Updated 28 May, 2012, 2:58 pm IST

Vantec NexStar 3

04 Jan, 2007, 5:23 pm IST | by Gaurav Seth | External drives

3.5-inch external hard drive enclosures have been around for a while. What makes the NexStar 3 different is the eSATA interface that comes along with the USB interface.

But before that—for the uninitiated—lets understand what a 3.5-inch enclosure is. '3.5-inch' is the form factor of the hard drive. A 3.5-inch hard drive is the one that goes into your desktop. The hard drives that go into laptops are 2.5-inch hard drives. In normal circumstances, i.e. inside your computer case, the hard drive is connected to the IDE or SATA port of the motherboard—depending on the type of hard drive you have—and is screwed to the computer case. But, what if you want a large capacity storage device that is also portable? One of the most cost effective options would be to use the very same 3.5-inch hard drive and mount it into an external 3.5-inch hard drive enclosure like the NexStar 3. The NexStar 3 can then be externally connected to the USB port of a computer and in NexStar’s case, also to an eSATA port.

Also lets see what eSATA is—eSATA stands for External Serial Advanced Technology Attachment. It’s an interface for external storage devices with its competitors being USB and Firewire. From the chart below you can see the maximum transfer speeds using each of the interfaces. The Vantec NexStar is SATA II ready. These are theoretical maximum speeds. We will benchmark the enclosure in real world conditions to see the actual speeds.

Tags: Vantec , eSata , Enclosure

Would you buy it?

QNAP Systems Inc. have expanded their business series desktop Turbo NAS servers with larger capacities that can now hold up to 8 and 10 drives.

Lenovo ThinkPad L410 - Big and Outdated

TViX HD SlimS1 - Features Aplenty

ECS P67H2-A - Features Abundant

Buying Guide: Motherboards

ZOTAC ZBOX AD03BR PLUS: Little Wonder

Case Lighting

MORE VIDEOS

21 May, 2009, 05:26 am IST

Hard Drive Data Recovery With Vantec USB ...

28 Aug, 2008, 06:25 pm IST

Vantec NexStar3 3.5 External Hard Drive ...

16 Jul, 2006, 08:24 am IST

#411 - Vantec Cable Sleeving Kits (Part 1)

16 Jul, 2006, 04:00 am IST

#383 - Vantec Spectrum Fan Card

How We Test

What do the ratings mean?

Ratings are simple - higher the score, the better the product. A brief listing of the features and what they mean are given below.

1 - 3

The product is bad in almost every aspect. We strongly advise against purchasing this product.

4 - 6

An average product that isn't the best you can buy, but isn't the worst either.

7 - 8

Product with this rating is highly recommended because it's priced sensibly, has a good set of features and performs well.

9 - 10

Exceptionally excellent product with features and performance unlike any we've seen in the past. A must-have for everyone!

What is the Average User Rating?

We at Tech2 take product reviewing very seriously and every product is tested with the utmost care and level of objectivity. The end user who buys a particular product and uses it over an extended period of time has his own take on a product and there might be nuances that he or she can shed light on. The Average User Rating is present to help readers get the complete picture of how good or bad a product is. The Average User Rating is calculated by averaging the ratings by the thousands of readers visiting Tech2.com every single day. To record your own rating of a product, simply click on the user rating bar. If you disagree with our ratings or our community's product rating, please don't hesitate from voicing your opinion in the comments section below the review.

Leaked Images, Availability, Pricing,
Specs, Pre-order