Iodd2531 Black - Usb3.0 - Hdd -Ssd - Virtual Cd-rom - Enclosures - made in Korea

After using this product for nearly 4 years, I think it is time to give a review. I have found this very useful as I have a lot of ISOs from Windows/Linux builders to Rescue Media recovery tools that I may need when I work. Rather than having about 20 USBs I can store all my ISOs in one place. This VHD has not had an issue since I bought it. The wheel to select/lock in ISOs is very intuitive. I use a Samsung evo 860 1TB SSD and had no issues getting the ISOs recognised when placing then in the _iso folder. Never had an issue with "ghost" isos if I deleted them. The Micro USB B to USB 3.0 cable originally provided is still in good, working condition and I have travelled quite a bit with this device. Only minor issue I have with this product is the Bootable VHD device does not lock into the case provided so detaches from the case if you grab it from the top but if you switch around HDDs/SSDs a lot I think this would be a positive.

Haven't ran into any issues with my IODD so far, it's an amazing piece of kit if you want to store multiple bootable ISOs or even virtual hard drives. If the thing you intend to use doesn't have an iso (img or dmg), you can write it to a VHD and boot from that instead. If it requires being a usb stick, rename the file to be .rmd instead! This will make it emulate a USB stick allowing for more boot options. Setup is a little bit complicated (Has some screws, includes a screwdriver) and you need to make sure your hard drive has the first partition formatted as NTFS for it to show, but that's about it. It's certainly a tad pricy but it sure does deliver, I'll definitely be buying another if I lose or break this one.

Download a Linux distro/winXp/win 10 etc copy to your iso folder and boot. No messing around converting to usb pen drive. An additional use case create several vxds (easy in win10 btw) virtual hard drive images to boot from on one actual disk. Just use the jog wheel to select. This is a great little tool I’ve now got all my restore Mac usb versions in one device. Oh and it’s a great usb hard drive caddy. I’ve paired it with a 500gb sandisk ssd that I got cheaply and couldn’t be happier.

This is a review of the Iodd2531 Virtual Cd-rom enclosure I purchased this because I needed a versatile tool for carrying and booting multiple operating system installers and diagnostic ISOs without juggling USB sticks or optical discs, especially for my work in IT support and building PCs. I like to use this for mounting ISO files as virtual optical drives to boot from during system installations, running live Linux distributions, loading Windows PE environments, and also as a regular external hard drive or SSD enclosure for storage. What I like about this product is the built-in LCD screen and jog dial for easy selection of ISO or VHD files without needing a computer, the fast USB 3.0 speeds, robust build quality made in Korea, and features like write protection and safe ejection directly from the device. My experience using this product is outstanding. It works flawlessly with a wide range of BIOS and UEFI systems, boots ISOs quickly, and the virtual drive emulation is recognised perfectly as a physical CD-ROM or hard drive. Pairing it with a good SSD makes everything lightning fast. Firmware updates are straightforward, and it has become an essential part of my toolkit. Definitely worth the investment for anyone dealing with multiple bootable media. Highly recommended.

This device is essential to any IT Technician at home and at the office. I used a 1TB HDD and didn’t notice any drop in time performance over an SSD. I have over 200GB of ISOs and VHDs stored on the device. I’ve used it to install Windows, various Linux systems, hackintosh and even Windows 10x installs. This will basically handle anything you chuck at it. The only thing that lets this item down is the durability of the jog wheel, which is now like the gorilla in the zoo which has had too much sex and his missus is there trying to flick it up. Other than that a pretty solid device.

Now that the new? (announced in 2017 on Kickstarter) Iodd mini is available I am going to upgrade to that - the fifth version that I have purchased - first two died after much use - one stopped and the half the screen died on second Several years on and still good - use a larger SSD now as store so many ISO's (several versions of Win10 - new ver every 6 months - 1803, 1809, 1903) Want to buy another as spare but price has gone up by 40% Originally has 1st gen Iodd - then Zalman now 3rd gen Iodd - first Iodd died after several years - 2nd was Zalman - the screen broke so could not see what to select Upgrade from old iodd So much easier now Just fit a drive (I used a 250GB SSD) format drive for NTFS and create folder _iso put ISO images in here - I have CD DVD and BluRay images on mine Plug into Windows PC and use I have loaded Windows onto a blank drive with this and used drivers update software along with off-line updater program - all working with no Internet connection I have had one of these for years - very useful piece of kit The only problem I had with my old one was that it stopped working after several years of hard work and abuse - it was being held together with tape - copied data from old mechanical HDD to new SSD Edit - 4th May - I still use this on a regular basis - not every day but several times a week - use it as external HDD or a DVD drive I have fixed various Windows laptops and PCs - boot from Windows DVD to reload a clean copy of Windows - off-line updater for Windows updates and fix missing drivers - If I need to I can make the HDD read-only so that it is protected against virus etc It is a very usefull tool to have - some years ago I had to use a wallet with lots of DVDs in it to carry around - this is smaller and lighter

