Portable Performance: Four USB 3.0 Enclosures For Your 2.5” Drive

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USB 3.0 is set to become the de facto standard for performance-oriented portable devices. We take a look at four enclosures that bring modern performance to pocket-sized storage. If you have an old laptop drive laying around, throw it in one of these.

Test Settings

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Test-System Configuration
CPUIntel Core i7-920 (2.66 GHz, 8MB Shared L3 Cache)
CPU CoolerRosewill FORT120
MotherboardGigabyte X58A-UD7, BIOS F6 (03-11-2010)
RAMKingston KHX16000D3ULT1K3/6GX (6GB) DDR3-2000 at DDR3-1600 CAS 7-7-7-20
GraphicsSapphire Radeon HD 5850 1GB 725 MHz GPU, GDDR5-4000
OS Hard DriveWestern Digital Velociraptor WD3000HLFS, 300GB 10,000 RPM, SATA 3 Gb/s, 16MB cache
Test DriveCrucial RealSSD C300 256GB SATA 6 Gb/s
USB 3.0 HostIntegrated NEC D720200F1, PCIe 2.0 (x1)
SoundIntegrated HD Audio
NetworkIntegrated Gigabit Networking
PowerCorsair CMPSU-850HX 850W Modular ATX12V v2.2, EPS12V, 80 PLUS Gold
Software
OSMicrosoft Windows 7 Ultimate x64
GraphicsAMD Catalyst 10.3
ChipsetIntel INF 9.1.1.1020
Benchmarks
h2benchw 3.13Sequential and Sustained Reads and Writes (KB/s) Interface Bandwidth (MB/s) and Access Times (ms)

We wanted the most direct PCIe 2.0 connection to the chipset possible, and got it using an X58 motherboard from Gigabyte. The X58A-UD7 graced our recent high-end System Builder Marathon PC and a full review of the board is forthcoming.

Proven at speeds beyond 300 MB/s, Crucial’s SATA 6 Gb/s RealSSD C300 is the fastest drive we could get our hands on for today’s review.

Thomas Soderstrom
Thomas Soderstrom
Thomas Soderstrom is a Senior Staff Editor at Tom's Hardware US. He tests and reviews cases, cooling, memory and motherboards.
28 Comments Comment from the forums
  • I know this isn't relevant, but what is in the pcie1 slot?
    Reply
  • Gin Fushicho
    You guys are really benching cases? I figured they'd all be close to the same anyway.
    Reply
  • Crashman
    SubSonix1I know this isn't relevant, but what is in the pcie1 slot?
    Nothing, the slot is covered by an extended chipset heat sink.
    Reply
  • TomD_1
    So basically, they all have identical hardware, and IMO all look ugly
    Reply
  • Crashman
    TomD_1So basically, they all have identical hardware, and IMO all look ugly
    You forgot to mention they all fit in a shirt pocket. That is the most important part.
    Reply
  • thejerk
    Scraping the bottom of the barrel for non-iPad news?
    Reply
  • warmon6
    thejerkScraping the bottom of the barrel for non-iPad news?
    Um.... few things,

    1. They haven't been just covering the ipad. They been covering alot of other things.

    2. This isn't news. This is a review. Learn the difference.
    Reply
  • kelfen
    if ya think about it this is more cost effective per GB to buy one of these and a hard drive then buying a usb drive
    Reply
  • Good... so I can share my pirated movies more faster?( sarcasm )
    Reply
  • rooket
    What's the performance like if you use it with a hard drive? Just same as usb 2.0 I'd imagine? Odd that they're only hitting 35MB/sec with USB 2.0. It should go 60MB/sec. Why is this only half the speed?
    Reply