Enermax 2.5 and 3.5-Inch Mobile Drive Rack Roundup Review

A Closer Look: EMK5201U3

The last of the three units I’m taking a look at today is also the coolest in my opinion. The EMK5201U3 combines the features of both the EMK3101 and EMK5102 and adds a bit more. Once again, Enermax included everything you could need in the package including screws to mount it, key to lock the bays, two SATA data cables as well as a MOLEX to SATA power adapter.

The front is fully utilized in this model with a 2.5-inch bay at the top and a 3.5-inch at the bottom. The spare space next to the 2.5-inch bay is cleverly used for two USB 3.0 ports.

The EMK5201U3 has individual LEDs for the two bays and as a bonus comes with an on-off button. For those who don’t use the bay permanently, this is an awesome addition.

We see that Enermax has used the same general build inside with the exception of a PCB board extension. It PCB allows for the power function as well as extending the power connection so only one is needed for both drives. A clever use.

Looking at the bottom of the mobile rack, we see that the whole thing is open and not closed as in the 5.25-inch model. This allows the unit to stay passive cooled, but you should of course still watch out that the overall unit is ventilated by your case fans.

As previously mentioned, you only need one SATA power cable to connect both drives, effectively reducing the cable clutter inside your chassis; we can all appreciate that.

Inserting drives into the enclosure is just as easy as with the previous enclosures. Slide in the drives and close the door. That’s it. The locks on the doors again prevent accidental ejection of your drives.

The two front USB ports connect through a normal USB 3 header directly to your motherboard or other USB 3 controller.