iodd 2531 Silver USB 3.0 External Hard Drive Enclosure [Virtual DVD Blu-ray ROM/VHD/Booting/SSD/HDD/2.5] Made in Korea

I was getting tired of messing around trying to get all my diagnostic ISOs working on a flash drive with multiboot utilities, so I got this enclosure and it's been my favorite techie toy/tool ever since. Zalman makes a similar unit, but Iodd is the originator and theirs work better than Zalman's version - I suspect because Zalman uses cheaper components. If you work on systems with USB 2.0 ports I'd recommend you get a USB 3.0 Y-splitter power cable for this, as even 2.5" low-power HDDs will draw -just- enough power that it won't have the amps necessary to get you past the Iodd boot screen. If you have an SSD drive it will probably draw low enough power that even a single USB 2.0 port @ 500mA could run it, but I haven't had a chance to test that yet with my USB multimeter tool because I don't keep spare SSDs laying around.

I had a bit of an issue using this on my Toshiba L755, until I realised I had 'Legacy USB Support' turned off in the BIOS. Now I keep a crop of current Linux ISO files on it, in case I have to switch distros. I used a SiliconPower SSD, since I had one laying about. It's incredibly fast. It also weighs next to nothing. The controls are a bit fiddly, but it will take about five minutes to get comfortable using them. Screwing down the enclosure, on the other hand, was a bit of a nightmare; only do this if you intend never removing the HDD/SDD you put inside. They sent me the black one instead of the silver, but I'm not returning it. It could be bright pink and I'd keep it.

I love this thing! Put a 250gb SSD in here, partitioned it into ISO and Storage drives and boom! I've got a portable CD drive with images of multiple operating systems and recovery tools. It's fairly easy to use and works 99% of the time. The only con that I have is that sometimes it won't boot up and I'll have to disconnect it and reconnect a couple of times. Not sure if that's a problem with the PC, the USB cable, or the drive.

I own two of these now. If you are an IT guy this is a must. Works great for both client backups (boot from ISO then backup to the HDD). this is one of a few tools i don't leave the house without.

Functional and stable USB 3 speeds. Just like my older Zalman, but I don't use the imaging/iso functionality. Just a fast sturdy USB 3 drive enclosure for drive cloning. Stays cool even with msata drive cloning.

Most excellent

I replaced my original Iodd with the 2531. The device works great, once it is set-up properly. Be sure to create an MBR partion on the drive before formatting with NTFS and creating your "_iso" folder. Otherwise, you will get a "Partion:EE" error. I found out that I needed to do this AFTER I returned the first one for being defective. It was the documentation that was defective, not the unit.

work seamlessly though the installation of HD is a bit difficult due to the small screw covered by the rubber side

Das Gehäuse ist zwar recht teuer, ist aber das Geld wert. Die CD-/DVD-/USB-Brennerei für die ISOs gehört jetzt zur Vergangenheit an. Pro: + Der Verbindungskabel ist nicht so starr und dick wie beim Zalman VE300, + die Transporttasche ist aus weichem und dickem synthetischen Stoff und nicht aus dem Kunstleder, was ich auch besser finde. + die Verpackung sieht auch schön aus. + technische Möglichkeiten sind vielfältig und ausreichend, mit einigen Extras(HDD Temp, USB Spannung in Volt etc.) Contra: - keine Bedienungsanleitung im Lieferumfang (weder deutsch noch englisch), kann aber von der Herstellerseite heruntergeladen werden(englisch) TIPP: Nach dem kopieren der ISOs in der "_ISO"-Ordner kann vorkommen, dass einige Abbilddateien nicht ausgewählt werden können und die Meldung "DEFRAG" erscheint(kurz). Dass bedeutet, dass entspr. Datei defragmentiert werden muss (entweder mit Windows-Boardmitteln oder mit beliebiger andere Software)

Works pretty well as a virtual CD/DVD drive, and fantastic value given it's hardly more expensive than a normal external drive enclosure. Beware that it can only handle 32 ISO files on an NTFS volume, so if you have more then you'll want to create/format a FAT partition & install the special FAT firmware.

Ce boitier remplace avantageusement les nombreuses clés USB d'installation que j'avais auparavant. Le fonctionnement est très simple et intuitif. Je recommande! Il est exactement le même qu'un boitier Zalman.

Wer immer wieder mal irgendwo etwas installiert oder ein Rettungssystem braucht, wird wenn er diese Platte mal im Einsatz hat, sich fragen wie er sein Leben ohne vorher bestreiten konnte. DAS Schweiter Taschenmesser wenn es darum geht, verschiedene "CDs" mit sich herum zu tragen!

Working as described. No more having to carry around multiple usb-sticks and optical discs when you can have all your ISO's in once place. And furthermore have your updates, drivers and software installs on the disc as well. I fear the day this unit stops working (we all know these Things don't Work forever :-P