nMEDIAPC ZE-C218 All-in-one USB Card Reader with USB 3.0 & e-SATA Ports

Comment:
Works well as advertised. Just a bit more effort installing it. Nonetheless good product.

Comment:
I bought two of these on sale for $12.99 each. I have installed one of these on my Enlight case. This brings my connections up to date with USB 3.0 and eSata both accessible from the front of my case. I really hate accessing cables at the back so this is actully a really useful item for me. My USB 3.0 portable drive works well when attached to the front port.

Comment:
pretty unsatisfied with this product. I know it's cheap, but I at least expect it to work. First of all, it was flimsy and hard to fit right in the case. There are no instructions for installation so i had to do some research to figure out where to plug the usb cable. when I tried to get it to actually read cards, a light would come on but nothing at all would happen on screen. Not even going to My Computer, not even going to Disk Management. I have tried using this on windows 8 AND windows 7, to no avail. Going to figure out if it's worth sending back or not.EDIT: It works now, only because apparently some of the slots you have to insert  cards upside down for it to read... but the card fits rightside-up, which it shouldn't. cards are designed so that they can't be insert ed the wrong way, but this reader allows them to be insert ed the wrong way. pitiful This review was modfied by poster @ 08-01-12 01:03 PM

Comment:
Basically a $12 card reader don't expect anything that's high quality coming for this drive the metal box it is enclosed in is super flimsy the black front pannel was to wide and i had to file it down to get it flush with my case, but it does do what it is meant to do read cards.

Comment:
I already had a similar card reader - the nGear one (SKU 21448). I bought this one primarily because it has a USB 3.0 port. On sale, this is cheaper than a USB 3.0 extension cable and the solidly-mounted jack is much better to plug a USB 3.0 flash drive into than a cable.The USB 3.0 cable is routed through the case, out a supplied PCI bracket with a hole and around to a rear USB 3.0 jack. At first I was concerned the USB 3.0 cable wouldn't be long enough, but there's probably 6-8" to spare with my mid-size Antec Sonata III case, even routing through the very bottom PCI slot. Tests show this socket works perfectly, I am definitely getting USB 3.0 speeds with a USB 3.0 flash drive.This setup may seem a little hokey but until USB 3.0 headers on motherboards and USB 3.0 front jacks on cases become common, that's the only way to do it because USB 3.0 jacks are on the motherboard back I/O panel. This isn't the right place in my opinion, USB 3.0 speeds are best for temporarily-attached storage devices and these are all attached from the front. Who reaches around behind their computer to attach a flash drive? Back panel USB ports are for keyboards, mice, printers etc. A front USB 3.0 port is the best use of the new technology and this reader fills this requirement.There's also a SATA cable to connect to a SATA header for the eSATA socket and a half-size USB 2.0 internal header connector for the flash reader. The nGear one used a full-size USB 2.0 header connector since one USB 2.0 port was connected to the reader and the other one was connected to its USB 2.0 front jack. So this new reader frees up half of a USB header. I haven't tested the eSATA socket because I have no eSATA devices. My case has an eSATA port as well. I suspect it would work fine, it's just a pass-through.The flash reader works great - I tested every flash card I could get my hands on, a variety of SD, SDHC, xD and CF cards, and they all tested the same as the nGear card reader. The media is always the speed limitation, not the card reader. The slots are a little tight and I had a few problems getting cards in but I'd prefer it tight.While the nGear had a power LED that was sort of redundant and distracting (yes, I know my computer is on, thank you) this one only has a green access LED. The LED goes on solid when a card is inserted and flickers on access. Very nice, except for the fact that it's not isolated well and shines through the card slots on the right side.The finish is matte which matches my front panel, the nGear was gloss which did not.Just like the nGear reader, the two bottom slots (SD and xD) are placed upside down and cards must be inserted that way. Again I suspect it's because all the sockets are mounted on a single PCB which runs down the centre of the device - the ones on top of the PCB are right side up, the ones below upside down.That's my only minor gripe with it, the USB 3.0 port is what I wanted and the rest of the flash reader works just fine.