The Ineo USB 3.0 HDD Docking Station is a must-have for computer builders, tech support professionals and anyone else who often works with internal hard drives. The Ineo USB 3.0 HDD Docking Station allows you to take any SATA internal hard drive and acces it via USB 3.0 or USB 2.0 as if it were attached internally. This is an excellent tool for anyone who needs to work on an internal hard drive from another machine without talking apart their own computer or installing it into a case enclosure. Simply insert the SATA HDD into the docking station as you would a Super Nintendo or Sega cartridge and attach it to your computer. Read the rest of the review to learn more about the features of this external input/output card interface.

Price

At just $29.99, the Ineo USB 3.0 HDD Docking Station is a bargain. It's just slightly over the cost of a less robust hard drive enclosure, but it's much more user friendly and support USB 3.0 as well.

Compatibility

The Ineo USB 3.0 HDD Dockin Station only supports SATA drives. That includes standard 3.5-inch SATA hard disk drivers from desktop PCs as well as 2.5-inch SATA laptop drivers. It does not support eSATA or legacy IDE drives. It also only connects via USB 3.0 or USB 2.0. There is no FireWire support.

Design

The Ineo USB 3.0 HDD Docking Station has a very simple design. It consists only of a single slot on top, and a flashing light on the front to show you the status of the device (ready, in use). In the back, it has the USB 3.0 port and the power input. Note that this device must be plugged into AC power to function and cannot draw power from the USB port.

Setup and Usability

Setup of the USB 3.0 HDD Docking Station is incredibly easy. There are no drivers or software to install, simply plug the device in and insert a hard drive. Your computer will recognize the hard drive as if it were any other external USB drive. Hard drives can be hotplugged, meaning that you can insert or remove them without turning off the comoputer or disconnecting the docking station. The docking station had fast write and read speeds using both USB 2.0 and USB 3.0, though your performance may vary depending on your hard drive's speed.

Conclusion and Alternatives

Overall, this is a highly affordable docking station and a great value. However, it's lack of eSATA and FireWire support may be a turn off for you. You may also wish to consider the Voyager Q or the WebbieTech UltraDock V4.