Brando USB 3.0-SATA Adpater Revealed

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Those interested in USB 3.0-powered external hard drives may be put off by the price, for example, the Buffalo HD-HU3 costs over $200. For those people, Brando has introduced a low-cost USB 3.0 to SATA adapter dongle that will let you turn any SATA hard drive into a cheap USB 3.0 powered external drive.

The aptly-named Unitek USB 3.0 to SATA adapter (shouldn’t it be SATA to USB?) is compatible with both SATA 3.0 and SATA 1.5 hard drives, and can theoretically transfer data at the full ‘SuperSpeed’ of USB 3.0. Brando promises that this adapter can transfer data in 1/4th the time of a USB 2.0 adapter. Of course, your computer must be set up for USB 3.0.

Brando also sells a IDE-to-SATA adapater, so you could use an IDE drive with USB 3.0. For those interested, the USB 3.0-SATA adapter will cost your $48 and is now shipping, and it’s compatible with Windows 7, XP, Vista and Linux, and can handle HDDs up to 2TB in size.