I have the Zalman ZM-VE300 and the ZM-VE200 before that. The jog wheel failed on the 200 and now the USB 3 connector is intermittent on the 300. Both were incredibly useful devices if you need the ability mount or boot any device from DVD (install operating system, disk tools etc) and to be able to add an ISO image to the device, limited only by the size of the standard 2.5" laptop Sata disk you install. The device is a disk caddy (you need to add a laptop sized HDD/SSD), that can present itself as a Hard Disk drive (HDD), an Optical Disk Drive (ODD - CD/DVD etc) or both concurrently. The Optical Images are stored as .ISO files in a special directory called _ISO on the HDD. You can add/delete the images in this directory from your PC when the device is connected in HDD mode. With the device in ODD mode, use the jog wheel to scroll down the list of ISO files and push to mount. When the 300 failed I looked for a replacement and found Zalman devices were no longer produced. The IODD looked the same, so worth a punt! Turns out it IS the same - and a closer inspection of the Zalman ZM-VE300 shows that the circuit board was made by IODD (take a look)!! It looks as if the only difference was the firmware which displayed the Zalman brand name. Based on my experience and comments from other posters, the device needs to be treated gently as the mechanical components are prone to fail otherwise. This is the only device that I have found with the functionality, so I will have to make it past. Shame you cannot buy spare 'heads'!! It is overpriced for what it is, especially given the perceived quality, but that is a price I will pay for its functionality - and it fits in the more robust Zalman sleeve (the IODD comes with a fabric sleeve) Hope this helps anyone else who has a faulty Zalman, needs reassurance that this is a viable replacement and has not heard of IODD (their web presented is at IODD.KR)

If you have an external usb CD drive, throw it away and use this instead. This will be much faster than reading traditional CDs and much easier to carry hundreds around with you. Perfect for Linux nerds who are always re-installing their OS across machines and have a variety of distros to choose from. I would recommend getting a 64 or 128 GB SSD to use with this as you don't have to worry about knocking it whilst in operation, and it will be amazingly fast.

Fan depuis le début de ces boitiers "couteau" suisse avec le montage automatique des .iso, c'est un plaisir de dépanner les PC des amis. J'avais un Zalman VE200 (eSATA et USB 2.0) que j'ai passé à un ami entre-temps, et je suis passé à un VE-300 (USB 3.0) : depuis le début, il n'a JAMAIS pu fonctionner en USB3.0 ! JAMAIS. J'ai utilisé 3 câbles différents, tous types de contrôleurs (des balbutiants contrôleurs tiers, aux contrôleurs Intel natifs, puis AMD actuels en AM4 etc) => JAMAIS PU FAIRE UN TRANSFERT EN USB 3.0 Avec cet IODD : j'ai transféré mon HDD directement dans le boitier, tout fonctionne à l'identique, sauf qu'évidemment, l'USB 3.0 fonctionne partout, même en boot etc ; quel bonheur. IODD est le fabricant initial il me semble, Zalman n'avait fait que rebadger, mais je ne sais pas comment ils ont réussi à faire moins bien que l'original... => génial!

Tenía una cantidad de imágenes ISO y cada vez que necesitaba una tenía que instalarla en un pendrive para usarlas. Hasta ahora!! He copiado todas esas imágenes a un disco duro SSD que compré y santo remedio. He probado con ISOs de varias distribuciones linux (arch, lubuntu, deepin, etc), android (AOSP, x86, Plasma, etc), forenses y windows y con todas he podido iniciar diferentes dispositivos. Incluso con imágenes de pendrives y también ha funcionado. También he probado a leerlo como unidad USB y como CD una vez iniciado el sistema operativo y sin problemas. Realmente ha sido una compra fenomenal para mí. Ahora puedo probar cual distro va mejor en un equipo simplemente seleccionado la imagen ISO al iniciarlo. Si te ha resultado útil, espero que dejes tu voto :-)

Questo case hard disk consente di emulare floppy, cdrom, chiavette USB e hard disk. Inoltre ha una funzione di WRITE BLOCKING hardware, che già di per se giustificherebbe prezzi ben più alti. E' probabilmente un prodotto da "tecnici" o da "smanettoni" più che da utenti "normali", ma alla fine costa abbastanza poco ed è un prodotto di qualità tale, che anche un utente non particolarmente interessato alle funzionalità aggiuntive potrebbe trovarlo interessante semplicemente per la qualità generale del prodotto. Per me poi, che sono un tecnico e mi occupo anche di computer forensics è una manna dal cielo e mi aspetto di comprarne altri nel medio termine. Funziona bene, risolve un sacco di problemi ed è un piacere da usare. L'unico neo che ho riscontrato è che l'emulazione floppy introdotta recentemente ha qualche incompatibilità con i vecchi bios. Mi è capitato infatti di non riuscire a fare il boot dal floppy emulato, laddove invece un floppy esterno (sempre USB) funziona senza problemi. Detto questo, il firmware è aggiornabile, c'è un apposito sito ed il produttore sembra rispondere alle segnalazioni di bug...

Awesome product, I own a computer store and we use them for the bench, bought 1 and then a second.....

Great durable device