A cardboard hard disk enclosure can’t
work, surely? BytePac aims to prove doubter wrong and save the environment at
the same time.
External hard disk enclosures are useful
peripherals that have been around for years, but they’re normally made of
plastic or metal – like most things to do with computers, in fact.
BytePac, though, does things a little
differently: it’s a hard disk enclosure made out of cardboard. That means it’s
100% recyclable, and getting started is easy: simply lift the flap and slot in
3.5” hard disk. The disk’s ports are accessible through a flap at the end of
the drive, and an area for labeling is included on the side of the caddy.
BytePac
A surprising number of neat touches are
included around BytePac’s environmentally friendly chassis. A small flap on the
bottom can be folded to create a stand, and holes punched into the cardboard
allow for crucial ventilation.
Connecting to a PC is easy, with a plug
including both a SATA connection and power plug included in the box. BytePac
offers models with eSATA, USB 2 and USB 3 connections, and our review sample
came wit eSATA.
There’s plenty of versatility when it comes
to buying a BytePac too. To get started you’ll need the BytePac Kit, which
includes one connection setup – using the formats mentioned previously –
alongside three hard disk boxes, three sets of labels and a 2.5” adapter for
SSDs. That’ll cost you $50.
If you’ve exhausted the initial three
boxes, another trio will cost you $15 and there’s even a service that includes
a hard disk: that costs $165, and the BytePac kit will be included with a hard
disk with your own choice of capacity. If you’re using old hard disk, then
there’s and IDE to SATA adapter available for $20.
It works extremely well – plug the eSATA
cable in and it’s detected like any hard disk – but the BytePac’s controller
chip wasn’t the quickest in our tests. We plugged in a SanDisk Extreme SSD, a
drive that usually reads and writes files at 452MB/s and 149.8MB/s, and found
the BytePac couldn’t replicate that pace, especially when reading: its
157.2MB/s test result lags behind. The BytePac’s file writing test result of
140.6MB/s is also a little slower than the drive managed with a direct
connection to out test machine.
Speed isn’t really the point of BytePac,
though. Instead, it’s a unique and efficient way of backing up and archiving
your data, and it’s both environmentally friendly and cheaper than the average
hard disk enclosure. It’s hardly suitable for carrying around, or doing much
more than sitting on a desk, but this is a fun and effective take on a old and
somewhat dull type of peripheral.
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Details
Price: $50
Manufacturer: www.convar.de
Tel No: 01634 778003
Website: www.bytepac.com
Configuration
3.5” hard disk enclosure
Three caddies included
eSATA/USB 2/USB 3.0 connections available
|
Quality: 8
Value: 9
Overall: 8
Verdict
An inventive and green way of archiving and accessing your old
data – and it’s good value too. |
