Best Buy Ratings and Reviews

Best Buy Ratings and Reviews

Customer Reviews for Thermaltake SATA Hard Drive Docking Station with eSATA and USB Connection

Thermaltake SATA Hard Drive Docking Station with eSATA and USB Connection

Model: ST0005U
SKU: 8990443
UPC: 841163027615
This docking staton allows you to dock your internal 2.5" or 3.5" SATA hard drive outside of your computer while still having access to your saved files. The easy-to-use design ensures that you can attach and remove your SATA hard drive safely and without damaging it.
Average Customer Rating:
4.645 out of 5
4.6
 out of 
5
(31 Reviews) 31
Open Ratings Snapshot
Rating Snapshot 31 reviews
5 stars
25
4 stars
3
3 stars
2
2 stars
0
1 star
1
94% of customers would recommend this product to a friend 
(
29 out of 31
)
Customer Reviews for Thermaltake SATA Hard Drive Docking Station with eSATA and USB Connection
Review 1 for Thermaltake SATA Hard Drive Docking Station with eSATA and USB Connection

Very Pleased with The Black Widow

Customer Rating
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Posted by: headtechnician
from Ohio
on 05/02/2012
Value for Price
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Ease of Use
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Performance
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Ease of Installation
5.0 out of 5
5.0
What's great about it: Easy to set up and worked easy
SUPER!!!! I Love my Black Widow A++++++++++ Easy to hook up is great I am pleased with this.
I would recommend this to a friend!
0points
0out of 0found this review helpful.
Review 2 for Thermaltake SATA Hard Drive Docking Station with eSATA and USB Connection

Saved all of my old files

Customer Rating
4.0 out of 5
4.0
Posted by: Obridge
from Chesapeake, VA
on 03/14/2012
Value for Price
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Ease of Use
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Performance
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Ease of Installation
4.0 out of 5
4.0
What's great about it: Ease of use
Power supply went on our 7 year old computer and with this I was able to recover all of my files for transfer to my new computer.
This product has... Reliable, Fast
About me... Need a simple backup solution
I would recommend this to a friend!
Compatible with...:PC
0points
0out of 0found this review helpful.
Review 3 for Thermaltake SATA Hard Drive Docking Station with eSATA and USB Connection

Wow

Customer Rating
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Posted by: markafly
from College Station, TX
on 09/18/2011
Value for Price
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Ease of Use
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Performance
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Ease of Installation
5.0 out of 5
5.0
What's great about it: Everything
Being a beginner to novice PC guy, I had a major issue on one of my PCs when one of my Drives failed. I had data for a project I HAD to get. This device was one of the simplest pieces of hardware i have ever used. It was no different than plugging a thumb drive in! i was able to access ALL of my info ! Thank you for an awesome product at a great price !!!
I would recommend this to a friend!
Build or modify your own PC:No
Level of Expertise:Newbie
Primary reason for building/modifying PC:Upgrader
+3points
3out of 3found this review helpful.
Review 4 for Thermaltake SATA Hard Drive Docking Station with eSATA and USB Connection

Handy little device!

Customer Rating
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Posted by: Mikeeeeee
from Georgetown, KY
on 03/24/2011
Value for Price
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Ease of Use
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Performance
4.0 out of 5
4.0
Ease of Installation
5.0 out of 5
5.0
What's great about it: Not to expensive, very easy to use, plug and play, Mac and Windows compatible
What's not so great: Might not have long term need or use
I bought this device to transfer my existing copy of Mac OSX from the old Macbook hard drive onto my new one without having to use an external hard drive. I liked the idea of being able to skip a step even if it meant an extra purchase. I took a chance in buying this especially since I'd never "ghosted" a hard drive over before but this thing worked great! I don't know how much use iI'll get out of it now that my hard drive upgrade is complete but it definitely made the entire process so much easier. If you don't already have an external hard drive for OS back up and transfer situations (or you want to skip that step like me) and you need to take everything from one internal hard drive over to another internal drive (and make it bootable,) then this thing is perfect. It's about half the price of an external drive and can make any internal (laptop [2.5] or desktop [3.5]) drive into an external. This isn't for everybody but could be very handy for specific users. Also, it's Mac and Windows compatible (not that it's a huge shock, just very convenient.)
I would recommend this to a friend!
Build or modify your own PC:Yes
Level of Expertise:Average
Primary reason for building/modifying PC:Upgrader
+10points
10out of 10found this review helpful.
Review 5 for Thermaltake SATA Hard Drive Docking Station with eSATA and USB Connection

