Specifications, Availability and Pricing

Starting off with the specifications, the latest incarnation of the Sharkoon docking station is basically exactly the same as all of the others, except of course it adds in a USB 3.0 port on the back of the device.

It is able to support both 2.5-inch and 3.-5-inch drives which means you will be able to install an SSD into the toaster and see the full performance of the drive externally to your system. While only having a USB 3.0 port for connection to your system, it is also backwards compatible with USB 2.0 if you plan on upgrading to USB 3.0 later on by means of buying a new motherboard or buying a USB 3.0 PCI-Express controller card such as the NEC-powered USB 3.0 Host Controller Card that Sharkoon also sells.

Sharkoon tested the toaster to work in 32-bit and 64-bit versions of Windows XP, Vista and 7. Having noted this, though, this product should work on any operating system as long as it has a USB 3.0 driver available for it. There is an on / off power button on the back of the unit as well as two LEDs on the top right front area of the device.

Since this is a brand new product and only just launched by Sharkoon, we couldn't see it listed anywhere for sale just yet. As such, we cannot comment on availability and pricing. However, we contacted Sharkoon and they told us that the device has an MSRP of roughly $60 USD and the NEC USB 3.0 controller card (sold separately) has an MSRP of roughly $43 USD in the USA.