Buying guide

Drive Enclosures & Docks

Our pick

OWC Express 1M2

Choose the empty OWC Express 1M2 to reuse one NVMe SSD with a USB4 40 Gb/s computer.¹

Why this one

It accepts single- or double-sided 2230, 2242 and 2280 NVMe drives, includes a 40Gb/s USB-C cable and carries a two-year empty-enclosure warranty. Supply your own compatible SSD.¹

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The alternatives

Other contenders

OWC miniStack STX 2TB NVMe Matte Black
Choose the populated miniStack STX 2TB NVMe for included SSD storage and three extra Thunderbolt ports on a compatible Mac running macOS 11 or later. Its separate SATA bay leaves room for another drive; USB alone cannot access the NVMe SSD.⁹¹¹¹⁹
StarTech SDOCK2U313R
Choose the StarTech SDOCK2U313R for computer-free cloning between 2.5-inch or 3.5-inch SATA drives. Its open, tool-free dock makes drive changes straightforward.¹⁸²⁰

For storage that travels on one cable

Match the enclosure to the drive you already own: a 2.5-inch SATA drive and an M.2 NVMe drive require different housings.⁵¹⁶ For an NVMe drive, the bus-powered Plugable USBC-NVMe offers tool-free installation and both USB-C and USB-A cables. Its host connection uses USB 3.1 Gen 2.¹⁶

For connecting several drives at once

Start with drive type and count: the Mercury Elite Pro Quad holds four SATA drives over USB, while the Express 4M2 Ultra takes four M-key NVMe drives.⁷⁸²¹ The empty Express 4M2 Ultra fits four 2242 or 2280 M-key NVMe drives. RAID needs SoftRAID or another RAID utility; installation uses screws, and SSDs with attached heatsinks are unsupported.⁷²² For eight SATA drives, choose the empty ThunderBay 8 with a Thunderbolt 3 computer. It accepts both 2.5- and 3.5-inch drives.³¹⁵

