Hardware Review
Vizo Master Panel II
Front multifunction I/O panels are now a must have for any computers. Accessibility is what all front I/O panels provide. Rather than always going back to the back of your computer to connect your peripherals, you can access vital connections right in front of your case. Tonight we'll take a look at a multi I/O front panel from Vizo. We would like to thank the Vizo team for making this review possible.
Vizo Technology Corporation specializes in computer peripherals, ranging from notebook coolers to external enclosures. They have sent our lab one of their multi I/O front panel, the Master Panel II. Our unit came in on a Vizo retail package. The unit was packaged well in plastic casing together with the cables. Here are a few features of the Master Panel II
| For 5.25" Bay |
| USB2.0 internal card reader 4 memory slots are active, which allows you to copy data between the different memory cards at the same time |
| Dual fan speed control knobs (4V -12 V) |
| Multi I/O transfer function (USB*2/ 1394 / eSATA/ RCA / audio*3) |
| Support hot plug and hot swappable. Must be attached to hot swappable compliant host to enable hot swappable function |
| No need to go to the back, do it in the front |
| Support WIN 98SE / ME / 2000 / XP / Vista |
Let's take look at the I/O panel further. The Master Panel II basically fits inside a standard 5.25" in bay. What we liked about the I/O panel is the amount of functions it sports. The unit has a USB 2.0 multi flash card reader. It supports your standard cards such as Compact Flash both type I or II, Memory Stick, SD as well as Smart Media. A dual fan speed controller is also included. The Master Panel II has your standard I/O ports which include two USB ports, Firewire, eSata, RCA and audio connections which you can connect to your motherboard.
Click the images to see the enlarge version
Installation is very straightforward. In our case, we just had to place drive brackets and slide the unit in our 5.25" bay to secure the panel. Connecting the cables was fairly simple too. The cables were clearly marked and the manual provided adequate diagrams and directions for installing the panel. After verifying the proper orientations for our motherboard headers on the panel, we were now ready to try using the front panel.
After connecting all cables we tested each functions of the I/O panel. We were fairly satisfied and every port was working accordingly. The Master Panel II provided us an easier access to for our peripherals. The panel not only gives us USB, Firewire, Audio/Video connections in the front, it also has the multi flash card reader as well as two fan controllers. Overall, the Master Panel II has a very good functionality. We're pleased to give the Vizo Master Panel a score of 8 out 10. If you want to get more information on this product, please kindly visit Vizo's website. You can also discuss this review in our forum with our other members.
