iStarUSA T-7M1 HDD Rackmount Enclosure Review

[One4yu2c]

With more and more enthusiasts relying on external hard drives to backup and transport their data with, it is no wonder that the market is simply inundated with these kinds of devices. iStarUSA's newest offering, the T-7MI removable internal hard drive rack, looks to do something different by attracting enthusiasts with a more versatile and performance minded product. Can the T-7MI out-perform its external HDD cousins? Will the T-7MI be able to prove its mettle? HardwareLogic is on the hunt to find out!
Dave Montez

iStarUSA T-7MI HDD Rackmount Enclosure Review

[polobunny]

Great review, but racks target a specific type of people. Unless you often move around two stations having a rack where you can put and use your hard drive, or you need to swap around your drives for some reason or another, there's little to no use to them as opposed to a "real" external hard drive enclosure connecting by firewire/usb/sata/a combo of those. They're not as portable, obviously.

I notice there's also an error in the name of the device. It's iStarUSA T-7M1, the last character being a 1 and not a I :)

However, while the product looks great, I think it would be hard to recommend it seeing the retail price. Racks with similar features can be had for half the price (around $15). Only difference would be how normally the whole drive is encased, while in the iStarUSA T-7M1 case (pun!) the hard drive directly connects to the rack.
Pursuing this idea further though, since iStarUSA does not have to manufacture an inner tray with connectors, one would think it would be cheaper.

Good review and product nonetheless.

[screwballl]

looks like a great review and a decent product... one spot I saw that makes this not so removable is the need to screw down the drive. I guess it is removable as in it can be removed from the system but if you need to swap drives out, you need to remove screws, attach it to second drive, tighten screws back down and so on.
I have a PATA based removal drive setup and with this one, you pull the tray out, open the top, drive can just be pulled out and unhooked, another drive can side back in, close the top and put it back into the slot on the tower. Rather than having to deal with the screws, the one I have is truly removable and easily swapped out.

[garetjax]

Originally Posted by polobunny

I notice there's also an error in the name of the device. It's iStarUSA T-7M1, the last character being a 1 and not a I

Thanks for the catch. The article now reflects the change. =)

We can only review a product on its own merit, as it was intended to be used as designed by its manufacturer. Therefore, while I agree that a rack mount HDD enclosure is targeted for specific people, and that an external HDD would work just as well, the T-7M1, for all intents and purposes, proved to be an exceptional, well made product for those that need an external HDD rack mount enclosure for whatever reason.

This aside, I enjoyed the product so much, I purchased an additional T-7M1 to install in my wife's computer with a 750GB HDD in it. With one T-7M1 in my computer and one in hers, I can swap out the trays easily for backup duties. I also found, much to my pleasure, that purchasing a 750GB HDD and a T-7M1 cost less than buying an integrated external HDD of the same storage capacity.

[screwballl]

and depending on the motherboard capabilities, it is easy to make it a hot swap device so no need to reboot windows...

[halutzparilla]

great review... wonder where can you get extra HDD tray so you dont have to go the hassle of un-screwing and reinserting swapping HDD???

[polobunny]

Originally Posted by halutzparilla

great review... wonder where can you get extra HDD tray so you dont have to go the hassle of un-screwing and reinserting swapping HDD???

Does not seem to be available.
iStarUSA - Rackmount Chassis Accessories