassette tape. For a while I was running tow of these, not this exact brand, but I ran one hard drive with Windows XP and one with Windows Vista on it, I would just swap out the OS I wanted to use, of course now though I’ve moved fully to Windows Vista X64 and have not looked back.

The Icy Dock MB672SKGF Screwless Internal 3.5" SATA HDD Enclosure is just what most would call a mobile rack, it can be used to swap hard drives or it can be used just as a built in accessory for your system. It features an LCD that tells you the internal temperature along with a cooling fan as well to keep you drive cool. It also features a keyed lock that can disable access to the drive as well so it works as a security feature. Overall it’s a great device that is well made and works well…

No video today for you, though I do have pictures. The box that the Icy Dock MB672SKGF Screwless Internal 3.5" SATA HDD Enclosure comes in is used for several of the line of these types of products from Icy Dock, it features a picture of the product along with specs and features listed.

Inside you’ll find the enclosure wrapped in bubble wrap for protection along with a user manual and keys.

The Icy Dock Internal HDD Enclosure looks very nice, it’s almost a shame that it’s inside of your case where no one will see it, the outside is a polished metal, while the back is where you’ll find the fan and connectors. It uses a standard Molex connection so you won’t have to worry about re-routing any SATA power connectors to it. On the front is where you’ll find the LCD, buttons for adjustments and the keyhole.

Specifications:

Icy Dock MB672SKGF Screwless Internal 3.5" SATA HDD Enclosure<

Product Description:
Make room for the MB672SKGF series in your computer, because this one is sure to amaze anyone. Our new Icy Dock’s internal screwless enclosure provides the user with an LCD display that allows real-time drive monitoring and temperature detection within the enclosure. The front buttons are equipped for temperature adjustment to suite the user of temperature warning. If temperature exceeds it, then both the visual & the audio alarms would indicate accordingly for your caution. But we cannot forget that this is also part of the new tray-less series, with easy hard drive access and hot-swap capabilities without having to screw in a tray. The enclosure is built spacious enough to fit any 3.5” SATA brand hard drive, and firm enough to prevent the hard drive from coming loose with the connectors. Like the MB671, it has a stylish faceplate exterior and elegant trigger door-handle design. The body is built by a steel metal finish to create a perfect cooling environment for the hard drive. Our ICY DOCK features are still there: Built-in fan and front ventilation system to prevent hard drive overheating and key lock to prevent any hard drive thefts. The convenient removability of this enclosure with allow easy interchangeability between desktops or laptops. This is perfect for media storage systems that enables media file archiving without having to deal with the usual hard drive disassembly from your PC.

Suggested Applications
Add-on data/ media files storage to laptops, graphics & video editing, interchange of data between corporate/school/home workstations, data file backups.

Product Features:
* Drive Fit : Hot Swappable 1 x 3.5" SATA I or II.
* Device Fit : 1 x 5.25” device bay.
* Advanced drive monitoring system built internally w/ LCD visual & audio indicators.
* User friendly Screw-less design just plug in the hard drive and play.
* Multi-drive exchangeability, hot swap capability & maintenance capabilities.
* Safeguard key lock function to disable the data accessibility from others.
* Stylish aluminum faceplate with heavy duty steel body construction.
* Warm air outtake fan makes cooling of the drive.

Specifications:
Item Number: MB672SKGF-B
Host Interface: 7 pin SATA
Drive Fit: 1 x 3.5” SATA I / II
Drive Bay: 1 x 5.25"
Transfer Rate: up to 300 MB/sec
Insert & Extract connection Via: 15 pin direct hard drive connection
Structure: Steel body w/ partial aluminum & plastic face panel
Drive Cooling: Metal heat dispersion w/ 1 x rear outtake fan
Alarm Indication: Audio & Visual

LCD Indication:    
Real-time drive temp., Drive activity/overheat/MASTER/SLAVE status, Fan working/failure status, Device usage time record

LCD Display Color: Cool blue
Dimension (L x W x H): 184.4 x 148.4 x 42 mm

Weight: 1.82 lbs

To install a hard drive into the Icy Dock MB672SKGF Screwless Internal 3.5" SATA HDD Enclosure you just need to slide it in and you’re ready to go, unlike other types of mobile racks that require a hard drive to be mounted to a rack, this one is mush easier to use, and makes things much more accessible to the end user.

