TechRadar Verdict

An excellent external drive or caddy, and it's not just for the Mac mini

Pros

+
Connections
+
Versatile

Cons

-
Expensive

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Even though this impressive piece of kit is clearly designed with the Mac mini in mind, Newer Technology's miniStack V3's versatile features and attractive aesthetics make it an ideal companion for any Mac.

The miniStack v3 improves upon its predecessor. While the v2 model offered two FireWire 400 ports and two USB 2.0 ports at the rear, this one gives you three USB 2.0, two FireWire 800 and an eSATA port.

Both versions boast a USB 2.0 and FireWire 400 port on the left-hand side of the unit, which are for powered peripherals.

The miniStack v3 is available in a range of capacities up to 1TB, but if you have a spare hard drive, you can buy it as a caddy and fit your own SATA drive. It comes bundled with a disc offering OEM copies of Intech SpeedTools (OS 9 and OS X) and Prosoft Data Backup, and there's an agreeable shareware collection on the drive itself.