The unit comes packed neatly, contain only the HD and the power supply. A CD is practically not there, the software for managing the disc is located directly on the storage medium, from where you can install them on the system disk and the same should. Also not included: A Thunderbolt cable. This is of course annoying from two points of view, firstly because these are not cheap (EUR 50, -) and secondly it indeed is the only interface to the device. In the My Book Studio II various cables were even 3 (!) Here.
The software (WD Drive Utilities) I find exemplary solved. Clearly, easy to understand, well designed. This includes several diagnostic tools (rapid tests from a few seconds up to several hours of complete drive test), RAID management (Stripe - Raid 0, Mirror - Raid 1, Single Drives - JBOD) and Drive Erase.
Convince can also drive bays, where I would have such a system actually provided earlier. Without the case namely at least hurting slightly there was no question at the My Books to an independent hard drive change. Now it is as you'd expect: With a finger to open the top cover, the perforated plate underneath can be opened via a thumbscrew and already we can draw the two HDs using plastic bottles out of the holder.
Installed are two WD Caviar Green HDs, where this is the slightly cooler and more energy-efficient, but just by a little less powerful line of WD. WD recommends only this Green plates. It is therefore to be assumed that it would be significantly too hot other plates in this case. Evidence of this is the not exactly high volume level of the fan. What's to work in small study course pleasant for the plates but just a little less favorable. I must admit that I really did not expect such a low volume. Roughly comparable to the My Book Studio II, maybe even a bit quieter? Since I'm used to from my Taurus raid another (which raises from just like a small jet plane). As I said: for some an advantage, I would have - in terms of the life of the hard drives - liked to have a little louder. I need when working not absolute silence.
We come to the (possibly) most important - performance. As a main computer is a 2011er iMac 2.7 GHz i5 available. As a benchmark tool I use the Blackmagic Disk Speed Test.
In fast Raid0 composite I come round to 230 MB / s (write + read). This is not world class but okay. Coincides roughly with what WD also indicates itself. Equivalent course not the rudimentary, so Thunderbolt is commonly advertised (10 Gb / s = 1.3 GB / s), but that is only a theoretical value, which depends on many factors and is as yet unmatched by any device.
In secure RAID1 I come to about 110 MB / s (write + read). So in about half of Raid0 performance, which was also to be expected.
By comparison, the WD My Book Studio II through FW 800 reached almost 80 MB / s. The internal disk of the iMac comes to around 105 MB / s.
SpeedKing the Thunderbolt Duo is therefore no. I still want to operate in RAID 1, the drives, so I'm only almost 40% more power compared to the My Book Studio II. Not bad, but of Thunderbolt one would have expected just a bit more.
Inexplicable to me why they spendieren the part no off button. The plates go to the computer and also only again when it is turned off. Even when I "auswerfe", so they are not mounted on the Mac, it does not go down, but continue to run as if they were operating normally. I find that unfortunate and unnecessary, as I just do not always need the disk, just because I turn on the computer. Even the power management system is a mystery to me: Once after several minutes of inactivity, it turns on the plates in standby, most of the time but not doing it or the plates are completely unexpectedly reactivated without one would have access to it. A logic I could not make out since. After the plates react instantly if you puts the Mac in hibernation or waking it. But replaced halt all no off button.
An overall assessment not easy for me. If you can live with the mentioned limitations, it is a good record. If they want to run, for example, in RAID 0 and they are constantly in use has anyway, then adjusts the speed and the lack of power management is not tragic. But if you can not live with what are in spring 2012, the Thunderbolt alternatives? The LaCie 2big was currently the only halfway competitive drive as far as the price, if a 4TB rich. For (reportedly) you get a little more speed and a stop button. The 6TB costs because already back EUR 200, - more. The G-RAID G-Technology looks interesting, but is not yet available and will cost a bit more and the Pegasus Raids of Promise are not only already beyond the EUR 1,000 - settled but should also have a few teething problems, which one reads so.
That leaves even more than 1 year after the introduction of such a promising interface a stale aftertaste: Either you take one or the other half-heartedness (expensive) in buying or are accessed yet again on FW800 or possible eSata back - or you are willing and in able to wait. Really high-performance Thunderbolt hardware for well below EUR 1000, - will probably still be some time in coming.
+ Faster than any non-Thunderbolt hard drive
+ Belong to the previously best Thunderbolt hard drives
+ Easily accessible drive bays
+ Considerable Design
+ Quiet (-?)
+ Software
+ Activity LED is very small, not annoying
- Heard among the recent Thunderbolt hard drives to the slowest
- Still relatively expensive
- Ventilation is scheduled towards the bottom limit
- No Thunderbolt cable included
- No other interfaces
- No Off Button
- Power management (Standby) does not make sense
