Question 1

Has anybody using one of these found heat to be an issue when populated with 2 drives?   Especially if 7200RPM?

Accepted Answer

In the case of 10k and 15k drives, heat can become a point of failure.  Lower power drives that offer a thinner profile can help with this.  This combo is great for a single SSD and a single larger HDD in the OS/Storage type setup.  The ventilation isn't all that great.

Also, make sure you keep the keys for this as the doors don't like to stay totally put unless you lock them shut.

Question 2

Is this unit reliable enough to use to switch between different boot hard drives by just inserting my windows drive or linux drive, or will the connectors and mechanism wear out?  I don't expect to switch every day, but I don't know how often I would in practice.  Yeah, I know about VMs, but I haven't seen a VM that does a good job supporting gaming graphics.

Accepted Answer

you could very easily set up a bootloader that would optionally allow you to change which os from one drive or the other without the need to swap physical drives.

however if you are going to consistently swap out drives this unit will last about 150 swaps on the internal connectors as long as you are not too abusive. Also it should be noted that the covers do not stay closed completely securely without the use of the locking mechanism so definitely keep track of the keys very closely. actually having a drive installed also helps keep them closed fairly well but if you have a vacant slot the door may not stay completely closed

Question 3

SATA connectors allow for latching?   The main competitor to this doesn't latch, too risky.

Accepted Answer

SATA II you are correct. Also you can't connect to the device after you boot, you must boot with the device connected.

SATA III connections can be closed through the tool bar's show hidden ICON, which allows you to unplug the Drive. It also allows for connecting a drive after boot (Auto).

Question 4

Will this device serve as a case for a Samsung 2.5 drive pulled from an older Macbook? It died and I want to access its content with a newer Macbook pro as an external drive.

Accepted Answer

This can serve as a case for your 2.5" drive, but keep in mind that the connections on the back are internal SATA, i.e. the same connections that are on the back of the drive itself. You would be better served buying a USB case for your needs.

Question 5

What type of hard drives are compatible with the iStarUSA BPN-2535DE-SA?

Accepted Answer

The iStarUSA BPN-2535DE-SA is compatible with 2.5" SATA I/II/III hard drives and SSDs.

Question 6

What are the dimensions of the iStarUSA BPN-2535DE-SA hot-swap rack?

Accepted Answer

The dimensions of the iStarUSA BPN-2535DE-SA hot-swap rack are 4.00 x 1.00 x 5.74 inches.

Question 7

Would this product fit and work inside ASUS VivoPC models such as the  VM40B &  VM60 which did not come with the Asus VivoPC DualBay adapter?
  My VM40B came with a single 3.5" disk installed, and there is only a single drive socket for it.  My VM60 has similar space with a 2.5" SSD housed in a plastic  3.5" drive adapter. plugged into the single socket.
  I've been able to swap the two drives, but would like to be able to run both the SSD and a 2.5" hard disk.

Accepted Answer

Please measure the area that is available to fit a keyboard,and then I can answer your question. My hunch is NO, it will not fit.

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