You can install the hard in before or after you mount it inside of your case, it goes in just like any 5.25" device, it’s essentially the same size as a 5.25" optical drive so it should have no problems fitting into any case.

The LCD is a bright blue, taking a picture of it was fairly difficult to get the exact angle for viewing. Most angle are fine for viewing though, just the camera didn’t like the bright display.

The installation is very simple, if you’ve installed any 5.25" drives then you can install this product. It works well, I saw no difference in using it or not using it in terms of hard drive access.

Overall the Icy Dock MB672SKGF Screwless Internal 3.5" SATA HDD Enclosure  is a great product, it’s very useful, I’ll be using it for some time to come to easily swap between operating systems. It has many uses, if you’ve got two of them you can have them in separate computers and easily swap large amounts of data between them.

Conclusion:
Overall the Icy Dock MB672SKGF Screwless Internal 3.5" SATA HDD Enclosure  is a great product, it’s very useful, I’ll be using it for some time to come to easily swap between operating systems. It has many uses, if you’ve got two of them you can have them in separate computers and easily swap large amounts of data between them.

It’s fairly heavy really, but that’s a good thing as it is solidly made and since it’s metal it does help to cool the drive as it acts like a big heatsink.

Pros:
Easy to use
Well made
Secured with key
Looks cool

Cons:
None really

Grades:
Overall
Design
Performance

Icy Dock MB672SKGF Screwless Internal 3.5" SATA HDD Enclosure is a post from: Testfreaks | The Blog

2.5" hard drives seem to be getting larger and larger all of the time, not long ago I reviewed a 500gig one in fact, and not long ago a 500gig 2.5" hard drive seemed like a dream. Now of course I’ve got several of these little hard drives floating around with nothing to do with them, I could buy enclosures for them but that can be a hassle, if only there was a way to make them work inside of a regular PC case I could utilize that space.

Icy Dock has sent me over quite a little ingenious product, it takes any 2.5" hard drive and essentially turns it into a 3.5" one. This can come in handy for many things including of course using it inside of your PC, or even inside of an external enclosure, the Icy Dock Convertor can make your 2.5" drive go anywhere a 3.5" can.

No video today for you, but of course I’ve got pictures!

The Icy Dock HDD Convertor comes in everyone’s favorite packing style, the dreaded sealed plastic clamshell. Since it’s clear we can see the product right through the package, along with some pictures and information, and once we get it open we only find the convertor and a user manual.

The HDD converter is basically a plastic housing for your 2.5" SATA hard drive, there are metal reinforced screw holes on the side and ventilation slots on the front and back as well for cooling.

There’s not much to the bottom of the converter, but we can see the SATA connections there, on the top are arrows with indentations for your fingers to help you slide the cover off.

The cover does not come fully off, it just opens, kind of like the hood of a car does, inside we find a plastic bag with screws and we can get a better look at the inner working of the Icy Dock Hard Drive Convertor. Inside though there isn’t much, just metal rails and the SATA connections for your 2.5" drive.

Specifications:

Icy Dock 2.5" to 3.5" Hard Drive Converter

MB882-SP-1S-1
SATA I & II / SSD 2.5" to 3.5" Hard Drive Converter
ICY DOCK’s MB882 series can convert most of 2.5” SATA and SSD hard drive into a 3.5” SATA drive. It has enough ventilation to keep the 2.5” drive cool and can protect your drive. Installing a 2.5” drive requires no screws or tool whatsoever. Whether you use a SATA or SSD drive, you will maintain the transfer speed while using this case.

With this converter, mounting a 2.5” drive into a desktop will be simple without having to purchase any special attachments or systems, allowing more convenience in recovering data from laptops or OS boot up onto a desktop. It is very convenient for gamers and power users who expect SSD speed on their home/ office computers. Mostly, it is designed to fit into most common PC cases, 3.5” HDD duplicator, 3.5” SATA HDD enclosure, mobile rack, and backplane modules without having to purchase any attachments for the 2.5” drives. This state-of-the-art case will revolutionize the way 2.5” drives are presently used.

Product Features:
* Converts your 2.5” SATA I/II HDD or SSD to a 3.5” SATA hard drive, for 3.5” SATA drive bay usage.
* Airflow vents for heat dissipation with shockproof design.
* Universal mounting holes for most common PC case.
* Compatible with most 3.5” HDD enclosures.
* Screw-less design for quick & easy installation.

