Product Spotlight - MB663 Series

This month, we want to feature our MB663 Series of 2.5” Drive Enclosures.

First, we have our MB663UB. It fits any standard SATA hard drives or solid state drives, and encloses it in a beautiful black or silver aluminum case. It uses a built-in USB cable to connect to just about any device, ranging from high definition gaming consoles, to a network storage device. And with a transfer rate of up to 480 MB/sec, it will be perfect for streaming your favorite HD movies and pictures to the big screen!

Last but not least, let us introduce you to our MB663USR. Internally, you take full advantage of the transfer speed that SATA offers, with rates as high as 3.0 GB/sec! Now, lets say you finished backing up your HD movie collection in a few minutes, simply press an eject button, and your collection has become portable, complete with a built-in mini-USB port. Now, plug it into your media case, gaming console, or transfer it to your laptop for a road trip! The possibilities are nearly endless.

With HDTV and hard drive prices dropping, and the size of movie files increasing, let us help you maximize your media experience with our MB663 Series Enclosure.

Click here for more product information

CREATE YOUR IDEAL STORAGE SOLUTION!

****UPDATE: DEADLINE EXTENDED TO JUNE 30, 2009****

ICYDOCK has teamed up with Tweaknews to offer our loyal customers a challenge! Create your dream storage dock or enclosure! There are over $800 in prizes for the best ones!

Submit your work here: http://www.tweaknews.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=7833

RULES:

1.) You must login and register here on the Tweaknews forums and post your creation.

2.) You must post what special features you need and you must post an illustration of the enclosure. Be creative.

3.) You must contribute at least 5 legitimate posts here on the forums not including this thread.

4.) IP's will be logged so multiple accounts from the same poster will be disqualified with no warning.

5.) Addresses will need to be supplied after the contest so we can send you your prize!

PRIZES:

First Prize (1) - MB561US-4SC - Quad Bay External Enclosure with eSATA (port multiplier) + USB 2.0 Interface w/ JBOD express card - MSRP: $349.99

Tweaknews Review: http://www.tweaknews.net/reviews/icy_dock_mb561us-4s_enclosure/

Second Prize (1) - MB662UEAB-2S - Dual Bay Screwless External RAID Enclosure with FireWire 400, 800 + USB 2.0 Interface - Built-in RAID 0/1/BIG/JBOD - MSRP: $199.99

Third Prize (1) - MB662US-2S - Dual Bay Screwless External RAID Enclosure with eSATA + USB 2.0 Interface - Built-in RAID 0/1/BIG/JBOD/SAFE33/SAFE55 - MSRP: $129.99

Fourth Prize (1) - MB881US-1S-1 - Traveling 3.5" & 2.5" SATA Hard Drive Docking Station with eSATA + USB 2.0 Interface - MSRP: $54.99

Tweaknews Review: http://www.tweaknews.net/reviews/icy_dock_mb881us-1s-1_hard_drive_docking_station/

Honorable Mention (5) - MB882SP-1S-1B - 2.5" to 3.5" SATA / SSD Converter with Screwless Design - MSRP: $19.99

Tweaknews Review: http://www.tweaknews.net/reviews/icy_dock_mb882sp-1s-1_sata_converter/

Submissions will be accepted until midnight of June 30, 2009.

UTILIZE AN EXTERNAL HDD WITH YOUR XBOX 360!

Following up to our previous installment, we will now walk you through how to set up your Icy Dock with the Microsoft XBOX 360.

Previously, the XBOX 360 did not allow users to use an external HDD with media to be played through the system. However, with recent updates for the XBOX 360, users now have many different options for playing media. And with the expensive, yet restrictive hard drives developed by Microsoft for specific use on the XBOX 360, users have been on a constant search for the best solution.

Using an Icy Dock to expand your media center experience via the XBOX 360 allows you to have almost unlimited storage capacities for movies, photos, and music. Simply drag and drop your media into an Icy Dock, and plug it into the XBOX 360 with a USB interface. What this installation guide will show you is how to correctly format the drive for use with the console.

Items you will need
*XBOX 360 (internet connection required for possible media updates)
*Icy Dock Enclosure using a USB interface
*Hard Drive or Solid State Drive for use in the Icy Dock
*PC or Mac
*Movies, Picture, and Music for playback on XBOX 360

Step 1: Format The Drive
*The drive needs to be formatted in FAT32 (MS-DOS File System) for it to be recognized by the XBOX 360.
*Windows Users – Windows can only format drives in FAT32 up to 32GB. To format it to its full capacity, you will need to use a program called Swissknife (http://www.compuapps.com/download/Swissknife/swissknife.htm) or use the command line method from the PS3 guide.
*Mac Users – Open up Disk Utility, and format the disk using MS-DOS.
*Formatting the drive will cause all data on the drive to be lost. Back up anything important before proceeding with the Formatting.

