LaCie announces 2big Thunderbolt 3 RAID dock, compatible with Apple's MacBook Pro with Tou...

AppleInsiderAppleInsider
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in Current Mac Hardware
Available this summer in capacities of 12, 16 or 20 terabytes, LaCie's forthcoming 2big professional 2-bay RAID storage solution features high-speed Thunderbolt 3 connectivity set to take advantage of Apple's latest MacBook Pros.




Thanks to Thunderbolt 3, the external storage will boast transfer rates of 440MB/s, allowing users to transfer one hour of 4K footage in just one minute. Apple's late 2016 MacBook Pro with Touch Bar models feature USB-C connectors compatible with Thunderbolt 3 accessories.

The Lacie 2big Dock is more than just an external drive, however The docking station also includes front facing SD and CF card slots and USB-A 3.0 port, plus DisplayPort support, dual Thunderbolt 3 ports, and a USB-C 3.1 port on the back.

In particular, using the dock's Thunderbolt 3 ports should allow MacBook Pro users the ability to power their laptop while simultaneously daisy-chaining up to five additional Thunderbolt accessories, or one USB-C drive. Thanks to Thunderbolt 3 and USB-C technology, this is possible with just one cable connected to the MacBook Pro.




LaCie has not yet announced pricing for its 2big Thunderbolt 3 docks, but the 12-terabyte Thunderbolt 2 model carries a suggested retail price of $789.

The new Thunderbolt 3 dock includes two drive bays that can each accommodate a 3.5-inch internal hard drive. These paired drives can be set up in RAID-0 or RAID-1 configurations, allowing for either maximum storage or redundancy to prevent data loss.




Other features of the 2big Thunderbolt 3 dock, according to LaCie, are:
  • Seagate IronWolf Pro enterprise-class drives and RAID optimization for superior power management and reliability
  • LaCie RAID Manager that easily monitors system's health with audible alarm and email alerts
  • Efficient cooling with aluminum enclosure and thermoregulated fan for professional reliability
  • A five-year limited warranty
LaCie plans to show off its new Thunderbolt 3 accessories at the NAB Show in Las Vegas next week. The 2big Dock is scheduled to launch through LaCie resellers, including Apple and AppleInsider partners Adorama and B&H Photo Video this summer.

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 11
    frankiefrankie Posts: 381member
    NO thanks had several LaCie drives go bad on me over a couple years and their customer support is pathetitc.  I will never buy a drive from them again.
  • Reply 2 of 11
    neilmneilm Posts: 987member
    To be a really useful dock it needs an ethernet port. While an ethernet adapter could be connected to the second TB3 port, that might well be needed for an external monitor. Similarly the single USB 3.1 port would likely be used for a keyboard or other peripheral. It also appears that the drives are not readily swappable — another opportunity wasted.

    Bottom line: too few ports to qualify as a real dock.
  • Reply 3 of 11
    lkrupplkrupp Posts: 10,557member
    frankie said:
    NO thanks had several LaCie drives go bad on me over a couple years and their customer support is pathetitc.  I will never buy a drive from them again.
    Your anecdote is meaningless. If it were as bad as you claim LaCie wouldn’t be in business, but they are and are considered one of the premier drive producers for Macs. Do you want to claim only stupid people buy LaCie products like the trolls claim about people who buy Apple products? Axe grinders are always trashing some established company like AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, Comcast, Apple, Samsung, Sony, you name it. One of the many reasons I no longer pay any attention to online consumer reviews or anecdotes on tech forums. Commenters like to trash Western Digital as well as LaCie but I have never had one of either brands fail on me. And if one did I’d understand that shit happens sometimes.
    edited April 2017 macxpressboltsfan17chia
  • Reply 4 of 11
    6toecat6toecat Posts: 51member
    Very nice, but it arrives too late for my purchasing & production schedule.
  • Reply 5 of 11
    unicronunicron Posts: 154member
    Oh, that old industry chestnut, "transfer rate". About as useful information as megahertz. :D 
  • Reply 6 of 11
    spliff monkeyspliff monkey Posts: 884member
    lkrupp said:
    frankie said:
    NO thanks had several LaCie drives go bad on me over a couple years and their customer support is pathetitc.  I will never buy a drive from them again.
    Your anecdote is meaningless. If it were as bad as you claim LaCie wouldn’t be in business, but they are and are considered one of the premier drive producers for Macs. Do you want to claim only stupid people buy LaCie products like the trolls claim about people who buy Apple products? Axe grinders are always trashing some established company like AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, Comcast, Apple, Samsung, Sony, you name it. One of the many reasons I no longer pay any attention to online consumer reviews or anecdotes on tech forums. Commenters like to trash Western Digital as well as LaCie but I have never had one of either brands fail on me. And if one did I’d understand that shit happens sometimes.

    Lacie lost me many years ago because of similar issues. The big drives are the worst because if the bridge goes bad you'll never be able to recover the data though the hard drives themselves are technically fine. I lost probably 10 lacie big disks over a two year period. All with the same problem. Fortunately they were always mirrored. 

    It isn't entirely anecdotal either. It was a big problem for years and maybe still lurks in the shadows if they use the same BS bridge technology to use two smaller drives to make one big drive. Even if they aren't using the same bridging technology I think of lacie like my ex wife. Too much broken to ever go back. 

    Like I said, any drive that requires a proprietary bridge that prevents you from recovering the media should it fail... is a fail in and of itself. So you disagree and I agree with the OP. Yay. The world didn't blow up because we have different opinions. You don't have to label anyone whose thoughts don't fit your paradigm a "troll" or an axe grinder. Is one supposed to blindly follow brands despite their failings. No, absolutely not. 

    on on another note... cool to see drives attached to a "dock" but this doesn't really have enough ports to be called a dock. I'd rather have a dock with "lots" of ports and a couple of SATA slots for 2.5" drives so I can just mount SSD's as I please. Why would anyone want 17TB on one disk aside from video/ 3D projects is beyond me. To much to lose when they fail. 
  • Reply 7 of 11
    appexappex Posts: 687member
    Bring SSD.
  • Reply 8 of 11
    Swami BaloneySwami Baloney Posts: 19unconfirmed, member
    All flavors of Thunderbolt are missing low cost single external drives and enclosures. This impedes thunderbolt marketplace penetration.
  • Reply 9 of 11
    nhtnht Posts: 4,522member
    Swami Baloney said:
    All flavors of Thunderbolt are missing low cost single external drives and enclosures. This impedes thunderbolt marketplace penetration.
    These are called "USB 3 enclosures"...
  • Reply 10 of 11
    sedicivalvolesedicivalvole Posts: 227member
    Nice touch the CF Card, could have a use for this. But we'll be holding until the new Mac Pro to embrace Thunderbolt 3 throughout the divisions 
  • Reply 11 of 11
    oadbyladoadbylad Posts: 6member
    La Cie has a long history of announcing products, that never see the light of day. I assume they are testing interest, prior to investing in manufacturing.

    Do you remember their big Thunderbolt 3 announcement last fall, The La Cie Bolt3 that has yet to see the light of day.
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