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14 products

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Models in this comparison

Specification	OWC Express 1M2	OWC Drive Dock	OWC Express	OWC Express 4M2	OWC Express 4M2 Ultra	OWC Mercury Elite Pro Quad	OWC miniStack STX 1TB NVMe Matte Black	OWC miniStack STX 2TB HDD + 2TB NVMe Matte Black	OWC miniStack STX 2TB NVMe Matte Black	OWC miniStack STX 4TB HDD Matte Black	OWC ThunderBay 4	OWC ThunderBay 8	Plugable USBC-NVMe	StarTech SDOCK2U313R
Interface	USB4 (40Gb/s)¹	USB 3.2 (10Gb/s)²	USB 3.2 (5Gb/s)⁴	USB4 (40Gb/s)⁶	Thunderbolt 5 (Host: Mac: macOS14.6.x or later; Thunderbolt5 requires macOS15.3.x or later; Thunderbolt3 and Intel based systems require macOS15.x or later; PC: Windows11(24H2) or later)⁷	USB 3.2 Gen 2⁸	Thunderbolt 4 (Host interface: NVMe SSD usage requires a Thunderbolt (USB-C) host connection with a compatible system running macOS 11.x or later. USB host connectivity provides SATA drive use only and limits additional miniStack STX ports to USB connectivity only.)⁹	Thunderbolt 4 (Host interface: NVMe SSD usage requires a Thunderbolt (USB-C) host connection with a compatible system running macOS 11.x or later. USB host connectivity provides SATA drive use only and limits additional miniStack STX ports to USB connectivity only.)⁹	Thunderbolt 4 (Host interface: NVMe SSD usage requires a Thunderbolt (USB-C) host connection with a compatible system running macOS 11.x or later. USB host connectivity provides SATA drive use only and limits additional miniStack STX ports to USB connectivity only.)⁹	Thunderbolt 4 (Host interface: NVMe SSD usage requires a Thunderbolt (USB-C) host connection with a compatible system running macOS 11.x or later. USB host connectivity provides SATA drive use only and limits additional miniStack STX ports to USB connectivity only.)⁹	Thunderbolt (USB-C)³	Thunderbolt 3¹⁵	USB 3.1 Gen 2¹⁶	USB 3.2 Gen 2¹⁸
Compatible drives	NVMe M.2 2230, 2242, or 2280 single or double-sided SSD¹	2.5-inch and 3.5-inch SATA drives²	Any 2.5” SATA drive up to 9.5 mm tall⁵	NVMe M.2 SSDs³	Any PCIe M.2 SSD with 2280 \| 2242 M-Key form factor (Host: NVMe SSDs with a heatsink are not supported)⁷	2.5" and 3.5" SATA drives²¹	- (1) 2.5-inch or 3.5-inch SATA 6Gb/s SSD or HDD - (1) NVMe M.2 SSD 2280 (Host interface: NVMe SSD usage requires a Thunderbolt (USB-C) host connection with a compatible system running macOS 11.x or later. USB host connectivity provides SATA drive use only and limits additional miniStack STX ports to USB connectivity only.)¹¹	- (1) 2.5-inch or 3.5-inch SATA 6Gb/s SSD or HDD - (1) NVMe M.2 SSD 2280 (Host interface: NVMe SSD usage requires a Thunderbolt (USB-C) host connection with a compatible system running macOS 11.x or later. USB host connectivity provides SATA drive use only and limits additional miniStack STX ports to USB connectivity only.)¹¹	- (1) 2.5-inch or 3.5-inch SATA 6Gb/s SSD or HDD - (1) NVMe M.2 SSD 2280 (Host interface: NVMe SSD usage requires a Thunderbolt (USB-C) host connection with a compatible system running macOS 11.x or later. USB host connectivity provides SATA drive use only and limits additional miniStack STX ports to USB connectivity only.)¹¹	- (1) 2.5-inch or 3.5-inch SATA 6Gb/s SSD or HDD - (1) NVMe M.2 SSD 2280 (Host interface: NVMe SSD usage requires a Thunderbolt (USB-C) host connection with a compatible system running macOS 11.x or later. USB host connectivity provides SATA drive use only and limits additional miniStack STX ports to USB connectivity only.)¹¹	2.5-inch or 3.5-inch³	2.5-inch and 3.5-in SATA Drives¹⁵	M.2 NVMe SSDs (2230, 2242, 2260, 2280)¹⁶	2.5/3.5" SATA HDDS and SSDs (Host: Manufacturer table records tested with up to6TB drives; any-capacity wording is not a universal host compatibility guarantee.)¹⁸
Enclosure type	Closed enclosure¹	Open dock³	Closed enclosure⁵	Closed enclosure⁶	Closed enclosure⁷	Closed enclosure⁸	Closed enclosure¹⁰	Closed enclosure¹²	Closed enclosure¹³	Closed enclosure¹⁴	Closed enclosure³	Closed enclosure³	Closed enclosure¹⁶	Open dock¹⁸
Power source	Not published	AC powered²	Bus powered⁴	Not published	Not published	Not published	AC powered¹¹	AC powered¹¹	AC powered¹¹	AC powered¹¹	Not published	Not published	Bus powered¹⁶	Not published
Drive bays	Not published	2²	Not published	Not published	4⁷	4⁸	2¹¹	2¹¹	2¹¹	2¹¹	4³	8³	Not published	Not published
Tool-free	Not published	Yes²	No⁵	Not published	No⁷	Not published	No¹¹	No¹¹	No¹¹	No¹¹	Not published	Not published	Yes¹⁶	Yes¹⁸
Cooling	Not published	Passive²	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published	Active fan⁹	Active fan⁹	Active fan⁹	Active fan⁹	Not published	Not published	Passive¹⁷	Not published
RAID modes	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published	RAID 0/1/4/5/10/JBOD (Protocol: SoftRAID or another RAID utility; bare enclosure can be purchased without SoftRAID)²²	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published
Extra ports	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published	second Thunderbolt 5 port²²	Not published	three Thunderbolt (USB-C) ports (Host interface: NVMe SSD usage requires a Thunderbolt (USB-C) host connection with a compatible system running macOS 11.x or later. USB host connectivity provides SATA drive use only and limits additional miniStack STX ports to USB connectivity only.)⁹	three Thunderbolt (USB-C) ports (Host interface: NVMe SSD usage requires a Thunderbolt (USB-C) host connection with a compatible system running macOS 11.x or later. USB host connectivity provides SATA drive use only and limits additional miniStack STX ports to USB connectivity only.)⁹	three Thunderbolt (USB-C) ports (Host interface: NVMe SSD usage requires a Thunderbolt (USB-C) host connection with a compatible system running macOS 11.x or later. USB host connectivity provides SATA drive use only and limits additional miniStack STX ports to USB connectivity only.)⁹	three Thunderbolt (USB-C) ports (Host interface: NVMe SSD usage requires a Thunderbolt (USB-C) host connection with a compatible system running macOS 11.x or later. USB host connectivity provides SATA drive use only and limits additional miniStack STX ports to USB connectivity only.)⁹	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published
Warranty	2 years¹	2 years²	1 year²³	Not published	2 years²²	1 year²¹	3 years¹¹	3 years (Tested configuration: OWC miniStack STX package bundled with a drive; empty enclosures have a one-year warranty.)¹¹	3 years (Tested configuration: OWC miniStack STX package bundled with a drive; empty enclosures have a one-year warranty.)¹¹	3 years (Tested configuration: OWC miniStack STX package bundled with a drive; empty enclosures have a one-year warranty.)¹¹	Not published	Not published	2 years¹⁶	2 years¹⁸
Drive cloning	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published	Yes²⁰