Step 2: Put Media On The Drive
*Since the XBOX 360 is essentially a computer, it will recognize the folder format of your drive. The easiest way to organize your media is Video, Music, and Photos.
*There is no need to re-organize folders within the main folders. For example, a folder holding all your TV shows can be left alone. The music folder organizing all albums or artists can be left alone. The picture photo organizing all photo albums or collections of photos can be left alone.
*Supported video formats
-MP4, AVI (some do not work), WMV, MOV
-The XBOX will display a file with a line through it if it is not playable.

Step 3: Connect The Drive To Your XBOX 360
*Connect the USB cable to the front or rear USB port. If you are using a using a 2.5” drive in the Icy Dock, the power from the USB will be enough to power the drive. All 3.5” applications will require the power supply.
*Go to the Video, Picture, or Music library, and search for your Icy Dock, listed as a portable device.
*Select your drive, browse, and enjoy!

SOFTWARE
*Free and effective open source programs for converting video
-Windows: Media Encoder (http://mediacoder.sourceforge.net/download.htm)
-Mac: FFMPEGX (http://homepage.mac.com/major4/download.html)

SUGGESTED ICY DOCK PRODUCTS

*MB881US-1S
-Fits all 2.5/3.5’’ SATA HDD and SSD
-eSATA and USB interface
-2.5” drive powered by USB when plugged into XBOX 360

*MB559 Series
-Fits all standard 3.5” drives, and 2.5” drives using the MB882SP-1S converter
-eSATA/USB, USB/FIREWIRE400, USB/FIREWIRE800 available
-Available in black, white, and mirror black
-Utilizes are tray system. Spare trays also available.

*MB664 Series
-Fits all standard 3.5” drives, and 2.5” drives using the MB882SP-1S converter
-eSATA/USB, USB/FIREWIRE400, USB/FIREWIRE800 available
-Available in black, white, and mirror black
-Screwless design

*MB663UB Series
-Fits all standard 2.5” SATA HDD and SSD
-Built in USB male plug
-Powered XBOX 360 via USB
-Available in silver and black

Utilize an External HDD with your PS3!

How To Set Up Your MB559 Series OR MB664 Series ICY DOCK With PS3

MB664 (Shown in Mirror Black)

MB559 Series (Shown in Mirror Black)

Playstation 3 represents a new level of cutting edge video game technology. Not only does it allow you to play mind numbingly realistic games, but it has built in capabilities to play all your media. The problem however, is that the out of box unit places capacity restrictions on the user in terms of its hard drive. To solve this problem, you can replace the internal 2.5" SATA drive with a larger drive, or save yourself some time and simply plug in an external hard drive via USB. Using an external storage device, you can save video, audio, photos, and game data.

With an ICY DOCK hooked up to your PS3, you have almost unlimited storage capabilities. Utilize separate drives/trays for various media types, or unplug from your PS3 and use the drive to back up your newest vacation photos. If you run out of room, just pop in a fresh drive and you are back to square one!

And, with the newest color of our popular single bay series, your dock will be functional and stylish, all with the quality and simplicy that ICY DOCK gaurantees with all of our products!

Heres how you do it:

*Connect the ICY DOCK to your computer using a USB cord and switch unit power to ON.

*Check what the "File System" type is by going to Start, Control Panel, Administrative Tools, Computer Management, Disk Manager. Select the ICY DOCK and read the "File System" type. The file system type must be "FAT32" in order for the Playstation to recognize it.

*If the file system type is "NTFS", right click and select "Delete Partition" or "Delete Volume" for Vista.

*Then recreate the partition but do NOT format it. Make sure you assign a drive letter (for this Tutorial, we'll use H:)

*If you are running Windows, format the drive by going to the command prompt (Vista, right click on command prompt in start menu and click "run as administrator")and type in "format h: /FS:FAT32" (without the quotes). You may need to substitute your drive letter. (note this might not work on XP for a large hard drive - you may have to use a third-party formatting utility like SwissKnife; however, it does work under Vista - just be sure to use the format command from the DOS prompt, not from Windows Explorer)

*If you are using Mac OS X, open /Applications/Utilities/Disk Utility.app, pick the drive, and click on the 'Erase' tab. Pick 'MS-DOS (FAT)' for the file system type, and click on the 'Erase' button. This will reformat the drive in FAT-32.

