Best USB 3.0 Card Reader for 3.5" Bay

Razoo · 24 Mar 2016 at 22:27

I'm looking for a good, reliable card reader that will read most memory cards, fit into a 3.5" bay and bring a USB 3.0 port to the front of my computer.

My motherboard (Gigabyte GA-Z97M-D3H) provides an internal USB 3.0 header.

I've been researching card readers for a few days now, but nothing stands out. In fact, reviews seem to reveal most card readers as pretty unreliable.

I had more or less settled on the AFT Pro-37U (not cheap at around £40), but have just read some reviews where a large percentage of owners are experiencing problems with the card readers after a short period of use. Some owners report the need to unplug the card reader or their computer won't boot up. The USB 3.0 port always seems reliable, but the card reader slots give trouble.

I don't want a cheap Chinese unit, and would prefer something for around £20-£30.

Can anyone recommend a good, reliable USB 3.0 card reader that I might consider?

Thanks.

Fogold · 25 Mar 2016 at 08:29

Just tried Bitfenix unit but same problems you describe. In fact I have had so much trouble with USB 3 add in cards etc I have given up and stripped back to only the Motherboard supported units. USB 3 seems to be very flakey in many areas. I use a startec SATA CF card reader for front panel and a CF- SD card adapter. I also have a powered USB hub and a portable USB card reader.

Fogold · 25 Mar 2016 at 13:10

Oddly enough, I looked at the Akasa Baymaster and noticed that the USB 2 ((AK-ICR-10) model was still available but the USB 3 (S Model) version no longer was. This tells me something!

marc2003 · 25 Mar 2016 at 17:15

Sorry for the slight hijack but what sort of write speeds should you get with a USB3 card reader? My monitor has one built in and I have a Sandisk 64GB Ultra microSDXC with SD adapter and am only seeing 12-13MB/s???

I know the USB3 connection is fine because USB3 sticks run at a decent speed (50MB/s write). I'm just wondering if this is a limitation of the card reader or the card/adapter??

Razoo · 25 Mar 2016 at 18:56

Fogold said:
Just tried Bitfenix unit but same problems you describe. In fact I have had so much trouble with USB 3 add in cards etc I have given up and stripped back to only the Motherboard supported units. USB 3 seems to be very flakey in many areas.

I had shortlisted the BitFenix USB 3.0 Card Reader, along with the Icy Box IB-865. However, I have just been playing 'spot the difference' and I'm fairly convinced that they are the same unit, just wearing a different badge. This means they are equally unreliable.

I'm also considering the Ultron UCR3 USB 3.0 Card Reader, but so far I haven't found any meaningful reviews, just one pointless review where the owner complains that he ordered a silver facia and received black. He doesn't mention whether the card reader worked, or not!

Nothing runs easy, does it?

Razoo · 25 Mar 2016 at 19:20

marc2003 said:
Sorry for the slight hijack but what sort of write speeds should you get with a USB3 card reader?

Well, first you have to find a USB 3.0 Card Reader that actually works, and that seems to be the main challenge!

I don't know about write speeds, but read speeds seem to be extremely variable.

Although allegedly one of the best USB 3.0 card readers around, one owner of an Atech Flash Technology PRO-37U 3.5" USB 3.0 reader reported only getting about 20-25 MB/s. When he read the same media cards through his Transcend or Lexar USB3 readers (ironically using the AFT PRO-37U's USB3 port) he could sustain about 120 MB/s.

The £40 AFT PRO-37U only gets 2 out of 5 Stars from Newegg.com, which should tell you something about these devices.

Also, be aware that some USB 3.0 Card Readers provide a USB 3.0 compliant port, but only provide a USB 2.0 interface for the Card Reader.

Fogold · 26 Mar 2016 at 11:17

This is clearly not mature technology.

marc2003 · 26 Mar 2016 at 11:48

Razoo said:
Also, be aware that some USB 3.0 Card Readers provide a USB 3.0 compliant port, but only provide a USB 2.0 interface for the Card Reader.

I thought my monitor card reader supported USB3.0 because of this...

But after digging a little deeper with usbtreeview, I found this....

See how it shows the same "USB3.0 Card Reader" as the name but only supports USB2.

Razoo · 26 Mar 2016 at 18:38

Razoo said:
I'm also considering the Ultron UCR3 USB 3.0 Card Reader, but so far I haven't found any meaningful reviews...

OK, I've just found some reviews for the Ultron UCR3 USB 3.0 Card Reader (in German) and it's the same problem as with other card readers I've researched - approximately 10% of owners find that the USB 3.0 port works and the card reader doesn't.

