This is a phenomenal product. It's way better than the competition. I was looking to get my first Blu-Ray burner to use for backups, particularly MDisc, but my computer doesn't have a 5.25" optical drive bay. It looks like not many companies are making external enclosures for them. All I could find after searching many sites was this, and the Vantec Vantec NST-536S3-BK NexStar DX USB 3.0 External Enclosure for SATA Blu-Ray/CD/DVD Drive all black.
I ultimately passed on the Vantec, and I'm glad I did, because there would have been no comparison. This is an EXTREMELY nice all metal enclosure with really nice brushed metal contrasts on top. There's just no comparison between this and the pictures of that ugly black Vantec.
But maybe you care more about function that looks? Well, you'll definitely want to get this over the Vantec then, because spec-wise it is actually significantly better. Here are the ways:
1. Power - If you read the negative Vantec reviews, you will find some that complain there isn't enough power to run some of the burners out there with stronger lasers. The power supply on the Vantec is only 2A. Indeed, on a lot of the SATA to USB cables people use for external hard drives (or even some optical drives), the power supply will only be 2A. That may be great for 3.5 inch hard drives or some optical drives, but if you want to know for sure you have the necessary power, get this. They didn't skimp on the power supply, it's a 3A, for 50% more power than the Vantec.
2. Speed - If you read the Vantec reviews, there are complaints by some that the Vantec might be 480 Mbps USB 2.0. I don't know if that's true or not, or if they just plugged their Vantec into a USB 2.0 port, but you can be sure this one is definitely USB 3.0, and there is no faster enclosure than that on the market today.
3. Size - I know some reviewers are complaining this didn't fit their particular drive. I'm not sure what kind of drive they have, and whether it's old with bulkier technology or what, but I just put a late model LG WH16NS40 in it, which is one of the most capable drives out there (MDisc, Blu-Ray MDisc, BluRayXL quad layer 100+GB, etc). It can burn almost anything, yet it fits very nicely into this external enclosure. I wouldn't want this enclosure to be any larger because frankly, 5.25" drives are large, enclosures make them larger, and I just don't want it to take any more space on my desk! This thing is not small, and I'm really glad it's not bigger. People are praising the Vantec for being bigger, but that's not a positive to me. Just measure your drive first to make sure it will fit (or look at the manufacturer specs online), and then size won't be a problem for you.
4. Case Fan Noise - if you read the negative Vantec reviews, a number of them are complaining about a small, noisy fan that is really irritating. There's no fan on this. Being all metal, my guess is the aluminum transfers the heat out of the case pretty well, so the only noise will be from your drive.
5. Drive Noise - This case was very thoughtfully designed. They've got mounting points in the case for all eight screw holes that come on the sides of optical drives, and every last one of them has rubber grommets to cut down on any vibration.
6. Table Vibration Noise - Yep, they thought about that too, with really nice clear rubber feet on the bottom of the enclosure, to cut down on vibrations there are well.
7. Design - It doesn't just look good, it's functionally very good as well. My drive fits snugly, with no obvious gaps around the front bezel. The back is a very clean design, with a master power switch, USB port, power supply port, and a lock port in case you have to install this in a high traffic area.
Are there any cons? In my opinion, not really. Some other reviewers have mentioned the metal around the edge of the face being slightly warped when they took it out of the box, and mine was too. But it's not a big deal at all - the reason the metal was slightly warped is that it was soft, and it's soft enough you can bend it back into place, no tools required. Not that you really have to worry about making it look good when you are bending it... you just have to make it "kind of straight", because once you push the inner drive container into the outer enclosure, and start screwing in the feet on the base of the units, the screws will pull everything tight, with enough force to make the metal perfectly straight and flush. You cannot tell mine was ever bent, and that was really due to the screws, not any skill on my part.
It is possible that some of your screw holes on the bottom might not line up perfectly at first due to the bending, but again, finger straighten, and then apply some force on the front edges of your drive bezel (not on the door or button or anything sensative, just the outer plastic), and that will push that inner enclosure in enough that the holes will line up enough to get the screws in. And as you start tightening that will make it perfectly flush. If it sounds complicated, it's not - it was really easy, and everything looks perfect. You'll see how to do it once you have it your hands.
Conclusion: This enclosure is like buying a high end Apple or nice Windows gaming rig, and the Vantec looks like a budget PC with some substandard parts (like the power supply). When I bought this it was $49, and the Vantec $43. That's only a $6 difference for a way better enclosure. I couldn't get over the fact that the Vantec looked like it should be $20 bucks. This one actually feels like the price has some connection to the quality. And at only $6 more, just get it. You get way more than $6 of additional value.
| Hard Drive | Portable |
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