Compare features

InterfaceEnclosure typePower sourceTool-freeCoolingReset requirements

14 products

OWC Express 1M2

Interface: USB4 (40Gb/s)¹
Enclosure type: Closed enclosure¹
Power source: Not published
Tool-free: Not published
Cooling: Not published

OWC Drive Dock

Interface: USB 3.2 (10Gb/s)²
Enclosure type: Open dock³
Power source: AC powered²
Tool-free: Yes²
Cooling: Passive²

OWC Express

Interface: USB 3.2 (5Gb/s)⁴
Enclosure type: Closed enclosure⁵
Power source: Bus powered⁴
Tool-free: No⁵
Cooling: Not published

OWC Express 4M2

Interface: USB4 (40Gb/s)⁶
Enclosure type: Closed enclosure⁶
Power source: Not published
Tool-free: Not published
Cooling: Not published

OWC Express 4M2 Ultra

Interface: Thunderbolt 5 (Host: Mac: macOS14.6.x or later; Thunderbolt5 requires macOS15.3.x or later; Thunderbolt3 and Intel based systems require macOS15.x or later; PC: Windows11(24H2) or later)⁷
Enclosure type: Closed enclosure⁷
Power source: Not published
Tool-free: No⁷
Cooling: Not published

OWC Mercury Elite Pro Quad

Interface: USB 3.2 Gen 2⁸
Enclosure type: Closed enclosure⁸
Power source: Not published
Tool-free: Not published
Cooling: Not published

OWC miniStack STX 1TB NVMe Matte Black

Interface: Thunderbolt 4 (Host interface: NVMe SSD usage requires a Thunderbolt (USB-C) host connection with a compatible system running macOS 11.x or later. USB host connectivity provides SATA drive use only and limits additional miniStack STX ports to USB connectivity only.)⁹
Enclosure type: Closed enclosure¹⁰
Power source: AC powered¹¹
Tool-free: No¹¹
Cooling: Active fan⁹

OWC miniStack STX 2TB HDD + 2TB NVMe Matte Black

Interface: Thunderbolt 4 (Host interface: NVMe SSD usage requires a Thunderbolt (USB-C) host connection with a compatible system running macOS 11.x or later. USB host connectivity provides SATA drive use only and limits additional miniStack STX ports to USB connectivity only.)⁹
Enclosure type: Closed enclosure¹²
Power source: AC powered¹¹
Tool-free: No¹¹
Cooling: Active fan⁹

OWC miniStack STX 2TB NVMe Matte Black

Interface: Thunderbolt 4 (Host interface: NVMe SSD usage requires a Thunderbolt (USB-C) host connection with a compatible system running macOS 11.x or later. USB host connectivity provides SATA drive use only and limits additional miniStack STX ports to USB connectivity only.)⁹
Enclosure type: Closed enclosure¹³
Power source: AC powered¹¹
Tool-free: No¹¹
Cooling: Active fan⁹

OWC miniStack STX 4TB HDD Matte Black

Interface: Thunderbolt 4 (Host interface: NVMe SSD usage requires a Thunderbolt (USB-C) host connection with a compatible system running macOS 11.x or later. USB host connectivity provides SATA drive use only and limits additional miniStack STX ports to USB connectivity only.)⁹
Enclosure type: Closed enclosure¹⁴
Power source: AC powered¹¹
Tool-free: No¹¹
Cooling: Active fan⁹

