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Which thunderbolt enclosure since the Delock is not available?

T

triple-tap

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Feb 18, 2013
265
46
Hey all,

I have some amazon gift cards, and I planned to get a delock 42490 enclosure for my 2013 iMac with a spinner HDD. I wanted to make an external SSD boot drive, and I'd prefer the speed and trim capabilities over USB 3.0.

Anyway, I just looked and the Delock 42490 is not available on Amazon anymore, and it looks like it was replaced with something using an mSata cable instead.

What thunderbolt enclosure would you all recommend ? I would prefer an A/C powered unit because I may opt to put a 512 or larger SSD in it. I am also trying to keep it around the same price that the Delock was going for a few weeks ago... ~$100. (I am kicking myself for not just ordering one now)....

thanks in advance.
 
Last edited:
I used to point folks to MemoryDepot.com before the Delock 42490 started being sold on Amazon but it always showed as back-ordered and some who ordered there said they were being advised of ridiculously long shipping times.

Anyway, you might want to check with them to see if they have it in stock now because you sure can't beat the price of $82.50. :)
 
Thanks for the reply, but I caved and just ordeded an inateck USB 3.0 w/ UASP. It hasn't arrived yet, but the more research I do, the more I see why people opt for thunderbolt instead.

I work with tons of .pdfs (edit and bookmark) containing 2-4 thousand pages each day, and I use several USB devices at the same time. From what I read, using an SSD over USB 3.0 (even with the UASP feature) could cause some slow-downs on the other USB powered devices.

So Ijust ordered the LaCie rugged thunderbolt from MacMall fro $89. I plan to just throw a low energy Samsung 850 EVO in the enclosure, and use it as a boot drive.

FWIW, I did look at the website you recommended before posting the original question. However, their record (according to a google search) in customer service has been less than stellar.

I am not sure if I will return the inateck or use it to house another SSD for a backup.
 
triple-tap said:
So Ijust ordered the LaCie rugged thunderbolt from MacMall fro $89. I plan to just throw a low energy Samsung 850 EVO in the enclosure, and use it as a boot drive.
Click to expand...

As I think hfg has mentioned, the LaCie Rugged has no problems with the 500GB Samsung 840 EVO, so I see no reason why it would with an 850 of that size or smaller. :)

I'm not sure why Tragant (makers of the Delock) don't market it more widely in the US. It is widely available here in Asia and I think in Europe as well. It seems to me they're missing out on a lot of potential sales.
 
I guess I'm too late for OP, but I've had good luck buying Delock products from Amazon UK.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Delock-Thunderbolt-Case-6-35-2-5-Inch/dp/B00F0IP7BY

Just go to the link, select Amazon as the seller, log in with your Amazon USA (or Japan or whatever) account credentials, and it all works fine. Shipping is surprisingly fast to the USA.

You must select "Amazon" as the seller because most other sellers will not ship internationally.

I've got two Delock products from Amazon UK this way.

Keep in mind if you buy anything with an AC power plug (which doesn't apply to this enclosure of course), you'll get a UK plug.
 
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ActionableMango said:
Keep in mind if you buy anything with an AC power plug (which doesn't apply to this enclosure of course), you'll get a UK plug.
Click to expand...

Actually, it does apply to the Delock 42490 enclosure seeing as it is AC-powered. It shipped with an adapter for various international power plugs, at least in my case here in Japan anyway. I ordered mine locally, not from Amazon UK.
 
ActionableMango said:
I guess I'm too late for OP, but I've had good luck buying Delock products from Amazon UK.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Delock-Thunderbolt-Case-6-35-2-5-Inch/dp/B00F0IP7BY

Just go to the link, select Amazon as the seller, log in with your Amazon USA (or Japan or whatever) account credentials, and it all works fine. Shipping is surprisingly fast to the USA.

You must select "Amazon" as the seller because most other sellers will not ship internationally.

I've got two Delock products from Amazon UK this way.

Keep in mind if you buy anything with an AC power plug (which doesn't apply to this enclosure of course), you'll get a UK plug.
Click to expand...


At that price, I would have looked for another option anyway. The whole allure of the delock is the low price (sub-$80 in U.S. when it's available).
 
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triple-tap said:
At that price, I would have looked for another option anyway. The whole allure of the delock is the low price (sub-$80 in U.S. when it's available).
Click to expand...

I do agree that the Amazon UK price with shipping is a bit high, but in fairness to the Delock I don't think the low price when available is the whole allure. As far as I know, it is still the only single 2.5" drive AC-powered TB enclosure on the market. It also happens to be a really well designed and quality product. The Seagate TB adapter sleds are usually more expensive and I don't see them as an alluring alternative at all. The LaCie Rugged is a great product but it comes with a HDD you don't need, lacks AC-power and is not actually designed (intended) to be disassembled so it's not quite as easy to work with.
 
