Introduction

I would like to thank Vizo for providing the review sample.

The Vizo Technology Corp. offers different storage solutions for both 2.5 and 3.5 inch hard drives. The product range also includes modding supplies like light sensitive cable binders, IDE & SATA cables as well as CCFLs and LED fans. The third area covers cooling of notebooks, PCI bracket and hard drive cooling. All of these offerings are high quality and quite innovative.

This is what Vizo has to say about itself:

VIZO Technology Corp. is a leading global manufacturer and designer of computer peripheral products serving customers around the world. We own the best team and complete innovation technology. Utilizing experiences for many years and sufficient mature skills, VIZO insists in developing value added, ideal based, zeal catered and optimum designed products for customers to meet mainstream demands.That's why we named VIZO.

VIZO provides the PC users a variety of PC DIY products and peripherals, including hard drive external enclosure, multimedia storage, front panel, mouse, PC fan, system cooling, cold cathode light, crystal neon light, card reader , USB hub, PC accessory and so on; Meanwhile, VIZO produces special effect products which can make your PC more stylish and unique.

VIZO's vision is to make customers enjoy the high quality PC stuff all the time. To carry out it, VIZO aims at non-stop improvement, continuous innovation, excellent design , firm development and quality-improving technology and keeps putting all our effort in research and development.For high product quality,VIZO insists in the strict quality control process and owns highly recommended global product approval.

The Vizo Uranus is available in three different colors - black, blue and silver. We received the blue variant for testing.

Features

• Compatible with 3.5" SATA Hard Drive
• Support 480Mbps High Speed USB 2.0
• Support 3.0Gbps High Speed external Serial-ATA(eSATA)
• Dual One-touch Backup buttons for file and system (only under USB 2.0 host)
• 4in1 functions:One touch backup for file, One touch backup for system, USB to SATA HDD & eSATA to SATA HDD
• Sleek and elegant design
• Aluminum housing for excellent heat dissipation
• Build in fan for better system cooling
• Support plug and play & hot swappable
• Must be attached to SATA 3.0G/eSATA 3.0G hot swappable compliant host to enable hot swappable function

Packaging & Contents

The package of the Vizo Uranus is a bit larger than what is common for external hard drive enclosures. The outer box is kept in white, with a picture of the enclosure in front, with the most important features. There is also a sticker letting the potential buyer know what color they will be getting. The back lists all the features in detail in English and includes a picture with all three available colors.


The outer box is quite thin, so Vizo has included a white, sturdy inner box to protect everything during shipping. All the contents are neatly packed inside the card board box. Vizo opted for foam paddings instead of cardboard or Styrofoam. The big advantage of such material is the fact that it will survive a fall and retain its original form.


Vizo includes everything you could possibly need. They are the first company to include a SATA to eSATA PCI bracket. These usually will set you back anywhere between $10-15 US Dollars if your mainboard or case does not have an eSATA plug. There is an aluminum stand of very high quality and an illustrated pamphlet with installation instructions included as well.


The power brick is nothing out of the ordinary. These are the typical kind usually used by manufacturers for HDD enclosures. There are smaller variants out there and it would have been great if Vizo would have opted for the smaller kind which combines power brick & plug into a single, small casing. The included PSU can accept voltage between 100V and 240V and outputs 2A. USB 2.0 can only handle 0.5A without an external power source.

A Closer Look

The Uranus case is made of two parts. The aluminum shell and the inner hard drive cage. The overall look is quite nice and the Uranus branding is quite modern and is an eye catcher. The stand fits firmly as well. On the back you will find all the connections. There are two things out of the ordinary here. Vizo opted for a miniUSB plug instead of the usual kind. This is most likely due to space constraints. The second is a small fan which barely moves any air, but is very quiet.


There is a large plastic inlay on top of the case, which is backed by a dual color blue/red LED. When powered on, the entire line lights up blue and if the hard drive is accessed, it turns red. The bottom of the case has a few vents. They may not be as useful, as there is very little space between case and the surface it is placed upon and the little fan provides no noticable active airflow throughout the case.


Vizo included a backup function with the enclosure. The dual button functionality only works if the enclosure is connected using the USB 2.0 interface.