It's like having a storage-capable wallet in your pocket

Feb 20, 2015 10:22 GMT  ·  By

Storage devices come in so many different forms that there is something for every scenario, but that also means sometimes it's the other way around and you can't use a certain device the way you'd want to. VisionTek's latest product allows for some pesky barriers to be bypassed.

One of the things that happens surprisingly often is PC owners pulling out a SATA drive from their cases in order to hook it up to someone else's PC and transferring files that way.

This makes a lot of sense when trying to move large file libraries and collections, something that could take a while if you had to do it in batches through a flash drive middleman.

However, some people might not want to open up their computers, maybe for fear of voiding the warranty. Or maybe you're just in a rush to get things done once you're at a friend's house.

Whatever the reason, a situation may arise when being able to plug a SATA drive into a USB port would be helpful.

VisionTek releases the Wallet Drive leather drive case

Drive enclosures are usually made from plastic or metal with the express purpose of “turning” a solid state drive or hard disk drive from SATA to Universal Serial Bus.

Rather than a transformation, the case instead allows the drive to connect to its own SATA interface but uses a converter to change the signals to USB. This allows it to use a USB cable to hook up to a PC.

VisionTek's new device is such a product, but instead of metal or plastic, it is made of leather. It is called Wallet Drive for a reason after all.

The Universal Serial Bus technology is of the third generation, meaning that you get USB 3.0 5 Gbps top speed instead of USB 2.0 480 Mbps. Unless the PC you're using only has USB 2.0, in which case tough break.

That means that the maximum transfer speed is of 600 MB/s, more than what an SATA III 6.0 Gbps solid state drive is capable of achieving even in normal, internal PC setup.

Compatibility and availability

The VisionTek hot-swappable Walled Drive enclosure only supports 2.5-inch SSDs of 7 mm or 9 mm thickness, but that accounts for most of the solid state drives in the world, so it's fine. Sales should have already begun for $20 / €17.62.

Wallet Drive with 2.5-inch SSD
Wallet Drive with 2.5-inch SSD
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VisionTek Wallet Drive
Wallet Drive with 2.5-inch SSD
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