SaSaSushi said:
I do agree that the Amazon UK price with shipping is a bit high, but in fairness to the Delock I don't think the low price when available is the whole allure. As far as I know, it is still the only single 2.5" drive AC-powered TB enclosure on the market. It also happens to be a really well designed and quality product. The Seagate TB adapter sleds are usually more expensive and I don't see them as an alluring alternative at all. The LaCie Rugged is a great product but it comes with a HDD you don't need, lacks AC-power and is not actually designed (intended) to be disassembled so it's not quite as easy to work with.
Click to expand...

Well, for ME, the only reason I wanted the Delock was due to the price. There are a number of other thunderbolt SSD/HDD enclosures that are AC powered and have the added benefit of SSD/HDD slots for expanding (for Raid setups or server drives, etc).

I agree that the adapter sleds are a no go, and I've seen tons of negative reviews on them (including a few youtube videos). I also don't like the idea of the drive being totally exposed without any type of securing fasteners other than the SATA connection.
 
triple-tap said:
I agree that the adapter sleds are a no go, and I've seen tons of negative reviews on them (including a few youtube videos). I also don't like the idea of the drive being totally exposed without any type of securing fasteners other than the SATA connection.
Click to expand...

If you use the Seagate Thunderbolt Adapter, you can buy the empty drive shells on eBay to protect your drive. They will snap around your SSD and have a magnetic secure to the adapter sled. These are available for both the 2.5" and 3.5" AC GoFlex adapters, and will also fit the USB and FireWire adapters if needed.
 
SaSaSushi said:
Actually, it does apply to the Delock 42490 enclosure seeing as it is AC-powered. It shipped with an adapter for various international power plugs, at least in my case here in Japan anyway. I ordered mine locally, not from Amazon UK.
Click to expand...

Ah, my mistake. I believed that Thunderbolt had enough power for a single 2.5" drive and that enclosures would just be built as bus-powered.

SaSaSushi said:
As far as I know, it is still the only single 2.5" drive AC-powered TB enclosure on the market.
Click to expand...

Forgive my ignorance, but why is an AC-powered Thunderbolt enclosure desirable? I know with USB 3.0 I greatly prefer bus-powered drives because I don't need to run an extra cable and have a power brick. But based on the language in this thread, it would appear that AC power is a feature that people are specifically seeking.
 
OP wrote above:
[[ I wanted to make an external SSD boot drive, and I'd prefer the speed and trim capabilities over USB 3.0. ]]

What follows is my opinion only. Others may disagree, some vehemently.

You won't see any speed differences if you use a USB3 enclosure (or USB3/SATA docking station) that has UASP (USB Attached SCSI Protocol). None that will be "perceivable".

Insofar as TRIM goes, it is over-rated, and [depending on which one you buy] some newer SSDs don't even seem to need it.

So long as you maintain a healthy portion of "free space" on the SSD (I'd reckon about 20%), I doubt you'll see any perceptible speed slowdowns at all, even over USB without having TRIM enabled.

This has been my own experience, using a Crucial m500 SSD mounted in a plugable.com "lay-flat" USB3/SATA docking station. Since I installed it back in March 2014, it runs as fast today as it did when first installed, on my Mac Mini which I use -heavily- every day.

I suggest you give USB3 a try.
Costs FAR less, and after a period of usage, I believe you'll come to the same conclusions I have posted above...
 
We had sleep and disconnect issues with my plugable.com "lay-flat" USB3/SATA docking station on both my older MacPro and new rMBP until I threw it in the trash in frustration. Before then, the same SSD mounted in a TB enclosure seemed a lot snappier even though the BlackMagic speed is only 30-50 MBps higher... I suspect it has to do with latency or USB controller sleep states and wake up. Perhaps data is transferring often enough as a boot drive to keep the pipe open.

My NewTech docking station seems to work better, however.

Many here can get by with USB, but it is a compromise in utility and performance to save some $$$ . Worth it is subjective, but one can spend quite a bit of $$ on USB devices before you find one that works well. Its a crap shoot and sometimes one gets lucky.
 
coldcase wrote above:
[[ We had sleep and disconnect issues with my plugable.com "lay-flat" USB3/SATA docking station on both my older MacPro and new rMBP until I threw it in the trash in frustration. ]]

I've used the plugable lay-flat dock for two years now, serving as the "external booter" for my late-2012 Mac Mini. Never a glitch, never. My first SSD was an Intel 530 series, then switched it to a Crucial m500 series. Again, flawless performance....
 
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