Docking stations may sound like places where you can leave your boat to enjoy spending your hard-earned pirate loot on cheap lager, but in reality, modern day contraptions going under this name are much smaller, aren't as infested with seagulls, and kind of look like toasters! To think just how much a proper pirate of yore would be dumbfounded to see what has become of his or hers glorious criminal heritage. Hijacked and ruined by a bunch of non-seaworthy people trying to download adult films and licensed programs.
Pirating,
docking stations, and even
surfing are all words completely devoid of their original bravado, as nowadays they represent things and activities that signify more of a sedentary lifestyle than that of a sword-wielding corsairs!
Nostalgia aside though, the SSD docking stations that we're going to be talking about in a minute represent the very pinnacle of data-transferring contraptions today, as they act as a missing link between your
former hard drives and the present computing configurations. Depending on how many slots your mode has got, you can move a bunch of files and programs effortlessly to
a new drive, or several of them at the same time. In this way, you can preserve the valued data you've been hiding from the rest of the world, and also share it with the others if you deem it sufficiently interesting or useful (like a yodelling tutorial or something).
In this buying guide, we'll present to you a couple of factors you can take into consideration so that your future docking station of choice can be a screaming success! First of all, the number of slots your device contains will decide how many hard drives you can plug in and manage simultaneously. That being said, the concept of 'more is better' may as well apply to this case, but do bear in mind that this will also have a certain decrease in speed as one of the side effects. If you aren't particularly bothered by this, however, by all means get yourself a bulky 6-slot contraption, as it may save you some money in the long run, and also increase your data-transfer efficiency presently.
Most of the modern-day models support both the USB 2.0 and the USB 3.0 settings, so you won't really need to worry about suddenly getting outmanoeuvred by the constantly shifting high-tech market. Surely enough, some time will elapse before you'd need to get yourself a brand new kind of SSD-reading and data-shifting device, though by the time this new supposed change has come about, chances are that the mass memory device will have radically altered their appearance. Or maybe the hard drives will not even exist anymore in the future, and everything will be stored in the giant customizable zeppelins floating above our heads. Until that happens, though, we're stuck with SSD docking stations for the transfer of data, and judging by their current state of affairs, so to speak, there's no need to worry about their efficiency.
When it comes to compatibility, an important thing to look into when buying one of these contraptions is how much work they require to be done before you can use them with your hard drives. Optimally, you won't have to do any work at all, and will be able to simply stick your hard drives in the slots and start moving your valuable data such as cat videos, business proposals and favorite albums around. Since hard drives come in all shapes and sizes nowadays, ensuring that you’ll be able to connect all of them to your
computer and work on them without having to install a bajillion other programs and drivers as well is a must. If you find this particularly irritating, you might want to get yourself a device which has the accent on compatibility and ease of use, rather than on speed and other features related to the quality of the transfer rate. This factor is a widely recognized prerequisite for a well-functioning docking station when it comes to the manufacturing brands as well! The hard-working boys and girls at these companies have been able to come up with a range of all-inclusive devices capable of supporting many different kinds of hard drives and interconnecting them effortlessly for great results.
Price
Like many other high-tech devices, SSD docking stations aren't exactly cheap, but if you take into account the sort of tasks they're capable of completing, you can see that they're actually worth every penny! When it comes to evaluating their price ranges, the most important thing to keep in mind would be the number of slots they come with. The more slots, or bays as they're also called, the more hard drives you'll be able to connect and use at the same time.
Also, the speed of the data transfer and the availability of the USB ports play a role in the overall pricing of a docking station. Last but not least, well-known brands will surely have higher prices on their products, but it's nevertheless a good idea to buy a product from a renowned manufacturer rather than save some money on the account of getting yourself a faulty or unreliable piece of electronic ware.
Features
In this section, we'd like to highlight a couple of important things you'd need to take into consideration before you close in on a model and decide to go for it. All in all,
SSD docking stations aren't really the most complex devices out there, but it still makes sense to review the features you'll be dealing with, especially if you have no previous experience with it!
The list of properties to look out for when buying a brand new SSD docking station:
- Number of Bays
- USB 2.0 Support
- USB 3.0 Support
- The Drives Required
- Compatibility with Operating Systems
- The Speed of Data Transfer
- Does It Come with LED Indicators
- No Tool Installation
- Hot Swapping Support
- Warranty
An SSD docking station which can be comfortably used straight away without a bunch of tools for installation can be a great solution for a rookie!
Construction and Design
As far as the design of these utensils is concerned, we'd like to address the elephant in the room by announcing that toasters pretty much resemble toasters more than any other appliance. Nothing wrong with that, of course. Some models even look like some of those orthopedic shoes you see advertised on TV. Other than that, it's pretty much a straightforward kind of deal — you get a slot, you stick a hard drive into it, and voila! You can knock yourself out transferring terabytes upon terabytes of your favorite content!
Performance and Ease of Use
Even though they're made up of complex circuits most people don't even want to think about (rightfully so), SSD docking stations are actually surprisingly simple to use, as all you have to do to make them work is stick a hard drive into them and then witness them do their magic! Most of the models nowadays don't even require any driver installation or anything, so you should be all good to go with just plugging it in. This is great news for people who aren't really that much into computers and technology, but still need to get a job done quickly and efficiently. Hopefully, this review has helped you find the best possible SSD docking station for your needs. We wish you luck with your purchase!
Without any doubt, if you'd like to get a hard drive copied, erased or have its space otherwise rearranged, the best way to go about it would be to use an SSD docking station. These little buggers are simple devices that look like toasters, and are capable of offering some pretty impressive data transfer rates when necessary! If you'd like to get yourself one of these devices, we'd like to invite you to read through our top 5 list of devices and find the best for your needs!
Organizing your data can be a chore worse than organizing your living quarters, as it requires a lot of time, some pretty serious planning and a number of additional devices for backup and every eventuality. Luckily for everyone unfortunate enough to have to do this on a regular basis, certain high-tech contraptions called SSD docking stations are there to make that job much easier, and save you many a rage fit in the long run! To see what are the best models currently on the market, check out our top 5 list and learn more!
