Conclusion:
As the first Rosewill product to be reviewed at Bigbruin.com, the RX-358-S-SLV eSATA and USB hard drive enclosure made a good first impression despite some imperfections. The eSATA performance is excellent, allowing a SATA 3Gbps drive to operate just as well as when connected directly to a SATA header on the test system's motherboard. In addition to the performance, the bundle of accessories is another big plus for this unit. So many enclosures that support eSATA fail to include the necessary cables. Not only does Rosewill include a set, but it is a high quality set that is actually worth using.
There were two issues with the enclosure discovered during the review. The first was that no stand was included. While not absolutely necessary, the Rosewill site says you get one, and it might help reduce noise from vibration, improve cooling, allow you to take up less room on your desk, and maybe even protect the finish of your desk and the enclosure.
The second issue was that despite my best efforts, I could not eliminate a ticking sound from the 80mm fan. The fan itself was fine, as it was nearly silent out of the RX-358-S-SLV, but no matter what I did it was noisy when installed in the enclosure. While I hope and assume that this is an isolated incident, I was relieved to find that the fan really wasn't necessary. Thermal testing showed that the drive never got very warm whether the fan was on or not.
A search of PriceGrabber reveals nothing, for two good reasons. The number of stores where you can find Rosewill products is generally limited to Newegg and Chief Value, and this product has already been discontinued. Checking Newegg reveals that the RX-358-S-SLV is still available and carries a price of $39.99. This is a bit higher than some of your more generic enclosures, but considering that it includes more than the typical enclosure, it is worth it.
Except for the issues of the missing stand and excessive fan noise, both of which may be isolated incidents, it seems like a product that could do well for Rosewill, and I was surprised to see it listed as discontinued on the Rosewill site. While eliminating these two issues would make the RX-358-S-SLV just about perfect, as is I still feel it is worth the rating of "Recommended".
Pros:
» Respectable performance with eSATA or USB 2.0
» Enclsoure is well constructed and stylish
» Drive remained cool with or without the fan on
» An eSATA enclosure that actually includes eSATA cables
Cons:
» No stand included
» Noisy fan
Special thanks to Rosewill for providing the Rosewill RX-358-S-SLV eSATA and USB Hard Drive Enclosure to Bigbruin.com for review!
Please drop by the Bigbruin.com Forum and feel free to post any comments or questions.
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