External 2.5" SATA Hard Drive Enclosure

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propellen · #1 Post by **propellen** » Wed Sep 17, 2008 2:52 am

Hi,

I'm on the lookout for a (durable) black external hard drive enclosure for my HITACHI Travelstar 7K320 320GB HDD (HTS723232L9A360).

I've checked out different Norwegian online shops, but I don't really like any of the designs they're offering ( http://datakjeden.no/webshop/CBC.aspx?q ... 065v807687 )

This lead me on to the precious eBay

It looks like China is the biggest supplier of 2.5" external hard disk enclosures.
I love China. They manufacture alot of good things, but my experience with Chinese products sold on ebay are not always positive. Take for instance my old 8GB USB pen; bought on eBay, shipped from China, turned out to be a firmware programmed 4GB usb stick, thus all data written when the initial 4GB limited was reached became useless

So guys, what are your thoughts on the following:
- http://cgi.ebay.com/2-5-USB-External-SA ... dZViewItem

I've read the feedback on the seller, and they're good. But I cant get my head around whether they give him positive feedback because of the low prices or the product quality. I suspect the first.

Any thoughts? Maybe a suggestion on another durable black hard drive s-ata hard drive enclosure?

Thanks.

propellen

#2 Post by **Harryc** » Wed Sep 17, 2008 3:20 am

Well, there's two problems with feedback on EBay. The first is that it is posted relatively quickly after the sale, so the buyer hasn't had much time to test the product. The second thing wrong with feedback on EBay is that often a buyer will leave positive feedback even though the product is marginal, just to receive good feedback in return (reciprocation). I found one good comment there "Low quality, doesn't stay shut but works OK.". To me that signals a red flag. Here's an idea. I know that newegg.com sells a ton of enclosures, and they have customer reviews on their products. Maybe if you spend some time there you can get some ideas on a good choice for an SATA enclosure.

propellen · #3 Post by **propellen** » Wed Sep 17, 2008 6:41 am

Harryc,
Thank you for your early reply.

I know, i also read that comment ("Low quality, doesn't stay shut but works OK. Fast post."), but it was for the IDE version of the casing

I checked out newegg.com, but i ended up purchasing the casing mentioned above from China. It was too cheap. I need to check out the quality for myself.

I'll keep you posted.

#4 Post by **Harryc** » Wed Sep 17, 2008 7:00 am

Definitely let us know how it is...always looking for cheap devices that do the job . Thanks

spuddog · #5 Post by **spuddog** » Wed Sep 17, 2008 8:56 am

I have an IDE version of the enclosure in the link. It was hard to keep closed, but I fixed that. Bought it 3-4 yrs. ago. My son has it now. It still works so I guess the quality is good.

Scott

propellen · #6 Post by **propellen** » Thu Sep 18, 2008 7:25 am

spuddog wrote:I have an IDE version of the enclosure in the link. It was hard to keep closed, but I fixed that. Bought it 3-4 yrs. ago. My son has it now. It still works so I guess the quality is good.

Scott

Could you please share your fix for keeping the casing closed?

spuddog · #7 Post by **spuddog** » Thu Sep 18, 2008 7:48 am

I added a small amount of glue, then taped it shut until it dried. I'll probably never get it apart again, but it has stayed shut.

Scott

propellen · #8 Post by **propellen** » Thu Sep 18, 2008 9:15 am

spuddog wrote:I added a small amount of glue, then taped it shut until it dried. I'll probably never get it apart again, but it has stayed shut.

Scott

Excellent. My exact thought.
What type/brand of glue did you use?

spuddog · #9 Post by **spuddog** » Thu Sep 18, 2008 12:24 pm

I really don't remember, Probably something I had around at the time.

Scott

rek · #10 Post by **rek** » Thu Sep 18, 2008 7:49 pm

There are a huge number of hard disk enclosures at www.dealextreme.com, most of which compare favourably to the ones on eBay. I bought one to house a hard disk that was spare after a laptop HDD upgrade and it works great and looks pretty decent. This is the one I bought. link

propellen · #11 Post by **propellen** » Wed Sep 24, 2008 7:37 am

I received the casing today. And I must say the quality exceeded my expectations. The disk fits in like a glove and the top slides on perfect. Since there is no screws holding the top on, I can image it can slide off. But a little bit of glue will defiantly do the trick.

I can recommend this seller.

External 2.5" SATA Hard Drive Enclosure

External 2.5" SATA Hard Drive Enclosure

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