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Time Machine is a great idea, I think. I remain to see whether I like it or not, but according to recent reports, Apple says that its research indicates that fewer than four percent of Mac users perform regular, automated backups and only about 26% of Mac users ever back up anything at all, so an awful lot of users are out there crusin' for a real bruisin' come a catastrophic hard drive failure (inevitable if you keep using computers long enough, theft or loss of their notebook, or other disasters. I preach the backup religion, but fear that I have few converts, even among my own family and close associates, and I have to concede that I don't back up as often as I should, although I do practice double-redundant backups. Time Machine should get a lot more people backed up, provided they can be convinced to buy and connect suitable backup media, which at this point means another hard drive.
Business should be brisk in external hard drives over the next few months thanks to Time Machine, but perhaps you already have a hard drive or two laying around - maybe pulled from one of your Macs when you upgraded to a larger, faster drive, but still perfectly serviceable as a backup volume. Also bare hard drives are relatively inexpensive, especially if you shop around for discount deals or used units.
Another issue that comes up from time to time is wanting to access the contents of a drive for which you have no external enclosure housing handy. For example, if you want to connect a SATA or 3.5" IDE drive to a PowerBook.
In any of these scenarios Daystar's new XLR8 AnyDrive kit is an inexpensive but potentially invaluable enabler that allows you to connect any IDE or SATA drive your Mac or PC via USB 2.0. No drive enclosure need. Simply plug-in a bare drive and copy. The AnyDrive unit supports up to USB 2.0's nominal (alas rarely experienced) 480 MBits/sec throughput, for full size or half-size IDE and SATA drives.
The AnyDrive kit provides you with comprehensive, multi-interface had drive connection support, and includes:
• The AnyDrive connection module, which features large, tri-color (blue, purple, red) status lights
• An Power Adapter with connectors for 3.5" and 2.5" IDE drives as well as all sizes of SATA drives. The power supply is auto switching from 100v - 240v.
• An IDE flex ribbon cable connector extender for 3.5" IDE drives (necessary to clear the power supply connector on some drives)
• A USB 2.0 cable
• Plus a mini CD-ROM with Windows 98 and XP drivers that Mac users can blissfully ignore. No extra drivers are required for the Mac.
AnyDrive comes neatly packaged in a handy-sized compartment box which can continue to serve as a storage container.
There is also a disappointingly sketchy instruction sheet, which really needs some fleshing out. I found it confusing, especially on the details of the differences in connecting various types of drives. Fortunately, it becomes fairly intuitive with a bit of eyeballing.
The AnyDrive module has female pin connectors on either side to accept 3.5" and 2.5" (laptop-size) IDE/ATA hard drives respectively, while SATA drives connect through a supplied adapter cable which plugs into a port on the module's bottom.
For powering the drive, the main cable from the power adapter will plug directly into a 3.5" IDE drive, but requires the supplied ambidextrous adapter cable to make the power connection with 2.5" IDE and all SATA drives
The drill goes as follows:
• Connect your drive to the AnyDrive module. As noted, I had to use the supplied ribbon cable extender to clear the power cable connector with the 3.5" IDE drive I used. With the 2.5" PowerBook drive I checked out, I was able to plug directly into the module as the power is supplied through a small jack via the adapter connector.
• Plug in the power adapter and the drive should power up.
• Now, just use the supplied USB cable to connect the AnyDrive module to your computer, and the hard drive should mount on your Desktop. Be sure to eject the external drive before disconnecting the AnyDrive unit.
This all worked slickly and flawlessly with the two sizes of IDE drives that I tested. I didn't have a loose SATA drive handy to test, but I would anticipate equally satisfactory performance with one of those.
The AnyDrive adapter is thus an excellent connectivity tool to have around, and if you want a Time Machine backup volume on the cheap, its friendly price of $24.95 plus an on-hand, scrounged or inexpensive used hard drive of whatever size and interface won't bust your wallet. The included (some hard-to-find) cables, connectors, and adapters are worth the modest price alone.
However, I do have a few criticisms. I already mentioned the cryptic and confusing instruction sheet, however I mentioned this to Daystar's Gary Dailey and he says the instructions will now be revised, so that on'e taken care of.
However, I'm also wary of the very light diameter of the wires connecting the 2.5" IDE/ all SATA power adapter mini-jack to the cable plug. They look like they could easily fatigue or be damaged be even a minor shock load. It would also be nice if there were an inline power switch in the power adapter cable so it wouldn't be necessary to unplug the adapter from AC current in order to power down the connected drive.
Aside from those few niggles, it's all good.
$24.95
For more information, visit:
http://daystar-store.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=795
Charles W. Moore
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