Most users who use the PC for gaming or work do not, in most cases, have the need to change the storage units to access the information stored inside it, a very common need for technical services, users who edit videos, those who work with large amounts of data, among others.
Using disks External SSDs It is not an option since their data transfer speed is much slower than M.2. The large difference in transfer speed makes the latter the best option when working with many or large files, however, they do not offer the same versatility when connecting them to the PC via a USB port, especially if we have more than one.
While it is true that we can use a M.2 SSD dock and connecting it to a USB 3.X port, we end up with the same speed problem. The solution to this problem is offered by Icy Dock with the new dock that it has just presented and that connects to the PCIe port of the motherboard. In addition, it supports hot swapping, which eliminates the need to turn your PC off and on for the system to recognize it.
M.2 SSD Dock Supports Hot Swap
The dock model that Icy Dock has just presented, the ExpressSlot MB204MP-Bis one of the best solutions that we can currently find on the market to cover the need to access different M.2 SSD drives with the maximum read and write speed they are capable of offering.
This model includes space for 4 M.2 NVMe units that can be exchanged without having to turn the computer off and on again, offering a versatility that we will not find in other docks, as long as this function is compatible with the operating system (Windows is).
This device relies on the host PCIe lane bifurcation to convert the x16 slot into 4 four M.2 x4 slots each. Each of these compartments operates independently, has a mechanism to extract the unit along with an LED that indicates whether it is in operation.
To ensure that heat is not a problem, this dock has a 50mm fan that equally ventilates the 4 compartments. Each of these compartments has a support where the unit is placed and then inserted into the dock and includes a heat sink of aluminum.
It supports the formats 2280, 2260, 2242 and 2230as they all share the same 22mm width and no tools are required to secure it to the stand. This dock requires a 6-pin PCIe power connection and is compatible with Intel VROC and AMD RAID to create RAID 0/1/5/10 systems without having to purchase a separate RAID controller.
Price and availability
Icy Box has announced this new dock to connect 4 M.2 SSD units to a PCIe port, however it has not announced either the price it will have on the market or when it will be available, so we will have to wait for the next few weeks to find out.