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| Thermaltake Muse 3.5 eSATA and USB2.0 Combo Review |
| Written by Maxit | ||||
Price: £31 (Inc vat)
Supplier: Thermaltake Manufacturer: Thermaltake We reviewed the Thermaltake Muse OTB2.5 eSATA Enclosure a few days ago, but if you are looking for a little more punch and flexability for storage on the go, the big 3.5 eSATA and USB2.0 combo is where it's at. With full support for hot plug and play, native SATA interface at 3Gbs transfer rates and support for Native Command Queuing (NCQ), it ticks all the right boxes for a modern external storage device. Thermaltake are recognised as the world leaders in PC component technology with inspiring designs that break the traditional beige box mould. The Muse eSATA and USB2.0 3.5" Combo is certainly no exception. The whole package oozes quality with special design touches. The mirror coating adds to the stylish metal design of this unit and the DA Meter with a blue back light adds a little bling for night sessions. With full anti-shock protection, easy click install without the need for any tools and a secure stand, it's a top gadget.      FeaturesThe best feature of this unit of course, got to be its eSATA support. With more and more systems using SATA hard disks, ordinary enclosures with USB2.0 interface hamper the transfer rates of the hard disks. This enclosure features an all aluminum fan-less and stylish design. There is a nice data transfer meter on the case to indicate the transfer. This is a pretty cool and unique innovation we expect to see on a hard disk enclosure. Another interesting and unique feature is the screw-less design which allows for tool-less installation and removal of hard disks. I personally like this feature a lot. The feature list is as follows:
Specifications
DesignThe design really stands out. Eye catching, bold and good enough to grace any high tech desktop space. The body is shiny with a mirror coating and the aluminum plates used for the enclosure case are thick and are very well finished. Both the enclosure and the metal stand that comes with it are provided with small rubber pads, so the the case sits firmly on the surface when placed either horizontally or vertically.The unique Data Transfer Indicator on the top of the case looks like a fuel dial from a car and provides a bit of show during use. The needle-pointer in the meter moves along the scale when data is transferred and glows blue when the power is ON. It's a gimmick but it works and looks cool in action. The rear of the unit hosts all the ports for connecting various cables. There is a DC IN port for the power, power switch, USB2.0 port and the eSATA port. The front panel can be opened by a button on the side panel allowing access to the innards without the need for tools. The Muse also comes with a SATA to eSATA PCI bracket for those who don't have a built in external eSATA port on their motherboard. Installing this is straight forward and a welcome addition. It's good to see Thermaltake providing this bracket since only the newer Core 2 Duo and AM2 motherboards have an external eSATA port as standard. InstallationThis is why the Muse won our hearts as a must have external storage enclosure! You don't need any tools to install and remove hard disks from the enclosure. You just remove the front panel by pushing a button on it's side panel, place the hard disk in the bay, and connect the SATA connector to the hard disk and close the front panel. That's it, you are done! Its doesn't get any easier than this.Thermaltake did a wonderful job by making the installation tool-free. It makes your job easy and saves you fiddling around with screws and screwdrivers. Changing and installing a hard drive can be done in super quick time. In The LabsTo test the performance of the enclosure, we used the Segate Barracuda 300GB 7200rpm SATA hard disk. Using the eSATA interface, performance was top notch. The unit responded aswell as the internal hard drives in our system in real world applications. The transfer rates using the eSATA interface are almost 25% to 35% faster than those with the USB2.0 interface. So if your motherboard supports SATA hard drives, this is defintely the best option. The USB2.0 is a useful addition, providing compatability with older systems and laptops. The combination of the two interfaces means this unti can go anywhere and share data.One issue we did notice was the amount of heat generated by the unit. Even though the whole thing acts as a giant heatsink, high speed hard drives do run warm in the Muse as there is no fan to assist cooling. Though we didn't face any problem during our two hour test session, we certainly wouldn't recommend it for 10,000 RPM drives. Of course the plus side is that the unit is very quiet with only the hard drive to produce any noise. ConclusionThe Thermaltake Muse 3.5 eSATA & USB2.0 combo enclosure has stunning looks and neat innovations to brighten up your external storage needs. We loved the tool-less installation and eye catching Transfer Meter. A flexible approach to interface connections with support for eSATA and USB2.0 will suit a wide variety of data storage applications. The price reflects the quality Thermaltake have put into this device and while not the cheapest on the market, it is one of the best looking and most flexible offerings for your money. Highly recommended!
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For more information on this or any of Thermaltakes range of products, please visit their website at: www.thermaltake.com
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