Up top. What the &$!?
Instead of having every-day external ports at the front, the DX has them up on top, about half way towards the back, and covered by a rather cheap-feeling pop-up plastic flap.
Some might approve of that decision but we don't like it much, in part because it restricts what you can place on top of the case.
We also don't like the fact that there's no FireWire port under the flap, just a pre-punched hole with a plate across it where a FireWire port could be fitted.
Ignoring the location, though, what we did like was the inclusion of an eSATA port. FireWire is useful because it offers faster real-world transfers to hard-disk than USB 2.0 – and also the ability to connect a MiniDV or HDV camcorder. eSATA, though, gives even faster hard-disk transfer speeds than FireWire and is where the market is moving for external hard disks for backup.
As well as eSATA port and two USB ports, the top flap also conceals two audio sockets, one for microphone and the other for headphone.
On the underside of the case are four feet that twist out and click into place. Some people love these, others aren't convinced. What they do definitely do, however, is make a system more stable and less likely to take a fall if knocked into by pets or kids or grown ups.