The way the Icy Dock HDD Convertor works is rather slick, you set the drive on the rail, then you close the lid, closing the lid pushes the drive forward into the SATA connections on the PCB board inside and effectively locks it into place.

As I mentioned there are ventilation holes on the front and back of the convertor to make sure it stays cool, it creates a cross flow cooling, especially if there’s a fan nearby.

Since I really wasn’t quite sure how to test this really, I installed it into my case it worked fine, I installed it into an SATA hard drive enclosure and it worked fine. So I put the Icy Dock into my EZ Dock which is compatible with both 2.5" and 3.5" hard drives.

and it performed the same either way, in the enclosure or not in the enclosure.

So, it’s simple product that can really come in handy.

Conclusion:
The Icy Dock 2.5" to 3.5" Hard Drive Convertor is a great little product that can be very useful, it’s well made and really it’s just a great little product.

I can easily recommend this product as it’s simple and works great.

Pros:
Very easy to use
Well made
Works great

Cons:
None

Grades:
Overall
Design
Performance

Icy Dock 2.5" to 3.5" Hard Drive Converter is a post from: Testfreaks | The Blog

Hard drive enclosures today come in many shapes and sizes, but they usually have one inherent flaw, that is compatibility, in that they can only use one type of drive, either 2.5" or 3.5", meaning that you’ll have to purchase separate enclosures for each type of drive you have.

Today for review I’ve got a rather cool product from IcyDock that is sort of a hard drive enclosure but not really, it’s called the EZ-Dock and  as it’s name implies it’s more of a dock than an enclosure. The Ez-Dock allows you to use either 2.5" or 3.5" SATA hard drives with it in a small docking station that is removable from the base so you can take it with you if need be. It is though, and enclosure of sorts in that it comes with a carrying case so you can dock a 2.5" drive, put it in the carrying case and take it with you.

I’ve found that it’s a very interesting product that can make our lives much easier, especially those of use that have several types of hard drives floating around.

No, video unboxing today…

The IcyDock EZ-Dock comes in a sealed clear plastic clamshell style casing that allows you to easily see the product inside.

The main product is the dock itself of course, it is removable from the base so you can take it with you if need be. The base is solid metal so it’s fairly heavy, but that’s a good thing as your hard drive won’t fall over accidentally. The actual dock part is plastic, with an LED light and a power switch near the bottom. On the right side is the power and eSATA connections, with the left side having a mini-USB connection. The dock locks into the base with a plastic clip on it’s back, to unlock it you just press the button in and pull.

Included with the dock and base is a USB cable, eSATA cable, power supply and cord, eSATA PCI bracket, user manual and a carrying case to carry the dock with a 2.5" drive docked to it.

Specifications:
ICY DOCK MB881US-1S-1 EZ-DOCK 2.5”/3.5” SATA to eSATA & USB
HDD Docking Station Enclosure for Mac & PC
The MB881 Series is ICY DOCK’s first docking station built for 3.5" and 2.5" SATA hard drives. It provides a USB for universal support and e-SATA for up to 3 Gb/sec transfer rate. The on/off button switch makes it easy to conserve energy and extend the life of a drive. When using the USB, you can use only the USB bus to power your 2.5” drive, allowing less wires to be used on the dock. The stand is easily detachable and allows the dock for better portability. This lightweight dock can lay on any surface for hard drive stability and is small enough to grasp with just a hand. Best of all, the carrying case lets you carry your dock and 2.5” hard drive anywhere you go. Moreover, both the dock and the stand are light enough to move and reposition in different areas. This simply, yet elegant, design will definitely stand out in any room and will work on any Windows and Mac systems.

Product Features:
* Compatible with both 3.5" and 2.5" SATA I/II hard drive support hot swap.
* Support eSATA connection for maximum SATA performance.
* Plug & Play USB 2.0 quick connection for any computer system.
* User friendly Screw-less design just plug in the hard drive and play.
* On/off switch allows hard drive life expendability and energy conservation.
* Exposed working HDD stands in the air vertically with fast heat radiating.
* Aluminum alloy stand is detachable for portable use.
* Protective pouch protect your HDD and important data when using as portable 2.5” enclosure.
* Design for PC & Mac systems.

