Wilson Tang - Marketing Manager - Azio

This is an Archive originally recorded in December 2010 - Personel, Technology and Prices may have changed and we provide this for your research

Azio delivers with a USB 3.0 Enclosure for SATA Hard Drives

I was recently accused of being a Hard Drive Pack Rat. After looking at the stack of drives piled on the computer workbench, I had to laugh because she was 100% correct. I really don't like the idea of taking a drive I have stored data on and destroying it. Every gig is precious! Ok, I'm not trying to emulate Monty Python here but in fact many of us Computer Power Users find over time we have amassed a good number of hard drives. For those of us with SATA drives, I think i have found the fastest solution without putting 5 or 6 of these drives inside your PC Case.

For those users that maybe aren't power users but would like to have more storage, the solution I found may also work for you. The Azio External 3.5 USB 3.0 HDD Enclosure. The Model number E377-U31 device allows the user to Quickly interchange a SATA Hard Drive into the enclosure, completely screwless and have access to Hard Drive. All the end user needs is a SATA Hard drive and available USB Port. The E377-U31 has been designed with a chipset for the new USB 3.0 protocol however it is backwards compatible with the previous USB 2.0 standard. Having the USB 3.0 feature is handy and gives the user room to grow with the sturdy constructed enclosure.

As many new desktop computer users are opting for reduced footprint size of the systems, the beheamoth towers are becoming rare except for gamers and high end power users that want room to expand and add to systems. With the smaller sizes, user find they may not be able to add a second hard drive for storage, backing up and upgrading. Laptop, Netbook or Apple Mac Book Air users find a similar situation when wanting to have more storage. This is where the Azio Hard Drive Enclosure is extremely handy.

The Aluminum design of the enclosure aids in the cooling of the device under stress with gaming and large file transfers. The designers at Azio didn't stop there, On the E377-U31 that TechtalkRadio looked at, a 3" Cooling fan on the side of the enclosure can also keep the system in line with good airflow. This fan can be enabled or disabled with an easy push of a button on the front of the device. Opening the Azio Hard Drive Enclosure is extremely easy with a flip of a button and then the holding tray can be removed. Two snap in side rails can be opened and a SATA drive can be easily placed inside the device, slid upwards into the SATA connectors and then locked in place with the Side Rails which snap into the drive. A quick connection of the power supply and the USB cable and you should be good to go! LED Indicators on the front of the unit represent power and data access. We really like the fact that the products are supported with a Lifetime Warranty.

For those that would like to have USB 3.0 connectivity but lack the port, Azio also has the AUDU3 PCI-E Card which offers two USB 3.0 Ports for the system with an available PCI Express Port and Power Connector (4 Pin Molex/Berg) which is also backwards compatible with USB 2.0 and 1.0 and features the NEC Chipset. The card works under Windows XP, Vista and Windows 7 32 or 64 bits.

Our only afterthought to the system was that we wished the power supply plug in had a stronger cord and maybe smaller plug in however those would certainly not prevent us from purchasing this Hard Drive Enclosure, especially with the great suggested price of the unit. Those that don't see an adoption to the USB 3.0 standard can purchase the same type of enclosure with USB 2.0 and could also find the system with a fan or without. Options are always nice to have and with the Azio External 3.5 USB 3.0 HDD Enclosure your only option you need is which drive do you want to access!

Listen in on our interview with Wilson Tang from Azio Corporation about the E377-U31 and some of the other products available from the company.