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Thunderbolt-SSD-enclosure

RapsacDK

RapsacDK

macrumors member
Original poster
Jul 27, 2010
46
0
Copenhagen, Denmark
Hello,

I have an 120GB SSD in excess, and want to install Windows 8 on it and be able to boot from it on my new MBP 15" Retina.

Therefore, I am thinking of buying either an USB3 or maybe Thunderbolt enclosure? I would think that Thunderbolt would be faster, but I couldn't quite find a Thunderbolt-SSD-enclosure.

Can any of you guys help me out?

Thanks
 
RapsacDK said:
Hello,

I have an 120GB SSD in excess, and want to install Windows 8 on it and be able to boot from it on my new MBP 15" Retina.

Therefore, I am thinking of buying either an USB3 or maybe Thunderbolt enclosure? I would think that Thunderbolt would be faster, but I couldn't quite find a Thunderbolt-SSD-enclosure.

Can any of you guys help me out?

Thanks
Click to expand...

I run my Boot Camp from an external SSD using this Seagate Thunderbolt sled (STAE128):

http://www.amazon.com/Seagate-Backu...e=UTF8&qid=1392833990&sr=8-1&keywords=stae128
 
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Yes, even fw enclosures are impossible to find for under $60, the markets are just to small. Unless you are ready to pay to play, make it usb.
 
martinm0 said:
I run my Boot Camp from an external SSD using this Seagate Thunderbolt sled (STAE128):

http://www.amazon.com/Seagate-Backu...e=UTF8&qid=1392833990&sr=8-1&keywords=stae128
Click to expand...

I have two of the Seagate Thunderbolt adapters and they work fine with HDDs and smaller SSDs. However the adapters hosed two 512 Gb Crucial M4 SSDs (which were eventually replaced by Crucial free of charge even though they were out of warranty and I told them what the cause was).

When I started investigating I found others with similar experiences.
 
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I just ordered this Inateck UASP USB3 bus-powered enclosure along with a Samsung 840EVO 500GB SSD. It has fairly universally excellent reviews and for $18, you really can't go wrong. I expect to get upwards of 400MB/s read and write.

This is a benchmark of the Inateck on a Mac Pro without native USB3 (UASP) support like the Haswell iMac (and MBP).

I was considering going with the Seagate STAE128 or the Delock 42490 but they are still too pricy for me. When the price of Thunderbolt enclosures comes down in the future I can always swap the SSD out of the Inateck.
 
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RapsacDK said:
Hello,

I have an 120GB SSD in excess, and want to install Windows 8 on it and be able to boot from it on my new MBP 15" Retina.

Therefore, I am thinking of buying either an USB3 or maybe Thunderbolt enclosure? I would think that Thunderbolt would be faster, but I couldn't quite find a Thunderbolt-SSD-enclosure.

Can any of you guys help me out?

Thanks
Click to expand...

Try the Firmtek USB3 offering. Barefeats site shows a few tests that put it in the same category as TB1 for speed.

http://www.barefeats.com/hard161.html
 
The Firmtek looks very nice, but in fairness, I don't think Barefeats has reviewed the Inateck UASP enclosure yet. The key to it's speed is the UASP support which needs to be on both ends (and is on the Haswell Macs).

The Firmtek is also a lot more expensive at $99.95 and the OP was looking for a lower-priced device.
 
SaSaSushi said:
The Firmtek looks very nice, but in fairness, I don't think Barefeats has reviewed the Inateck UASP enclosure yet. The key to it's speed is the UASP support which needs to be on both ends (and is on the Haswell Macs).

The Firmtek is also a lot more expensive at $99.95 and the OP was looking for a lower-priced device.
Click to expand...

Fair enough. I'll also take a look at the Inateck enclosure. It seems many USB3 devices don't come up to snuff and nice to see at least two offerings that start to get us on track (for those who need alternative to TB).

EDIT - add -- I had a look at the Inateck site and seems that several interesting items are listed yet not available in the USA including USB3 enclosures for 2.5 drives.
 
Last edited:
I should have the Inateck enclosure any day now. In the meantime, i got my hands on the Delock 42490 2.5" Thunderbolt enclosure and am impressed. I posted a bit about it in this thread.

I will put it head to head against the Inateck once that arrives.
 
I just ordered two Buffalo Thunderbolt USB 3 drives. They are 500GB and seem to be on close out for $138 at Staples. The Buffalo units come with a Thunderbolt cable. With Samsung 840 EVO 1TB SSDs now below $500, I can put the SSDS into the Buffalo enclosure and have a SSDS with Thunderbolt cable for less than $600. ;)
 
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