Specifications:
Item Number: MB881US-1S-1
Drive Fit: 1 x 2.5"/3.5” SATA I & II
External Interface: eSATA & USB 2.0
Transfer Rate:up to 3 Gb/sec. via eSATA
:up to 480 Mb/sec. via USB2.0
Structure: Plastic body with aluminum alloy stand
LED Indication: Device Power & Drive Activity
LED Display Color: Power: Amber; Drive Activity: Amber flashing
Dimension (L x W x H): 126 x 106 x 92 mm
Weight: 265.3 g
Price $50 (depending where you look)

There’s nothing to installation, just plug in a 2.5" or 3.5" drive and connect your cables.

If you want to take the dock and a 2.5" drive with you you can just use the case, the entire setup can remain in the case as well because the case has cut out sections for the connections and power button. The case is very nice, and a bit thick to offer protection for both the drive and the dock, it secures with velcro so it’s easy to access as well.

I was curious about the performance of the IcyDock EZ-Dock and ran SiSoft Sandra 2009 Removable Storage Benchmark on both 3.5" and 2.5" drives and compared it to a few others.

First up here’s testing with 3.5" drive docked, two graphs, the first shows the overall rating and the second shows the 256mb files test, the same drive was used far all testing:

As you can see it’s not the fastest when it comes to overall performance, but it’s ease of use and accessibility really make up for the lower speeds I think. I mean you don’t have to install a hard drive inside of an enclosure, no tools needed etc, just pop it on the dock and you’re pretty much ready to go.

Here’s testing using a 2.5" drive, they’re not all the same drives, but it’s compared to two others I’ve already reviews here on TestFreaks and an OCZ Rally2 Turbo Flash Drive:

Here the EZ-Dock performs fairly well overall, not the fastest, but again, ease of use prevails I think.

Overall I think the EZ-Dock is a great and very useful product, anything that makes our lives easier has got to be a good thing right?

Conclusion:
The IcyDock Ez-Dock is a great product really, it allows us to easily access both 2.5" and 3.5" hard drives and even take them with us if need be.

The Ez-Dock is well made, easy to use,  and the included carrying case is handy as well. I can easily recommend this to anyone looking for a versatile and useful way of accessing and transporting their data around with them.

Pros:
Well made
Easy to use
Aesthetically pleasing
Includes carrying case
Portable

Cons:
Not the fastest

Grades:
Overall
Design
Performance

ICY DOCK EZ-DOCK 2.5”/3.5” SATA to eSATA & USB HDD Docking Station Enclosure for Mac & PC is a post from: Testfreaks | The Blog

We all need more storage, in the form of a hard drive, personally I don’t like having them always running inside of my computer so I have several external enclosures for my storage, they’re used for backups mainly, so they don’t always have to be running and I feel it reduces wear and tear on them as well.

Geeks.com has sent me over the Cavalry 500GB Aluminum External Hard Drive Enclosure for review, and it’s not only fairly inexpensive but well made, fast and it’s aesthetically pleasing as well.

First up we’ve got the unboxing video for you, check it out and continue on:

Specifications:

Cavalry 500 GB 3.5-inch USB 2.0 Aluminum Ext Hard Drive Storage

Mobile Storage Solution!

The Cavalry CAUM37500 features a pre-installed 500 GB SATA hard drive with a 7200 RPM spindle speed and an 8 MB buffer and a USB 2.0 interface for quick and reliable 480 Mbps data transfers! Its One Touch Back Up (OTB) function provides the user to backup data with a touch of a button!

This Cavalry CAUM37500 is protected by a solid aluminum body that offers superior heat dissipation to keep the hard drive operating at a safe and cool temperature!

Features/Specifications:

General Features:
* Pre-installed 500 GB SATA hard drive
* Silver aluminum external case with luminous front panel
* One touch backup via software CD
* USB 2.0 interface
* Up to 480 Mbps data transfer rate
* 8 MB buffer
* 7200 RPM spindle speed
* NTFS Formatted for PC
* Can be mounted vertically with stand
* Plug and Play

* Unit Dimensions:
* 5 x 8 x 1.75-inches (H x W x D with stand, approximate)

Price: $89.99

Geeks.com has many other External Hard Drives available as well, so stop over and and check them out when you the chance!

