Review on Black Vantec NexStar TX USB 3.0 Hard Drive Dock - Single Bay (NST-D328S3-BK) by Damon Mertz

I have several hard drives, both 2.5" and 3.5", which I connected to the computer with a SATA-USB and a separate power supply have. . This arrangement worked but wasn't ideal as the cables ran everywhere and the USB connection wasn't fast enough. I've looked at several different hard drive docks and very few of them have a Firewire 800 connection. Of these, this one looked good in the photos. Well, at least a photo of the back of the device. I connected it to my Mac through another Firewire drive with a Firewire 800 connection and it works fine. Much faster than my USB sticks. The design of the device is clean. The white color goes well with my Mac systems. The dock is made out of fairly cheap plastic. It feels like it will break if I drop it. It also leads me to believe that the device will turn yellow over time, but only time will tell. It doesn't have much substance and weighs very little. When the 3.5-inch drive is in the dock, it feels a little heavy at the top, but not so much that it actually tips over. On the top of the device there is a hole for a 2.5" drive and a hinged cover that allows you to install a 3.5" drive. "The drive needs to be inserted. I don't think it shows in the photos. When the drive is inserted there is some slack, but not enough to be a problem. There is a lever/knob on the right side that helps to eject the drive from the docking station Lever to avoid damaging it On the front of the unit is a large power button surrounded by a blue illuminated frame when on The power button doesn't fit well. It tends to stick when I push it in, so I have to push on it to pop it out.Under It has a large hard drive activity light that flashes when the hard drive is being accessed.The device has 4 rubber pads to protect your desk surface There are two 1394B ports for Firewire 800, but no port for Firewire 400. However, there are cables to fix this (see below). the connections. The power adapter looks well made, with a separate part that adapts it to a standard US outlet. It seems that other types of sockets, e.g. B. European, could be supported by simply changing the adapter. (It doesn't come with other plug adapters) The power adapter is a little big and may cover other outlets on the power strip. The device comes with a set of cable connections including eSATA, USB, 1394B - 1394B and 1394B - 1394A (to connect to FW400). Installation is so easy that the included installation guide is really unnecessary. If you don't need black drive docks, this is a good option. It's not the highest quality product, but it works well and should last a while with a little care.