SilverStone EC03 USB-3.0 Expansion Card Review

Manufacturer: SilverStone Technology
Product Name: SuperSpeed USB 3.0 PCI-Express Expansion Card
Model Number: SST-EC03 / RL-EC03B
Price As Tested: $32.50 (Amazon)

Full Disclosure: The product sample used in this article has been provided by SilverStone Technology.

Getting access to the gigabytes of data on your external storage devices is excruciatingly slow as it trickles thru the USB 2.0 port, or at least, that's how it feels these days as storage devices store more data and USB 2.0 just can't get the job done fast enough. USB 3.0 at least for now is the answer for external access. The EC03 card from SilverStone installs into a single lane PCI-E gen 2.0 slot and gives you two internal USB 3.0 ports. SilverStone also provides a 3.5” I/O bay and the necessary cabling to bring the ports to the front of your case. Most motherboards do not have USB 3.0 ports and even when they do most motherboards rarely provide more than two USB 3.0 ports usually hardwired to the back panel I/O. The benefits of USB 3.0 over 2.0 are substantial, with an approximate 10 fold increase in speed. If you have been wanting USB 3.0 capability but don't want to swap motherboards then the EC03 can upgrade your system at a reasonable cost.

SilverStone was founded in 2003, and has a very long list of products that it has manufactured, from mice and fans to computer cases and power supplies. SilverStone's philosophy is to ensure that their “expertise is delivered to all products with consistency, in response to user's needs and with maximum user satisfaction.” SilverStone has its headquarters in Taiwan, and branch offices in the USA, and Germany.

The concept is simple, open the case, install the EC03, and drivers then via 5Gbit/s USB 3.0 super speed interface you get access to your data. So how fast is it? Benchmark Reviews takes the EC03 thru the paces, let's take a look.

SilverStone SST-EC03 Features

• Unique USB 3.0 dual port internal connector

• PCI Express gen2.0 with single lane(x1) throughput 5Gbit/s

• Support simultaneous operation of multiple USB 3.0/2.0/1.1 devices

• Expands 2 external USB 3.0 super speed ports on the system

• Support 5Vdc/3600mA (supply upto 4x standard power current)

• Build in power connector to receiving extra power from system (sic)

SilverStone EC03 Specifications

*Features and specifications per SilverStone product manual on website, and box literature.

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