The included backup software with the Cavalry is basic,  making it easy to use, which is a good thing for most people. You do have the choice of Copy or Synchronize as well which is a nice added feature so you only copy what has changed and not everything for much quicker backups.

Using the Cavalry is easy, since the hard drive is already installed in it you just have to plug it in, and it’s automatically recognized and installed by Windows.

The enclosure itself seems very well made, and since it’s made of aluminum it should help to keep the drive cool as well. The outside of the enclosure does get warm to the touch, but not overly so. It comes with a plastic stand so you can mount the drive vertically, and it has four small feet so you can place it horizontally well.

Since I recently reviewed the Kingwin Elite enclosure I figured I would compare them to one another, and also a standard SATA connection as well. The Cavalry comes with a 500gig SATA drive, I’ve compared it to a 200gig SATA, the same 200gig drive was in the Kingwin Enclosure.  Of course I used SiSoft Sandra 2009 for testing.

Since this is a removable storage that’s the test that I ran, I’ve got two graphs for you, the overall combined score and a closer look at the 256Mb Files Test.

As we can see the Cavalry performs better than the Kingwin Enclosure did, and as expected slower than a direct SATA connection, so there’s no surprise there.

Looking at the 256MB Files Test though we can see that actually the Kingwin Enclosure performs a bit better, but the overall test concludes the Cavalry is the better choice.

Images

Conclusion:

A lot of hard drive enclosures you get today are just empty shells, and many of these shells can cost almost as much as the Cavalry from Geeks that includes a 500Gig hard drive, so it’s a great value overall if you consider this fact into the picture.

Yes you can buy portable enclosures with hard drives already in them, but from what I’ve seen they usually cost a bit more than this one does, especially if you get them branded by the HDD manufacturers.

The Cavalry from Geeks.com is a great choice if you’re looking to add quite a bit of storage space to your system that comes in a quality aluminum enclosure that you can take with you if need be.

Pros:

Well made

Includes hard drive

Easy to use, both software and the enclosure itself

Relatively fast compared to other enclosures/drive

Cons:

None really

Grades:

Overall:

Design:

Performance:

Cavalry 500 GB 3.5-inch USB 2.0 Aluminum Ext Hard Drive Storage is a post from: Testfreaks | The Blog

Hard drive enclosures come in many shapes, sizes and styles and they’re all pretty much the same really, you put a hard drive in them and you’re ready to take your data with you wherever you go, but they don’t offer much in the way of security. Yes they’re nice for their portability and ease of use, but if you lose it of it gets stolen then all of the data contained on it is compromised and most likely lost forever.

Qnap has created a hard drive enclosures that utilizes 256bit AES encryption to truly secure your data, it’s called the QBack-35S and it also features a one-touch or automated backup system as well. The Qback is quite possibly the best option for a hard drive enclosure on the market today if you need to secure your data, but yet remain portable at the same time.

It’s also inexpensive as well, coming it at about $60, it doesn’t cost  much more than a standard HDD enclosure does, and the few dollars more is well worth the extra features that you’ll get with the Qnap Qback-35s

As is now common please check out the unboxing video then continue on to the rest of the review:

Specifications:

QNAP QBack-35S

QNAP QBack-35S Intelligent HAB (Hands-Free Auto Backup) Storage Enclosure is an intelligent encrypted data backup device especially designed for personal users who have a high demand for secure data protection. QBack-35S is a 3.5″ single SATA drive external enclosure which is compatible with major hard disk drive brands. It supports up to 1TB capacity, USB 2.0, and eSATA high-speed data transfer.

QBack-35S delivers simplicity and stability with stylish design. The eye-catching black titanium case can be placed vertically on the stands provided to minimize the space occupied.

QBack-35S provides the award-winning backup software QBack. It is a powerful utility that supports automatic encrypted data backup. By installing QBack and connecting the QBack-35S device to the PC via the USB 2.0 or eSATA* interface, Windows users can use the powerful backup functions. The exclusive backup technology supports handsfree and real-time automatic file backup, AES 256-bit data encryption, and e-mail backup. Four backup modes are provided including auto-sync backup, instant backup, one-touch-button backup, and schedule backup. Incremental backup technology is supported for speedy and reliable performance.