Product is adequate

Customer Rating
3.0 out of 5
3.0
Posted by: TeacherTim
from Long Beach, CA
on 02/01/2011
Value for Price
2.0 out of 5
2.0
Ease of Use
4.0 out of 5
4.0
Performance
3.0 out of 5
3.0
Ease of Installation
3.0 out of 5
3.0
What's great about it: Simplicity
What's not so great: Limited usage
A simple addition to expand capabilities to include ATA drives would have made this product far more worthwhile. The price could have been lower, though ease of use is high. I accomplished the same tasks with a $10 cable - the only difference is that it isn't as pretty.
No, I would not recommend this to a friend.
Build or modify your own PC:No
Level of Expertise:Newbie
Primary reason for building/modifying PC:Upgrader
-6points
5out of 16found this review helpful.
Review 6 for Thermaltake SATA Hard Drive Docking Station with eSATA and USB Connection

Nice product

Customer Rating
4.0 out of 5
4.0
Posted by: TerryinNC
from Asheville, NC
on 12/03/2010
Value for Price
4.0 out of 5
4.0
Ease of Use
4.0 out of 5
4.0
Performance
4.0 out of 5
4.0
Ease of Installation
4.0 out of 5
4.0
What's great about it: Ease of use - Plug and Play.
What's not so great: First one was DOA.
Didn't give it 5 stars because the first one was DOA. No problem exchanging it at Best Buy for a new one which worked great. Best Buy was fine in unpacking it and making sure it powered up OK before leaving the store.
I would recommend this to a friend!
Build or modify your own PC:Yes
Level of Expertise:Expert
Primary reason for building/modifying PC:Upgrader
+2points
2out of 2found this review helpful.
Review 7 for Thermaltake SATA Hard Drive Docking Station with eSATA and USB Connection

The Best Purchase this year

Customer Rating
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Posted by: BeerMonkey
from Omaha, NE
on 11/08/2010
Value for Price
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Ease of Use
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Performance
5.0 out of 5
5.0
What's great about it: Easy to use and works like it says it does.
What's not so great: Short eSata cable.
Wow, I purchased this to clone a HDD for my netbook. The SATA cable alone would have cost half of the price of this device.
The set-up was thoughtless and simple. Within 5 mins. of opening the box I was cloning my Netbook Drive.
I use it with some other drives laying around afterwords and found the eSata connection flawless. The eSata cable provided was a tad short and very stiff.
In the past I would use recovery disk to upgrade drives and reinstall software....lame. Not no more.
Thermaltake is built solid and has a ascetic to it.
I would recommend this to a friend!
Build or modify your own PC:Yes
Level of Expertise:Average
Primary reason for building/modifying PC:Hobbiest
0points
3out of 6found this review helpful.
Review 8 for Thermaltake SATA Hard Drive Docking Station with eSATA and USB Connection

Awesome

Customer Rating
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Posted by: 1review4u
from Dayton, OH
on 10/15/2010
Value for Price
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Ease of Use
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Performance
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Ease of Installation
5.0 out of 5
5.0
What's great about it: easy to setup, easy to use, well built, great price
What's not so great: the too bright power LED
Simply awesome. No complaints.
Only one suggestion. It would be nice if the thing would let you disable the VERY bright blue power LED. Nothing a little piece of black electrical tape didn't cure, but still -- way too bright, as in nitelite bright.
I would recommend this to a friend!
Build or modify your own PC:Yes
Level of Expertise:Expert
Primary reason for building/modifying PC:Hobbiest
+2points
2out of 2found this review helpful.
Review 9 for Thermaltake SATA Hard Drive Docking Station with eSATA and USB Connection

Easy to use, and works great!

Customer Rating
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Posted by: TexasShooter
from Houston, TX
on 10/06/2010
Value for Price
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Ease of Use
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Performance
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Ease of Installation
5.0 out of 5
5.0
What's great about it: Ease of use and versatility
What's not so great: Would like to see it support USB 3
This is an ingenious solution that allows you to use eSata drives for backup, data transfer, and extra storage. The locking mechanism is solid and secure, but the eject button makes changing drives a snap. We even use them at the office to retrieve files from a hard drive when the OS gets corrupted. A great product at a great value!
I would recommend this to a friend!
Build or modify your own PC:Yes
Level of Expertise:Expert
+2points
2out of 2found this review helpful.
Review 10 for Thermaltake SATA Hard Drive Docking Station with eSATA and USB Connection

Amazing! Just don't listen to instructions!

