iStarUSA BPU-230SATA-BPL 2x5.25" to 3x3.5" SAS/SATA 6.0 Gb/s Hot-Swap Cage - Lockable

Pros: Nice looking unit, the main frame is made of heavy gage aluminum, there are individual on/off switches for each drive as well as individual Power/Activity LEDs; Lockable HDD trays that will accommodate 2.5” and 3.5” drives. Uses only 2, 5.25” bays for 3 drives and is perfect for ‘hot swapping’; It uses only 2 SATA power connectors for the 3 drives and then there are 2, 4 pin MOLEX plugs for the fan and, (I’m guessing here), the lights. Some people have complained about the fan but I really don’t think it’s that loud at ‘High Speed’ and seems almost quiet at ‘Low Speed’. One more thing, it comes with all the screws you need to mount it and anything you put in it.

Cons: None that I can think of.

Other Thoughts: I have 3 of these units currently in service, one is installed in my Mountain Mods Extended Ascension because I didn’t like the way they dealt with HDDs and I needed a way to ‘Hot Swap’ drives without taking the case apart. The second is installed in my Windows Home Server 2011 Box and contains 3, 1TB, WD RE4 drives in a RAID 5 configuration. The third is installed on my test bench for a convenient way to mount and swap drives. As a side note: I also have 2, Thermaltake, MAX-2533’s which are identical to these units (made by I-Star for Thermaltake), cost about $8.00 less. I you are looking for an easy way to ‘Hot Swap’ HDDs and have 2 spare 5.25” bays you can’t go wrong with this cage.

Pros: Chassis build quality is good, adequate cooling, configurable temperature alarm, individual power switches to each drive - all make the product look to be a good drive bay.

Cons: The plastic handles on the trays are cheap, flimsy, and way to sensitive. Simply trying to lock a bay will result in the latch springing open. Poor design. Opt for the Aluminum handled version instead - Much more secure and better built.

Other Thoughts: This product is 90% spot-on but the trays hold it back from being the right product for a good quality hot swap bay.

Pros: Works good. SATA II feature transfers fast!
I like the power switch which can on/off each HDD.
So, if your not using the HDD, you can turn the power off.

Cons: none

Pros: Easy for swapping your hot plug raid drives and the fan helps cool. Comes with everything you need.

Cons: The fan is a little bit noisy.

Other Thoughts: none.

Pros: Low price.

Cons: Drive trays are made of flimsy plastic. Also the drive locks didn't keep the drive from coming out.

Other Thoughts: Overall I thought this was a very cheap product. But you get what you pay for.

Pros: Got 2 of these baby's and and they work great.. Low price and easy to install. You can adjust the fan to high or low.. id suggest try low first high can be a little loud. The low setting works great for me

Cons: poor instructions but its really easy to figure out though

Other Thoughts: I saw one comment on this saying that there is no activity light.. this is not true you get blinking orange activity on the drive that is writing/reading to other wise its solid green (meaning power is on)

Pros: Easily allows you to have three hot-swap SATA drives in the space of two bays! Easy installation, large powerful exhaust fan, lockable disk trays, individual power buttons, very solid construction!

Cons: None!

Other Thoughts: I have not experienced the problem of the power light not turning red when activity is detected. I use my drives for D2D backups and the light is definitely blinking red when the disk is being read from or written to.

Pros: Makes 3 HDD's available externally in the space of 2. The extra fan and aluminum case seem to keep the heat in check.

Cons: The fan is loud. The trays have light weight plastic release handles.

Other Thoughts: You have to toggle the power on a drive to get it to spin-up. The instructions are not obvious, but it isn't hard to figure out. Just save a moment of "oh sh...." Also be aware this is a back plane only; you will need a controller card or open SATA controller slots on your Mobo.

Pros: solid construction. simple to add/remove drives. No issues at all with data integrity. I was surprised to see that there isn't anything to connect the drive LEDs to, but they work perfectly anyway. I also like the fact that you can connect either 4 pin or sata power cables. Another nice touch is that there is a groove running from the front to the back on each side, so you don't have to bend the metal tabs on your case down to install it! Most of the other cages I've tried can't be installed without first bending down the metal tabs between the 5 1/4 drive slots.

Cons: No temp sensor?

Other Thoughts: I'd love a temp sensor/display at the top of the unit. I have yet to find a multi-drive cage that includes this.

Pros: It just don't get any better. With lights and locks and ease to install and remove. Good cooling. I Have not found anything better.

Cons: none at all!

Other Thoughts: I have 3 sets of thses in 2 computers. My drives are not always on. Note. SATA drives in Winxp can be turned on or off in windows without a re-start.