Besides serving as a backup device for Windows PC, QBack-35S can be applied as storage expansion for QNAP Linux- embedded products by formatting the drive on QBack-35 via these products. Users can enjoy large volume expansion as well as high-speed data transfer via the USB 2.0 or e-SATA connection of QBack-35S.

Hardware Spec.
Hard Disk     3.5″ SATA HDD, up to 1TB
Interfaces     USB 2.0 & eSATA
LED Indicators     Power: Blue (when the device is on)
HDD: Blink in Orange (when accessing hard disk)
One Touch Button     One Touch Backup Button (For USB Only)
Rear I/O Ports     1 x eSATA Port / 1 x USB B Type Connector/1 x DC-in Jack
Power Supply     Input: 100-240V AC, 47-63Hz
Output: DC 5V/ 2A, 12V/ 2A
Dimensions     210(D) x 123(W) x 38.75(H)mm
Weight     Net Weight: 0.57Kg
Gross Weight: 1.48Kg

There’s not much to the installation procedures, you just slide the hard drive into the tray  making sure to connect the data and power connections, then use the provided screws to secure the drive to the tray, and you’re about done. I did run into a small problem installing the hard drive, I thought the screws were all the way in but weren’t so the screws hit the rails inside the enclosure and it wouldn’t go in. So I took it back out, and tried to figure out the problem, of course not knowing it was the screws the first time, tried it again and same thing, eventually I figured out it was the screws hitting the rails, so I tightened them down some more, and tried again. Same thing happened, this time I really tightened the screws down to make sure they were flush with the tray, and the try then slid right in, it took quite a bit of force to tighten the screws to make them flush and I actually damaged the screw heads, not sure exactly what the problem was there at all…

Once that’s done just plug it in and power it up, hooking it up to USB port first though to initialize the drive through the Qback software, you can’t do it through the eSATA connection.

To initialize the disc you just need to install the included software and run it, you’re greeted with several steps to walk you though the process, including partitioning the drive to public and secure and creating a password.

Once that’s complete the software is running on your computer and ready to go, a little ‘Q’ sits in the taskbar waiting for your commands. The main menu features four options, Expert Mode, Instant Backup, Instant Restore and Settings.  The Expert Mode for me is really the easiest as all of the options are right there for you.

Once you’re ready to start your backups you just need to select what you want to have backed up, and I like that this program allows you to pick specific folders. You can just keep going down into the file tree to find whatever you want backed up and put a check mark in the box, and only those thing will get backed up.

Backing up things you need to is easy to do and it works well.

Since you can create an encrypted partition it does take a bit longer to do the backups to the encrypted area, but this is not unexpected as the data being transferred has to be encrypted.

The performance of the public access drive is the same as any other standard enclosure.

Images

Conclusion:

The Qnap Qback35-s is probably the best hard drive enclosure you could purchase if you need one, it costs similar to a standard enclosure but yet offers advanced features that you won’t get with a standard enclosure.

The quality of the Qback35-s is excellent, it’s well made, and it’s easy to use as well, and it’s smaller than some enclosures I’ve seen on the market today making it very portable.

Pros:

AES 256bit encryption

Automated backups

Easy to use

Well made

Inexpensive

Cons:

User manual could be better

Can be hard to install HDD into Qback35-s

Grades:

Overall:

Design:

Performance:

QNAP QBack-35S Hard Drive Enclosure Reviewed is a post from: Testfreaks | The Blog

Manufacturer: Imation

Product Name: Imation Apollo 500GB 2.5" Portable Hard Drive

Review Date: 10/03/08

Author: Kristofer Brozio

A few days ago I took a look at a Verbatim 160GB 2.5" portable hard drive and I found it to be a decent little product, but today I’ve got the Imation Apollo 500GB 2.5" portable hard drive for review. The Apollo is well made, looks nice, is small and portable and actually averages out to be less expensive per gigabyte when compared to others out there.

So read on to learn more about a great little portable hard drive…

The Apollo comes in an attractive box with pictures and a bit of information on it.

Included with the Apollo is the usual documentation and a dual connection USB cable to provide additional power if need be.

I have to saw that the Apollo is a very attractive portable hard disk, when I first opened it I was very impressed not only by it’s looks but by how small it is. The Imation Apollo seems very well made, it feels sturdy and rugged, and it’s lightweight.