OWC ThunderBay 4

Interface: Thunderbolt (USB-C)³
Enclosure type: Closed enclosure³
Power source: Not published
Tool-free: Not published
Cooling: Not published

OWC ThunderBay 8

Interface: Thunderbolt 3¹⁵
Enclosure type: Closed enclosure³
Power source: Not published
Tool-free: Not published
Cooling: Not published

Plugable USBC-NVMe

Interface: USB 3.1 Gen 2¹⁶
Enclosure type: Closed enclosure¹⁶
Power source: Bus powered¹⁶
Tool-free: Yes¹⁶
Cooling: Passive¹⁷

StarTech SDOCK2U313R

Interface: USB 3.2 Gen 2¹⁸
Enclosure type: Open dock¹⁸
Power source: Not published
Tool-free: Yes¹⁸
Cooling: Not published

How they compare

Scroll the table to see every product and specification.

Specification	Our pickOWC Express 1M2	OWC Drive Dock	OWC Express	OWC Express 4M2	OWC Express 4M2 Ultra	OWC Mercury Elite Pro Quad	OWC miniStack STX 1TB NVMe Matte Black	OWC miniStack STX 2TB HDD + 2TB NVMe Matte Black	OWC miniStack STX 2TB NVMe Matte Black	OWC miniStack STX 4TB HDD Matte Black	OWC ThunderBay 4	OWC ThunderBay 8	Plugable USBC-NVMe	StarTech SDOCK2U313R
Interface	USB4 (40Gb/s)¹	USB 3.2 (10Gb/s)²	USB 3.2 (5Gb/s)⁴	USB4 (40Gb/s)⁶	Thunderbolt 5 (Host: Mac: macOS14.6.x or later; Thunderbolt5 requires macOS15.3.x or later; Thunderbolt3 and Intel based systems require macOS15.x or later; PC: Windows11(24H2) or later)⁷	USB 3.2 Gen 2⁸	Thunderbolt 4 (Host interface: NVMe SSD usage requires a Thunderbolt (USB-C) host connection with a compatible system running macOS 11.x or later. USB host connectivity provides SATA drive use only and limits additional miniStack STX ports to USB connectivity only.)⁹	Thunderbolt 4 (Host interface: NVMe SSD usage requires a Thunderbolt (USB-C) host connection with a compatible system running macOS 11.x or later. USB host connectivity provides SATA drive use only and limits additional miniStack STX ports to USB connectivity only.)⁹	Thunderbolt 4 (Host interface: NVMe SSD usage requires a Thunderbolt (USB-C) host connection with a compatible system running macOS 11.x or later. USB host connectivity provides SATA drive use only and limits additional miniStack STX ports to USB connectivity only.)⁹	Thunderbolt 4 (Host interface: NVMe SSD usage requires a Thunderbolt (USB-C) host connection with a compatible system running macOS 11.x or later. USB host connectivity provides SATA drive use only and limits additional miniStack STX ports to USB connectivity only.)⁹	Thunderbolt (USB-C)³	Thunderbolt 3¹⁵	USB 3.1 Gen 2¹⁶	USB 3.2 Gen 2¹⁸
Compatible drives	NVMe M.2 2230, 2242, or 2280 single or double-sided SSD¹	2.5-inch and 3.5-inch SATA drives²	Any 2.5” SATA drive up to 9.5 mm tall⁵	NVMe M.2 SSDs³	Any PCIe M.2 SSD with 2280 \| 2242 M-Key form factor (Host: NVMe SSDs with a heatsink are not supported)⁷	2.5" and 3.5" SATA drives²¹	- (1) 2.5-inch or 3.5-inch SATA 6Gb/s SSD or HDD - (1) NVMe M.2 SSD 2280 (Host interface: NVMe SSD usage requires a Thunderbolt (USB-C) host connection with a compatible system running macOS 11.x or later. USB host connectivity provides SATA drive use only and limits additional miniStack STX ports to USB connectivity only.)¹¹	- (1) 2.5-inch or 3.5-inch SATA 6Gb/s SSD or HDD - (1) NVMe M.2 SSD 2280 (Host interface: NVMe SSD usage requires a Thunderbolt (USB-C) host connection with a compatible system running macOS 11.x or later. USB host connectivity provides SATA drive use only and limits additional miniStack STX ports to USB connectivity only.)¹¹	- (1) 2.5-inch or 3.5-inch SATA 6Gb/s SSD or HDD - (1) NVMe M.2 SSD 2280 (Host interface: NVMe SSD usage requires a Thunderbolt (USB-C) host connection with a compatible system running macOS 11.x or later. USB host connectivity provides SATA drive use only and limits additional miniStack STX ports to USB connectivity only.)