Also, although this unit is marketed as a USB 3.0 Card Reader, only the USB port is USB 3.0 compliant. The card reader is reported as only having a USB 2.0 interface. They don't make that very obvious in the specification!

mikeym · 26 Mar 2016 at 22:30

I've used an AK-HC-05BK (Akasa) in three different builds and not had any problems - Windows Vista, 7 and 10.

mikeym · 26 Mar 2016 at 22:31

Sorry - just realised you mentioned 3.5" and the AK-HC-05BK is 5.25"

Fogold · 28 Mar 2016 at 12:00

Now I have numerous USB 3 devices lying around. Daren't sell on EBAy as I'm not sure they work properly!

Marzipanogram · 28 Mar 2016 at 14:47

marc2003 said:
Sorry for the slight hijack but what sort of write speeds should you get with a USB3 card reader? My monitor has one built in and I have a Sandisk 64GB Ultra microSDXC with SD adapter and am only seeing 12-13MB/s???

I know the USB3 connection is fine because USB3 sticks run at a decent speed (50MB/s write). I'm just wondering if this is a limitation of the card reader or the card/adapter??

I'm using a Lexar Pro 1000x 64GB SD card (rated at 150MB/s), with a Kingston FCR-HS3 reader (there's a newer FCR-HS4 out).
If I connect and transfer via the USB 3.0 headers on the front of my case I get around 84 to 85MB/s according to the Win10 dialogue box.

If I connect via a USB 3.1 port on the back of the MoBo, I get 82 to 83MB/s.

marc2003 · 28 Mar 2016 at 15:20

To think I was grumbling about 12MB/s the other day. :mad:

Razoo · 28 Mar 2016 at 17:49

I have now given up trying to find a good, reliable internal USB 3.0 Card Reader with a USB 3.0 compliant port to fit into a 3.5 in. bay. It seems that reliable ones simply don't exist, despite what some manufacturers might claim.

With many card readers, only the USB port is USB 3.0 compliant - the card reader interface is actually USB 2.0. For every unit I've researched, far too many owners report card readers DOA or dead/faulty after very little use. Added to that, mechanical problems seem far too common with card slots being badly made or badly aligned and cards being damaged or pins bent/broken during insertion or removal. Choosing a good internal USB 3.0 card reader appears to be something of a crapshoot!

I've decided I will just fit a 4-port USB 3.0 hub into my 3.5 in. bay and use a cheap, stand-alone USB 3.0 card reader that I can throw away when it goes wrong, as it undoubtedly will.

The USB 3.0 internal hub I've chosen is the Akasa AK-ICR-25 (CPC £19.25 incl. postage - I got the last one

). This hub will (allegedly!) plug directly into the internal USB 3.0 header on my motherboard, providing 2 x 5.0GB/s USB 3.0 ports. The hub also has an internal SATA power connector that provides power to 2 x fast charging USB ports.

The USB 3.0 card reader I'm considering is the Transcend RDF8 (Amazon £9.96). This true USB 3.0 card reader has done very well in various reviews and scored 5/5 in Digital Camera World's "Best Memory Card Reader" comparison test (March 2015). See:

<Transcend RDF8 USB 3.0 Card Reader - Best Buy>

Maybe one day a major manufacturer will get to grips with the design of a good quality, reliable, internal USB 3.0 card reader with a USB 3.0 compliant port, but until then... !

marc2003 · 28 Mar 2016 at 19:43

At 10 quid, it's certainly worth a punt.

labcoattech · 29 Mar 2016 at 15:34

Have a look at the Anker USB 3.0 Card Reader 8-in-1 AK-68ANREADER-B2A £7.99

or

Lexar Professional 25-in-1 USB 3.0 (500MB/s) Memory Card Reader - White LRW025URBEU £15.99

Armadillo · 29 Mar 2016 at 17:16

Razoo said:
The USB 3.0 card reader I'm considering is the Transcend RDF8 (Amazon £9.96). This true USB 3.0 card reader has done very well in various reviews and scored 5/5 in Digital Camera World's "Best Memory Card Reader" comparison test (March 2015). See:

I have that reader, have had it for over a year and use it frequently. Works great, and the slots seem to be holding up fine. I get decent speeds as well (well as much as I can considering my cards are not the fastest).

Only issue I've ever had with it, was when I changed motherboard, I had to change the usb3 cable I was using as for whatever reason, the card reader didn't seem to like the chipset change + that cable (old usb3 controller was Asmedia, new is intel x99). Since changing cable, it's been fine again.

Razoo · 30 Mar 2016 at 14:09

Armadillo said:
I have that reader, have had it for over a year and use it frequently. Works great, and the slots seem to be holding up fine. I get decent speeds as well (well as much as I can considering my cards are not the fastest).

That's good to hear.

I've just bought myself a Transcend RDF8 USB 3.0 card reader from 7dayshop.com for £9.49 including shipping (Overclockers don't seem to sell it).