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Rosewill RX81-CW-US-SLV eSATA/USB 3.5" Drive Enclosure
Author: Jason Kohrs
Manufacturer: Rosewill
Source: Rosewill
Purchase: Newegg
Comment or Question: Post Here
Page: 2 of 4 [ 1 2 3 4 ]
Rosewill RX81-CW-US-SLV eSATA/USB 3.5
February 05, 2008

The Basics:

The enclosure is shown below standing upright using two feet you will find in the bundle of accessories. The silver side panels are Aluminum, while the bulk of the housing is made of plastic. There are a few slots for ventilation, but no active cooling, and my initial impression is that the drive might get a bit warm inside this relatively solid box. Even though the sides are Aluminum, they probably can't help with cooling as they are insulated from the drive by a fairly thick plastic skeleton.

Click Image For Larger View

The images below take a closer look at the front and back of the enclosure. The chromed knob on the front is not a button, but simply where a blue LED that indicates drive activity is located. On the back we find a power switch, power connection, eSATA port, and USB 2.0 port.

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One of the key features that Rosewill promotes is that there is a "screw-less installation". The enclosure opens by squeezing a tab on either side, and sliding the drive tray out. The ribbed area near the front of the enclosure in the below left image is where you squeeze, and it does seem to hold the tray in place securely without the need for screws.

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Take a look at the tray in the above right image and you will see screw holes for holding the drive in place. When we take a look at the accessories provided by Rosewill you will also see that they have provided screws. The design is hardly screw-less. While you can open the enclosure without tools, you will need a screwdriver in order to secure your drive to the tray.

The images below take a look at the PCB at the back of the drive tray. You simply slide your drive onto the SATA data and power connections, and then use a screw on either side to keep it in place.

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Make note of the two large capacitors located just behind the power switch. Keep these in mind during installation, as they are so tall that is difficult to keep them from hitting against the edge of the housing. Push hard enough and you could rip them right off. I was luckily moving very slowly as I installed my drive, because they did hit, but didn't get damaged.

Accessories:

The two images below show everything else included with the RX81-CW-US-SLV. You get a USB cable, eSATA cable, two part power adapter, a SATA to eSATA adapter mounted to an expansion slot bracket, installation documentation, a bag of screws, and two feet shown in action in the first image on this page. The compliment of accessories is impressive because so many manufacturers don't include everything you need. The cables are all of decent quality and length, and the SATA to eSATA adapter is the piece that seems to be so hard to find with similar enclosures.

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