Eagle Consus I-Series RAID External Storage System

In need of a backup solution for your music, videos, games or applications? This external storage device from Eagle Tech makes RAID storage simple and easy and provides an attractive option for backing up your data. With the Eagle Consus I Series you can set up a RAID array between two hard drives (regardless of size or brand) with no working knowledge of RAID and with no configuration necessary. The Eagle Consus I-Series allows you to install two SATA hard drives and automatically connects them into a JBOD (Just a Bunch of Disks) RAID configuration. This is a simple and easy way to get large capacity storage for any USB enabled PC.

Specifications

• Internal Interface: SATA
• External Interface: USB 2.0
• Transfer Rate: 480mbps (USB)
• Supported Hard Drive: 2x SATA (Serial ATA-150 / Serial ATA-300)
• Power Source: External Switching Power Adapter
• Power Input: 100~240VAC, 47~63Hz, 1.2A
• Power Output: 5.0V, 2.0A / 12.0V, 2.0A
• Certification: FCC, CE Certified
• Microsoft O.S. Support: Vista/XP/2000/ME
• Others O.S. Support: Mac OS 9.0 or higher
• Dimension: 7.5” (L) x 3.25” (H) x 4.5” (W)

In the Box

• Eagle Consus I-Series External drive bay
• Power adapter and AC power cable
• Optional grey bezel
• Installation CD (includes users manual PDF)
• USB 2.0 cable

Out of the Box Setup

The drive bay is designed to hold two SATA hard drives. The drive bay casing opens by removing four screws located on the bottom of the unit. Then you can slide the drive bay out of the back of the unit. You install the hard drives by simply sliding them onto the SATA data and power plugs and screwing them into place. Replace the drive casing and plug in the power cable. Plug the USB cable into your computer and you have a JBOD raid array installed. It really is that simple.

Using the Eagle Consus I-Series

First, let's cover all of the positive aspects that I found during the testing.

The drive bay has a built-in fan and stays nice and cool. I have yet to have the enclosure even get warm to the touch. The drives inside are far enough apart that the fan blows air between them keeping them very cool and performing well. Even with the fan the enclosure is quiet. You can just barely hear the fan running when it is on.

Transfers from my other drives to this RAID array prove to be pretty fast. I transferred 145GB of movies to the array in about 90 minutes. The transfer speed is fast enough to play DVD images from the array and even fast forward without glitches. I have been using the array to store video and movie backups and it works fine for that.

With the included software, you can run the backup process by hitting a small button on the back of the enclosure. This “one touch backup” is great for backing up specified folders or drives but it does not create a disc image, so don’t expect to be able to restore Windows from the backup.

Even though the enclosure is larger than other enclosures, it really doesn’t take up much more space because the drives inside are stacked. My other enclosures take up just as much space even though they are single disc enclosures because they have a base-stand that they sit in which takes almost as much space as the dual drive enclosure.

Four wide rubber tipped feet keep the drive stable and unmoving even on slick surfaces. It would take more than a slight bump to make the drive move from its resting place. You’d have to hit it pretty hard to make it move.

Issues

Not all products are perfect, and it's not entirely a walk in the park with the I-Series. Here are a few issues that I experienced during the testing.

As with any USB 2.0 device, you will only get the full data rate with the drive plugged unto a USB 2.0 port. If you have an older computer you may need to upgrade it with a USB 2.0 PCI card in order to get the full performance out of the drives. USB 2.0 is capable of transferring data at a rate of 480 Mbps where USB 1.1 transfers data at a rate of 12 Mbps.

On the computer used to test the drive bay for this review, the computer would freeze during the POST when the drive was already powered on. The reason for this is because this computer’s BIOS are able to detect and boot to USB flash drives and external hard drives and the BIOS could not recognize the device. One the drive bay was turned off, the computer could be rebooted without incident. Once Windows XP Professional finished loading the drive bay was powered up and everything worked fine.

The software that comes with the drive is only good for backing up user files. Do not plan on making a disc image to restore Windows if you have a system crash because that isn’t what this software does. It is good for backing up important documents on a regular basis however.

Eagle Consus I-Series RAID External Storage System

This is a good solution for easy backup of important files and a great way to easily get large capacity on your computer. I have two 750GB Seagate hard drives installed and they show as a single 1.36TB hard drive in Windows XP Professional. The speed is good enough for video playback and even capture; however, I would recommend a straight SATA connection for serious editing. A few minor issues revealed during the testing kept the I-Series from obtaining the highest rating. Overall, though, I really like the Eagle Consus I-Series and it is a great product.

Pros: One touch backup, easy set up with automatic JBOD, runs cool and quiet.

Cons: Can not boot to the array – freezes during POST when powered on, software does not create disc image, only backs up user files.

Rating: 4 out of 5

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