A-DATA has announced its new waterproof and shock resistant portable HDD ‘SH93′ for the mass market. Coming in 250GB, 320GB, 500GB and 640GB capacities, these external HDDs feature a molded rubber-plastic case and special cushion materials making them both waterproof and shock resistant. In addition, these drives also meet the military’s MIL-STD-810F standard for drop resistance and can withstand being submerged in one meter of water for half an hour. Sadly, there’s no word on pricing and availability yet. More
Buffalo has just announced its new SuperSpeed USB 3.0 external HDD, the DriveStation HD-HXU3. Coming in a slick, black glossy design, the drive is available in either 1.0TB, 1.5TB or 2.0TB capacity and provides transfer speeds of up to 125MB/s. The drive is also backwards-compatible and will work seamlessly with USB 2.0-enabled computers, notebooks and netbooks. The Buffalo DriveStation HD-HXU3 will start shipping in Q4 for unannounced price yet. [INPAI]
The DMR-XP200 and XE100 are two new DVD and HDD recorders from Panasonic that feature similar specs and design. The Panasonic XE100 provides a 320GB of HDD and a digital TV tuner, while the Panasonic XP200 has a 500GB of HDD, a digital and analog TV tuner, and a BS/110 CD digital tuner. The XP200 is also capable of recording 1Seg TV program and save your recorded video on an SD card. No info on pricing or availability so far. [Kakaku]
Touted as the world’s first USB 3.0 HDD, Freecom’s newly announced XS 3.0 adopts SuperSpeed technology to provide users with very high data transfer rates. Coming in 1TB, 1.5TB and 2TB capacities, these compact 3.5-inch external HDDs offer transfer speeds of approximately 130 MB/s enabling users to back up and upload information in a matter of seconds. In addition, these HDDs also support backward-compatibility and work with all USB 2.0 enabled computers and notebooks. The Freecom XS 3.0 will start shipping in Europe from mid-November with a starting price of €119 (about $175) for 1TB version. [PCLaunches]
GeekStiff4U has started to sell the Chocolate Bar HDD case from Century Japan. Available in brown, white or pink, the case supports 2.5-inch SATA HDDs and a USB connector. What makes the Century Chocolate Bar HDD case more special is that it also supports both PC or Mac platforms. The Chocolate Bar HDD case retails for 1,790 Yen or equal to $19. [Product Page]
Western Digital today introduced its smaller, smarter and more secure My Passport Essential and My Passport for Mac ultra-portable external hard drives featuring the company’s new WD SmartWare software and equipped with hardware-based encryption. These hard drives provides user-selected password protection combined with military-grade 256-bit hardware encryption, which scrambles files before they are stored. The WD My Passport Essential is available in 320GB, 500GB and 640GB, while the WD My Passport for Mac is offered in capacities of 320GB and 50GB. The price ranges from $109.99 to $249.99, depending on model. [Press Release]
Samsung has added a new storage capacity option to its Spinpoint M7 HDD series by announcing the 640GB version. This new 2.5-inch hard drive offers a working speed of 5400RPM, a 3.0Gbps SATA interface, an 8MB of cache memory, two 320GB platters and utilizes Samsung’s proprietary SilentSeek and NoiseGuard technologies to minimize noise-levels during drive operation. The Samsung 640GB Spinpoint M7 will start shipping in Europe and the US from mid-September for $150. [TCMagazine]
Buffalo has released a new 500GB ultra-thin portable hard drive namely the Buffalo HD-PVU2. Measuring 81mm x 16mm x 130 mm, it comes with USB 2.0 connectivity and the eco-Manager software that will automatically power down the hard drive when idling to save power. Available in black or white version, the 320GB model is priced at 10,500 Yen ($112), while the 500GB model retails for 15,330 Yen ($164). More
Toshiba Japan has recently announced their latest 2.5-inch HDD in 640GB capacity, which is the highest in its class. Measuring at only 9.5mm thick and weighing 102grams, the MK6465GSX is also available in 160, 250, 320 and 500GB storage capacities. The 640GB model has an 8MB buffer and rotates at 5,400rpm. The drive also features 12msec seek time and a buffer-to-computer interface with a speed of 3.0 Gbit/s. Toshiba will release the first samples of their new HDD starting in about two weeks. Stay tuned for more updates. [Toshiba via CrunchGear]
Apricorn today launched the Aegis Padlock Secure Hard Drive that has a keypad allowing you to enter custom PIN numbers before data within can be accessed. In addition, the device also features AES-128 or 256 bit encryption to keep things safe, while it remains connected to your machine through a USB 2.0 cable. An Administrator feature allows you to set up to ten user IDs and one administrator. The Aegis Padlock Secure Hard Drive is currently available in 250GB, 320GB and 500GB storage capacities. The 128 bit AES models are available for $100, $110, and $140, respectively. The 256 bit AES models cost $120, $130, and $160, respectively. [Electronista]