Customer Rating
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Posted by: nc
from New York
on 09/15/2010
Value for Price
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Ease of Use
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Performance
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Ease of Installation
5.0 out of 5
5.0
What's great about it: Ease of use
What's not so great: Nothing
Laptop died and needed to get everything off the hard drive, this dock made it extremely easy. Be sure NOT to follow the instructions because it tells you to format the drive, if you do this you will lose all of your info. If using Vista is prompts you to just open the folder as if it was a regular data disc.
I would recommend this to a friend!
Build or modify your own PC:Yes
Level of Expertise:Average
Primary reason for building/modifying PC:Hobbiest
+5points
5out of 5found this review helpful.
Review 11 for Thermaltake SATA Hard Drive Docking Station with eSATA and USB Connection

This would be a great product if it worked!!

Customer Rating
1.0 out of 5
1.0
Posted by: thetonyleone
from Fountain Valley, CA
on 09/13/2010
Value for Price
4.0 out of 5
4.0
Ease of Use
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Performance
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Ease of Installation
5.0 out of 5
5.0
What's not so great: It would be nice if it worked for more than a day...
I would love to give this product 5 stars but I cant seem to get one that will work for more than a day. I bought the first one and it worked great with both a 2.5" and 3.5" hard drive. I then tried to bring it to work to read the same 3.5" and another 2.5" HD and it wouldnt detect them. they would spin but nothing even on multiple computers.
I took this one back and got it replaced. I took the new one directly to work without ever opening the box. Once open I plugged it all in and it wont even turn on.
Lets see if 3rd time is a charm...
No, I would not recommend this to a friend.
Build or modify your own PC:Yes
Level of Expertise:Expert
Primary reason for building/modifying PC:Multimedia (music, movies, photos)
-13points
2out of 17found this review helpful.
Review 12 for Thermaltake SATA Hard Drive Docking Station with eSATA and USB Connection

Works well, but ignore the Quick Start guide

Customer Rating
4.0 out of 5
4.0
Posted by: ypreviewer
from FL
on 05/12/2010
Value for Price
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Ease of Use
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Performance
4.0 out of 5
4.0
Ease of Installation
4.0 out of 5
4.0
What's great about it: New, but seems like a good enough SATA USB dock
What's not so great: 'User Guide' that comes with it is dangerous
I needed an external USB clamshell to recover files off a SATA drive from my laptop that went bad. This seems to be working well, just be aware that the 'Please Read First!!' little guidebook that comes with it a). needs to be translated into English [it reads back to front, right to left like a manga - amazing...] and b). would lead you to reformat your drive and lose all the contents if you are not working with a brand new drive
I would recommend this to a friend!
+7points
7out of 7found this review helpful.
Review 13 for Thermaltake SATA Hard Drive Docking Station with eSATA and USB Connection

Lifesaver

Customer Rating
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Posted by: DAG3
from ORL, FL
on 04/12/2010
What's great about it: Very easy to use
What's not so great: Nothing really
It does what it's supposed to without any problems. Very easy to use and no complications.
I would recommend this to a friend!
+2points
2out of 2found this review helpful.
Review 14 for Thermaltake SATA Hard Drive Docking Station with eSATA and USB Connection

Works as advertised

Customer Rating
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Posted by: marmac
from Tulsa, OK
on 03/31/2010
Value for Price
4.0 out of 5
4.0
Ease of Use
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Performance
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Ease of Installation
5.0 out of 5
5.0
What's great about it: SImple to install and operate
What's not so great: Noting I've found so far.
Needed a docking station to read drives from two dead computers. Works well with Windows 7 and connects easily. Both sizes of hard drives connect without problems.
I would recommend this to a friend!
+5points
5out of 5found this review helpful.
Review 15 for Thermaltake SATA Hard Drive Docking Station with eSATA and USB Connection

Excellent product, can't recommend enough

Customer Rating
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Posted by: DKwaco
from Waco, TX
on 03/17/2010
Value for Price
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Ease of Use
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Performance
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Ease of Installation
5.0 out of 5
5.0
What's great about it: Very easy to setup, works like a charm, blazing fast eSATA
I bought an external USB Toshiba 1TB that was just horrible. It would shut down, despite so many tweaks to the Windows settings to prevent it from "sleeping". I bought this docking station for another 320GB drive I had and decided to tear apart the Toshiba. I got the guts out of the Toshiba (a pretty decent Samsung drive actually) and plugged it into this docking station and it's like a whole new drive!
The only complaint I have is that when using eSATA it seems to not want to unmount when you swap drives. I can unplug the drive and plug in a new one and Windows will still show the files, etc like it's still the old drive until I actually reboot. I'm sure I just need to configure it correctly, but this is annoying.
I would recommend this to a friend!
+1point
1out of 1found this review helpful.
Review 16 for Thermaltake SATA Hard Drive Docking Station with eSATA and USB Connection

