Review of the Inateck FD1003 Docking Station

[SaSaSushi]

The latest Inateck device to arrive is the FD1003 Docking Station.

This device is basically a cradle supporting 2.5" and 3.5" drives with UASP USB 3 using the Asmedia ASM1053E chipset. You simply slide the drive into the slot and when it is seated a tab at the back of the unit rises. You press this tab to remove the drive.

It is made of ABS plastic and comes with an AC power supply and a USB cable. It requires no drivers and works in both Windows and OS X. Booting from the device is supported.

When I first installed my Seagate ST3000DM001 hard disk into the unit yesterday and powered on, I had a kernel panic. I think it might have been as a result of not having the drive seated properly. After reseating the drive and rebooting I have been running it for a full day now with no further problems.

BlackMagic Disk Speed Test Results.

Seagate ST3000DM01 3.0TB 7200RPM HDD

Samsung 840 EVO 500GB SSD

The SSD speeds are similar to those with the Inateck FEU3NS1-E UASP 2.5" enclosure, but not quite as fast with write speeds.

I was able to boot from the SSD with no issues but I have a Carbon Copy Cloner backup of my Macintosh HD on the Seagate HDD I was unable to boot from. This appears to be a problem with my partitioning and/or the hard drive itself because I get the exact same results in another (not Inateck) USB3 cradle as well.

*** Update 5/24/14: The problem with bootability did, in fact, turn out to be my partitioning. I had the 3TB HDD partitioned into a 2.75TB storage partition at the beginning of the drive and a the Mac clone in a second 250GB partition at the end of the drive. Apparently, OS X will not boot from a partition at the end of a large drive. I repartitioned the drive with the the 250GB partition at the beginning of the disk and now it boots flawlessly. ***

The FD1003 is very compact and quiet and like the other Inateck devices, well constructed.

It is currently $32.99 at Amazon.com. The Plugable USB Docking Station is $25, but so far as I can tell it only supports 3.5" drives, so SSDs are not an option. That is an important advantage for the Inateck.

 

[Earl Urly]

I wonder if it's the same as this:

http://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-External-Docking-Station-DS-UBLK/dp/B00IKAQ538

Six bucks cheaper, but maybe it doesn't have the ASMEDIA 105E chipset.

 

[SaSaSushi]

I wonder if it's the same as this:

http://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-External-Docking-Station-DS-UBLK/dp/B00IKAQ538

It looks very similar in appearance but indeed I don't think that one is UASP.

I just noticed the image links for my benchmarks aren't working. I'll fix it when I get home later.

 

[HenryAZ]

It is currently $32.99 at Amazon.com. The Plugable USB Docking Station is $25, but so far as I can tell it only supports 3.5" drives, so SSDs are not an option. That is an important advantage for the Inateck.

Thanks for the new product review!

The Plugable will take 2.5" drives, too, at least according to their web site. I like this lay flat Plugable model, which also uses the same chipset, takes both drive sizes and is bootable.

 

[SaSaSushi]

Thanks for the new product review!

The Plugable will take 2.5" drives, too, at least according to their web site.

Thank you very much for the correction. The Plugable also looks very nice.

I like this lay flat Plugable model, which also uses the same chipset, takes both drive sizes and is bootable.

Thanks for the tip. I was familiar with the Plugable docking station but this one looks like a really nice option as well.

 

[Fishrrman]

HenryAZ wrote above:
[[ I like this lay flat Plugable model, which also uses the same chipset, takes both drive sizes and is bootable. ]]

I use that one as my "external booter" with a late 2012 Mac Mini (bought new in Jan. 2013). I'm currently using a Crucial m500 240gb SSD, and the lay-flat dock gives me write speeds around 247mbps and read speeds up to 431mbps. Pretty fast, and not a hiccup, either.

Honestly, I can't understand why more folks don't use a similar solution with Minis and iMacs -- cheap, fast, easy with no danger of breaking anything inside.

The Inateck and Sabrent docks mentioned above look good, as well.

 

[HenryAZ]

HenryAZ wrote above:


The Inateck and Sabrent docks mentioned above look good, as well.

I agree. I think the key ingredient for all three of them is the same ASMedia chipset. Beyond that, it is just a matter of what style suits you.

 

[Marty62]

Hey, thanks for the review

I have an "IcyBox" version for transferring from bare drives but it's not
UASP compliant.
It also takes 2 x 3,5's OR 2 x 2.5's drives or one of each type plus has a clone
function .... I won't be trying that out though !

They are useful devices.

Marty.