¹¹	- (1) 2.5-inch or 3.5-inch SATA 6Gb/s SSD or HDD - (1) NVMe M.2 SSD 2280 (Host interface: NVMe SSD usage requires a Thunderbolt (USB-C) host connection with a compatible system running macOS 11.x or later. USB host connectivity provides SATA drive use only and limits additional miniStack STX ports to USB connectivity only.)¹¹	2.5-inch or 3.5-inch³	2.5-inch and 3.5-in SATA Drives¹⁵	M.2 NVMe SSDs (2230, 2242, 2260, 2280)¹⁶	2.5/3.5" SATA HDDS and SSDs (Host: Manufacturer table records tested with up to6TB drives; any-capacity wording is not a universal host compatibility guarantee.)¹⁸
Enclosure type	Closed enclosure¹	Open dock³	Closed enclosure⁵	Closed enclosure⁶	Closed enclosure⁷	Closed enclosure⁸	Closed enclosure¹⁰	Closed enclosure¹²	Closed enclosure¹³	Closed enclosure¹⁴	Closed enclosure³	Closed enclosure³	Closed enclosure¹⁶	Open dock¹⁸
Power source	Not published	AC powered²	Bus powered⁴	Not published	Not published	Not published	AC powered¹¹	AC powered¹¹	AC powered¹¹	AC powered¹¹	Not published	Not published	Bus powered¹⁶	Not published
Drive bays	Not published	2²	Not published	Not published	4⁷	4⁸	2¹¹	2¹¹	2¹¹	2¹¹	4³	8³	Not published	Not published
Tool-free	Not published	Yes²	No⁵	Not published	No⁷	Not published	No¹¹	No¹¹	No¹¹	No¹¹	Not published	Not published	Yes¹⁶	Yes¹⁸
Cooling	Not published	Passive²	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published	Active fan⁹	Active fan⁹	Active fan⁹	Active fan⁹	Not published	Not published	Passive¹⁷	Not published
RAID modes	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published	RAID 0/1/4/5/10/JBOD (Protocol: SoftRAID or another RAID utility; bare enclosure can be purchased without SoftRAID)²²	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published
Extra ports	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published	second Thunderbolt 5 port²²	Not published	three Thunderbolt (USB-C) ports (Host interface: NVMe SSD usage requires a Thunderbolt (USB-C) host connection with a compatible system running macOS 11.x or later. USB host connectivity provides SATA drive use only and limits additional miniStack STX ports to USB connectivity only.)⁹	three Thunderbolt (USB-C) ports (Host interface: NVMe SSD usage requires a Thunderbolt (USB-C) host connection with a compatible system running macOS 11.x or later. USB host connectivity provides SATA drive use only and limits additional miniStack STX ports to USB connectivity only.)⁹	three Thunderbolt (USB-C) ports (Host interface: NVMe SSD usage requires a Thunderbolt (USB-C) host connection with a compatible system running macOS 11.x or later. USB host connectivity provides SATA drive use only and limits additional miniStack STX ports to USB connectivity only.)⁹	three Thunderbolt (USB-C) ports (Host interface: NVMe SSD usage requires a Thunderbolt (USB-C) host connection with a compatible system running macOS 11.x or later. USB host connectivity provides SATA drive use only and limits additional miniStack STX ports to USB connectivity only.)⁹	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published
Warranty	2 years¹	2 years²	1 year²³	Not published	2 years²²	1 year²¹	3 years¹¹	3 years (Tested configuration: OWC miniStack STX package bundled with a drive; empty enclosures have a one-year warranty.)¹¹	3 years (Tested configuration: OWC miniStack STX package bundled with a drive; empty enclosures have a one-year warranty.)¹¹	3 years (Tested configuration: OWC miniStack STX package bundled with a drive; empty enclosures have a one-year warranty.)¹¹	Not published	Not published	2 years¹⁶	2 years¹⁸
Drive cloning	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published	Not published	Yes²⁰