Thermaltake SATA Hard Drive Docking Station

Customer Rating
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Posted by: Jbeaudry
from Anaheim, CA
on 03/07/2010
Value for Price
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Ease of Use
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Performance
4.0 out of 5
4.0
Ease of Installation
5.0 out of 5
5.0
What's great about it: Plug and Play
What's not so great: N/A
The product worked great right out of the box, read the instructions, plugged it in and it installed the software and I started using the product.
I would recommend this to a friend!
0points
0out of 0found this review helpful.
Review 17 for Thermaltake SATA Hard Drive Docking Station with eSATA and USB Connection

Great device to use to clone a SATA Hard Drive

Customer Rating
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Posted by: ki7ja
from Portland, OR
on 03/06/2010
Value for Price
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Ease of Use
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Performance
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Ease of Installation
5.0 out of 5
5.0
What's great about it: Easy to set up, Good value for price
What's not so great: nothing
I used this device to clone the partition on my main hard drive because the main drive was showing signs of self destruction. The Thermaltake worked great and only took very little time to clone the 160 gb drive.
I would recommend this to a friend!
0points
0out of 0found this review helpful.
Review 18 for Thermaltake SATA Hard Drive Docking Station with eSATA and USB Connection

Easy to use, works great

Customer Rating
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Posted by: jdunn
from Los Angeles, CA
on 02/09/2010
Value for Price
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Ease of Use
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Performance
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Ease of Installation
5.0 out of 5
5.0
What's great about it: Ease of use, well designed, works flawlessly
What's not so great: No complaints thus far
I needed to backup my Windows XP machine before performing the upgrade installation of Windows 7. As I had recently installed an internal 1.5 TB Seagate Barracuda (also from Best Buy), I didn't need more storage, nor did I want to spend a lot of money. I didn't really feel like removing that internal storage drive though, so I figured I'd just pick up a 320 GB Toshiba portable drive for $70. However, when I got to the store, they didn't have them. They had one of these Thermaltake BlacX SATA Docks though, so I decided I'd just go with that.
As it turns out, neither my internal system drive nor the 1.5 TB storage drive were mounted very well, due to stripped screws. So I used the good screws to properly mount my system drive when I removed the Barracuda. The system drive had started to click occasionally, but it hasn't done so since, so I'm glad I did this.
I closed the machine up and plugged the USB cable into the Thermaltake. When I inserted the 1.5 TB drive into the BlacX, I was impressed with how smoothly it went in. You don't have to force the drive at all, which is very nice. I powered up the dock, and my computer said the drive was ready to use within seconds. I was able to create a folder and manually transfer files with no problems at all.
For simple backups, the USB 2 connection is fine. However, the SATA data transfer rate is up to 3 GB per second, making it perfect for gamers and digital audio/video production as well. You just need a PCI to SATA card or SATA connectors on your motherboard. They also make a dual model that holds two drives. And it works with SATA drives up to 2 TB capacity.
I would recommend this to a friend!
+5points
5out of 5found this review helpful.
Review 19 for Thermaltake SATA Hard Drive Docking Station with eSATA and USB Connection

Does exactly what it should

Customer Rating
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Posted by: Jaquwek
on 02/02/2010
Value for Price
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Ease of Use
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Performance
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Ease of Installation
5.0 out of 5
5.0
What's great about it: Easy to set up, good price, Quick installation
What's not so great: Runs hot
This worked great for being able to backup files off of a hard drive before I formatted it. I needed this to quickly backup data before sending in a computer to be fixed. I was able to access all my data and format the drive very quickly.
I would recommend this to a friend!
+1point
1out of 1found this review helpful.
Review 20 for Thermaltake SATA Hard Drive Docking Station with eSATA and USB Connection

No hassel disc swap

Customer Rating
5.0 out of 5
5.0
Posted by: ainuman
from VA
on 01/16/2010
What's great about it: No setup just plug-n-play
What's not so great: eSATA cable stiff and cumbersome (nit picking)
I used this device with Acronis, True Image to upgrade my laptop drive. These 2 items allowed me to successfully clone my entire system to my new drive mounted in the Black Widow box. I had the Geek Squad do the actual swap and everything worked perfectly!
There was not a single problem during the entire process. It took about 2 hours to backup, create a recovery disc, and clone the drive. The Geek Squad installed the new drive in about 10 min. The system booted up right off the bat and I was on my way!
I had just spent 3 days recovering my desktop from a crash so I really appreciated how really easy this was.
I would recommend this to a friend!
+1point
1out of 1found this review helpful.
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