Sonnet Technologies is now shipping its Qio E3 professional SxS media. As the latest member of the Sonnet Qio series of professional universal media reader/writers, the Qio E3 is designed to offer a cost-effective, high-speed alternative to stand-alone card readers for videographers and studios. The three-slot SxS memory card reader includes an integrated two-port 6Gb/s eSATA interface for connecting external storage systems, and doubles as a bus expansion system for ExpressCard/34 adapter cards.
The Qio E3 provides users with the ability to transfer data concurrently from three SxS memory cards for Sony XDCAM EX professional HD camcorders, thereby increasing efficiency. Users can copy files between any cards, attached storage, and the computer with aggregate bandwidth of up to 400MB/s, with an aggregate ingest speed for three SxS cards of 300MB/s. Designed both for in-studio and on-location use, the E3 features a rugged, compact case with the same 5.9in by 6.2in footprint as the original Qio, but with a thinner profile.
Two eSATA connectors on the back of Qio E3 enable users to connect two Sonnet Fusion F2QR or F3 portable two-drive hardware RAID SATA storage systems, or other SATA storage. These fast SATA connections accelerate card ingest when SATA is not otherwise available on a laptop.
The Qio E3's slots also support most PCI Express-based Sonnet professional ExpressCard/34 adapter cards and most adapters from other manufacturers. Supported Sonnet cards range from CompactFlash and SDXC UHS-I card readers to FireWire 800 adapters. It also supports ExpressCard adapters supplied with specialty devices, such as the AJA Io Express.