Here is the Apollo compared to a couple other 2.5" enclosures I have on hand, it’s easily the smallest:

On one end of course you’ll find a USB connection, the mini style of connector, on the top you’ll also find a small LED indicator that glows blue when powered and blinks to indicate activity.

Of course I was curious and had to pull it apart, something I would highly advise against, besides being very difficult to get apart it’ll most likely void any warranty on the product. Opening it up I found a Samsung HM500LI 500GB, 5400RPM 2.5" hard drive.

Specifications:

Imation Apollo 500GB 2.5" Portable Hard Drive

Imation Apollo 2.5" Portable Hard Drive

The Imation Apollo 2.5" Portable Hard Drive offers high-capacity mobile storage for data, photos, presentations, videos and music in a pocket-sized device that is lightweight, stylish and extremely durable. The Apollo drive is fully USB 2.0 powered and does not require an additional power supply. A blue indicator visually shows when data transfer is in process. The Apollo Hard Drive is available in 160GB, 250GB, 320GB and 500GB capacities, and comes with easy-to-use Total Media Backup software that is compatible with both PC and Mac.

Features:
* The sleek, ultra slim design easily fits in the palm of your hand or briefcase pocket.
* Fully USB 2.0 powered, no additional power is required
* Available capacities include 160GB, 250GB, 320GB and 500GB
* Easy-to-use Total Media Backup software included
* Three year limited warranty

Size (LxWxH):   127.4mm x 80.9mm x 17.2mm

System and Software Requirements:
* Windows® 2000, XP, Vista
* Macintosh Mac OS 10.2.8 and above
* Linux® 2.4 and above
* Total Media Backup software compatible with PC and Mac

Before I get into any testing, Imation did include some backup software already on the drive, you just have to install it. It’s called Arcosoft Total Media Backup, and personally it’s not something I would like to use as my backup software..

Total Media Backup just blanket copies or backs up everything with the parameters you set, you can’t go in and specify certain folders of files to be backed up. You can select the formats, like MPG, DOC, AVI and everything else, but it just searches you hard drive for these file formats and backs them up. You can select full backup or incremental, where it only backs up new files added since the last backup.

Checking the Arcsoft website I found that the version included with the Apollo is a scaled down version, the full version includes burning capabilities as well and a few other features.

Don’t get me wrong here though, Arcosft Total Media Backup could be useful to someone, just not me personally. It’s a great, easy to use backup software solution for those that might not have much experience with this type of thing, in the right hands it could prove very useful and worthwhile.

A few days ago I reviewed the Verbatim 160gb 2.5" portable hard drive, so I thought it would make a good comparison for the Apollo, and compare to another I’ve got on hand and the OCZ Rally2 Turbo Flash Drive.

I used SiSoft Sandra 2009 Removable Storage Benchmark for testing and comparison, higher scores are better.

From all of my time reviewing I’ve learned that it seems the larger things get the slower they are until technology catches up with them, and obviously this is very true here. The Speeds aren’t the greatest, but it’s not really a good comparison either, it would work much better if I had other 500gb HDDs to compare to, but it gives us a general idea anyway.

Personally I’ll take the capacity over the speed any day, the Verbatim was only 160GB, while the Imation Apollo is 500GB, so yeah I’ll take the slower 500gb over the faster 160gb….

The Cheapest I found the 500gb Apollo online for was $172 plus shipping and the cheapest I found the Verbatim online for was $98 plus shipping.

Which, without shipping averages out to 61 cents per gigabyte, while the Apollo averages out to be 34 cents per gig, the Apollo is a much better deal.

Conclusion:

The Imation Apollo is an excellent choice overall for you portable storage and backup needs.

The Apollo might not be the fastest, but it is the cheapest on average per gigabyte from what I found online, and as I said I’ll take the larger capacity over the speed anytime.

The Apollo looks great, it’s small and lightweight making it very portable and it seems well made.

The only suggestion I could make is that Imation should include a carrying case with it to protect the Apollo and carry the USB cable around with you easier.

Pros:

-Small and lightweight

-Large capacity 

-Seems well made 

-Low cost per gigabyte

Cons:

-Not the fastest 

-Included software is basic

Grades:

Overall:

 Design:

Performance:

Imation Apollo 500GB 2.5" Portable Hard Drive is a post from: Testfreaks | The Blog