Imation Disk Stakka
MSDN is offering a special deal on the Imation Disk Stakka (the link doesn’t appear to be protected, so I think even non-MSDN subscribers can get the special price). Since I like technology toys, I thought I’d pick one up.
Eventually, I liked this thing. It’s a cool concept, which I’ll describe in a moment. But, first I have to tell you that it took 3 attempts and intervention from someone on their helpdesk before I got a working unit. Imation outsources their online store to Digital River, so there isn’t a real connection between their helpdesk and their retail operation. When my first unit was DOA, I was told I needed to return it and re-order because they didn’t have a mechanism for replacement. I did this – meaning I have paid for two units while waiting for them to refund my money for the first unit – and the 2nd unit I received was defective as well! Both were shipped in the retail box, which doesn’t have sufficient padding, with just a shipping label pasted to the outside. I’m pretty sure this is what caused the trouble. Someone on the help desk offered to test a unit himself, pack it well, and ship it to me himself, rather than go through the fulfillment center. This finally resulted in me getting a working unit. So, if you read this review and decide you want one, just beware of the possible DOAs.
The Stakka consists of two parts – one hardware, one software. The hardware is an enclosed carousel with a slot for inserting/removing CDs or DVDs (full-size only, no shapes). The software is an explorer-integrated inventory system. When you insert a disc into the Stakka, the software asks what the disc is, and what category it belongs to. You can then use the explorer portion to browse the discs that are in the Stakka and select one to be ejected. Viola, it spits it out of the slot on the Stakka. It keeps track of all discs that have been ejected, and defaults to one of those when you insert another disc.
You can stack up to 5 units on top of each other, controlled off a single USB cable. Theoretically, with a powered USB hub, you can control over 100 Stakkas from a single PC.
It’s a little bulky, and takes up a little too much space on my desk for my liking, so it will probably be relocated into the closet with my servers. Other than that (and the DOA problems), I like it a lot. I was rebuilding a machine the other day, and it certainly made it easy to track down all the application and driver discs I needed. It’s a lot faster than flipping through the old MSDN binders I used for storage previously. At $99, it’s probably a frivolous toy, but if I build 400 more machines, it will have paid for itself. <grin>