MacBook Pro eSATA Test Procedure

The DiskTester run-sequential command was used to test sustained transfer speed (using Mac OS X 10.6.3 running the 64-bit Snow Leopard Kernel for all tests ).

Testing sustained transfer speed with DiskTester

eSATA testing

For the “straight eSATA” tests, I used the FirmTek SeriTek 2EN2 dual-bay enclosure (highly recommended), which has two “straight through” eSATA ports for maximum performance .

By comparison, the Voyager Q Drive Dock and OWX QX2 and many other devices use a “quad interface” design, a nice plus for easy connectivity, but an approach which reduces the maximum speed due to use of an internal bridge board required to support those four interfaces.