*If you have Mac OS X Leopard: Open /Application/Utilities/DiskUtility.app, pick the drive and click on the 'Partition' tab. Pick '1 Partition,' for the Volume Scheme, and 'MS-DOS (FAT),' for the Format. Click the 'Options...' button (near the bottom) and select 'Master Boot Record.' Press 'Okay' and then 'Apply.'

*Open "My Computer" and double-click on your ICY DOCK.

*Create a folder system identical to that on the Playstation 3 by creating folders labeled "Picture" (not Photo), "Music", "Video" and "Game".

*Load all media into their proper folders. Your game folder should still be empty.

*Safely disconnect the ICY DOCK.

*Connect the ICY DOCK to your Playstation 3.

EXTRA TIPS AND TRICKS

*Game data can be saved the external HDD as well.

*Supported File Types for PS3
-Video: MPEG 4, MPEG 2, AVI, WMV, DIVX
-Audio: MP3, MP4, ATRAC, WMA, MP4

*Open Source Video Converters
-For Windows, MEDIA CODER
-For Mac, FFMPEGX

*Swissknife Download Page

*Use the ICY DOCK to create a hassle free transfer from you old internal HDD to your new internal HDD via our MB882SP-1S-1B 2.5” to 3.5” SATA HDD Converter Box.



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installation source: http://www.wikihow.com/Add-an-External-Hard-Drive-to-a-PlayStation-3

MB882SP: SATA 2.5' to 3.5' converter

Have you ever wanted to put a 2.5” SATA hard drive inside your computer? How about having a 2.5” SATA hard drive inside one of our 3.5” enclosures and have the desire to carry it around without damaging the hard drive? Do you have a 2.5” SATA hard drive laying around from your old laptop, but never had any opportunity to use it? Need a computer with an Solid-State hard drive inside your system?

If you answered yes, then we have a product just for you that will suit your need. I want to introduce ICY DOCK’s MB882SP-1S series, the enclosure that converts any 2.5” SATA drive into a 3.5” SATA hard drive. Placing a 2.5” SATA drive into one of our MB882 series is very simple and requires no tools or screws to install the drive. Installing the 2.5” SATA drive requires only to slide in the hard drive into the MB882, and taking out the drive will not take any effort. The MB882SP-1S is made out of durable plastic, which protects your hard drive from any scratches or smudges. There are open ventilations on the front and back of the case to keep your hard drive cool. The color of the converter comes in black and white.

This product is very useful for those who prefer speed on their computer because this converter can also take in 2.5” Solid-State Disk (SSD) drives as well. Using this converter will not result in any reduction in transfer speed. One convenient factor about this converter is that it fits into all of ICY DOCK’s enclosures as well as most 3.5” SATA HDD enclosures. A recommended product to use with this converter is the MB671 and MB672 series because it requires no tray. This allows you to plug in your 2.5” SATA drive into the converter, and the converter into the computer for instant access.

So if you are ever in the market for a 2.5” SATA drive, consider purchasing the MB882SP-1S as well. For more information, please visit our website at http://www.icydock.com/product/mb882sp-1s-1.html.

As many of you are aware Apple Computer has changed the look on the new MB and MBP. How does this “MB559 PRO edition”enclosure sound to you? Is it something that you might be interested in? Let us know your thoughts and opinions?

Greetings!

I wanted to introduce a new product from ICY DOCK. It's called an EZ-dock, and it's our first docking station for 2.5" and 3.5" hard drives. It provides a USB for universal support and e-SATA for 3 Gb/sec transfer rates. If using a 2.5" SATA drive, power adapter is not necessary. Simply connect the USB bus into the computer and you are ready to use the hard drive. The on/off toggle switch makes it easy to conserve energy and extend the life of a drive. The stand is easily detachable and allows the dock for better portability. Take a look at the picture, and you can see that the hard drive is not enclosed so it allows better heat dissipation.

For all the photographers and video editors out there who needs to carry around their hard drives, we provide a carrying case which allows you to carry your dock and 2.5” hard drive anywhere you go (carrying case will include with the dock). This lightweight dock can lay on any surface for hard drive stability and is small enough to grasp with just a hand. This simply, yet elegant, design will definitely stand out in any room and will work on any Windows and Mac systems.

Here are the features:

+Supports both 3.5” & 2.5” SATA I/II hard drives
+When using 2.5" SATA drive, power adapter and cable is not required (only the USB bus)
+Design for PC & Mac systems
+Plug & play design. Easy to install / swap hard drive in 5 sec
+On/off switch allows hard drive life expendability and energy conservation.
+Stand is detachable for portable use.
+Support eSATA connection for maximum SATA performance.
+Carry case protect your hard drive and important data when using as portable 2.5” enclosure.
+Simple stylish elegant design