Connect With FreeAgent Theater+

The Seagate FreeAgent Theater+ connects to your TV via HDMI (cable not included) and allows access to photos, video and music with 1080p HD playback. The device has a simplified user interface software and compact remote for control. Compatible with Windows XP, Vista, 7 and Mac OS X, it can comes with Ethernet, component video and composite A/V cables. Add to that a FreeAgent Go 500 External Hard Drive and that is one sweet system.

Via Seagate FreeAgent Theater+

Plextor Unveils New SSDs

Plextor has released 2 new solid state drives for those who need the additional storage. The PX-64M1S is only 2.5" thick but has a capacity of 64GB. With a SATA II interface, it is low power and shock and vibration resistant. The drive has 110MB/s sequential read 65MB/s in sequential write, up to 4,200 random read IOPS and 1,200 random write IOPS. It carries a MSRP of $225.00 and comes packed with Acronis True Image with advanced features for backup and recovery.

The 128GB PX-128M1S SSD has the same technology and delivers it with 130MB/s sequential read, 70MB/s in sequential write, up to 4,300 random read IOPS and 1,800 random write IOPS. This one goes for $400.00.

Via Plextor

StorE Saves 2TB Media Files

Toshiba's StorE TV will save up to 2TB of media files. It can stream audio, video and images from your PC to your HDTV, as well as via USB, an external DVD drive or SD card from your camera. The device will be available in Q4 with no price announced as yet.

Via Electric Pig

Freakin' Friday! MyGrid Simplifies Charging

Duracell's MyGrid makes charging your small electronics much easier. You can charge up to 4 devices at once on only one cord in the same amount of time as other ones. At a size of 6.75 x 8.5", you only need to insert a miniUSB tip into the MyGrid's charging port. Other accessories are also available.

Via Duracell Chargers

Freakin' Friday! Lexar Echo SE Backup Drive

At a size of only 5 x 0.5 x 7" and a weight of 1.1 ounces, the Lexar Echo SE is the company's smallest USB drive yet. With automatic backup software, the drive comes in capacity options from 16 - 64GB and has a speed of 28MB/s read and 10MB/s write. Due out in February, you can pre-order now.

Via Lexar Drives

Sanyo Music Booster Saves

Sanyo continues to expand on their eneloop success with its latest Music Booster, designed for both amateur and pro rock stars who replace ordinary batteries rather than worry about them going out in mid-performance. The lithium-ion batteries keep their charge even when the instrument is idle. The power source runs at a steady 9V and an indicator lets you know when it is time for a recharge.

Via The Financial

Show Your Face to Lockface Drive

Never worry about forgetting passwords again with the Lockface USB Drive. After taking several photos of your face, it uses facial recognition to let you in. The 4GB drive has 256-bit AES encryption and supposedly has 98% accuracy. A backup password system is included for the remaining 2% and don't forget you get an almost happy face to cheer you up. At a size of 22×4×55mm, it is so far available only in Japan for ~$110.00.

Via Business News (translated)

boxee Challenges Developers

For those who are both developers and boxee owners, the company has issued a challenge. Select from the three categories of video, music and photos. As an extra incentive, the People's Choice Award in each category will win a Drobo and the Judge's Choice Award will receive a 46″ Sony Bravia XBR9, which is being released in June. Get to work now as the application deadline is June 14. The winning apps will be announced on June 23 at a boxee event in San Francisco.

Via boxee blog

Iomega Introduces 1TB Home Media Network Drive

With all of the video and music downloads we're doing these days, it's amazing how few of us are actually backing up our valuable data. One of the biggest drawbacks of home backup is sometimes it seems like you need a degree from MIT to get your device and backup procedures set-up. Iomega is trying to change that with the Iomega Home Media Network Drive which is supposed to be easy to set-up even for novices.

Here's some info from Iomega's website:

Enjoy your digital life! Easily share and access photos, videos and music between your home computers with the Iomega Home Media Network Hard Drive. This device provides easy-to-use, yet powerful, network storage for the home user and the three step setup is a breeze, even if you've never used a network drive before.

Save all your digital files to one central location and share them between computers on your network. Then play back your pictures, videos and music from digital media adapters such as game consoles, digital picture frames or networked TVs. Built-in iTunes support automatically feeds music into iTunes for easy playback. Easily share one printer over the network.

Control which family members have access to certain folders. Plus, secure your memories and backup automatically with award winning EMC® Retrospect software (PC/Mac) and for extra protection backup online with MozyHome™ Online Backup service with 2GB free.

Features

• Simple to use--Three step set-up - simply plug into your router, power on, and install the software CD. Friendly web screens for easy management.
• Sharing--Access files from any networked Windows PC or Apple computer for easy file sharing.
• High Performance--Gigabit Ethernet connectivity combined with a high performance processor.
• UPnP™ AV Media Server--Compatible with DLNA® certified media players, able to stream photos, audio content and videos to a variety of media devices like game consoles, audio bridges, DMAs (digital media adapters), picture frames and more.
• iTunes™ Server--Store your audio content in one central location and share it across your iTunes players.
• Network File Protocols Supported--CIFS/SMB (Microsoft), AFP (Apple), HTTP 1.1
• Expandability--Add storage capacity by connecting external USB Hard Disk Drives. Supports FAT32 and NTFS formatted hard drives.
• Network Discovery--Automatic network discovery by Apple Bonjour and Microsoft Windows Rally devices.
• Data Protection--Touch-free professional-level backup for all your critical data with EMC® Retrospect HD backup software. Effortlessly back up files on a pre-set schedule.
• Print Server--Intelligent network print sharing capability for one USB printer directly attached to the HomeMedia drive

The MSRP for 1TB is $229.99 and $159.99 for 500GB. Those are pretty sweet price points for that much storage especially if it's easy for anyone to set up.

At Iomega.com

Drobo 2.0 Released with FireWire 800

Last year we here at NetworkingAudioVideo did a review on the Drobo Home NAS Server from Data Robotics. The Drobo is a device that is designed as a backup device with some hard-core features like multiple drive support. During our review we mentioned the lack of a network connection which puzzled us. Well the newest version, the Drobo 2.0 is still lacking a network connection but it does come with two Firewire 800 ports which is definitely a step-up.

It's good news but at $500 we still want to see a network connection.

[Via Wired.com]
[Thanks Jay]

Drobo Product Page: Drobo.com

Drobo USB (Original Version) at Amazon.com

LaCie Desktop Hard Disk - Perfect for USB Air Disk

We love the clean lines and decent price for this desktop storage unit from LaCie. Sure - it's not networkable, but it has the ability to hang off your Airport Extreme as a USB air disk or network backup using Time Machine. It comes in both a 500 gb and 320 gb model. Get the 500 and don't look back.

Via acquire at LaCie Desktop Hard Disk 301285U 500 GB USB 2.0 External Hard Drive

QNAP TS-409: The Only Backup Server You Will Ever Need

For those wanting a secure way to save all their files and at the same time have a fully robust media server look no further then the QNAP TS-409. This four bay RAID NAS server has all the great qualities that would expect out of a QNAP product. With 4 hard drive bays you can chose from just about any RAID format you want or just go with a JBOD and have one massive disk. This system is a great solution for those wanting to secure their data while at the same time looking for a low power, low noise server for hosting all of their media.

We complain all the time that requiring a PC to be running in order to stream your media is just wrong. We love that there are more and more embedded devices that are coming out that are bundling media streaming software. The TS-409 comes with TwonkyMedia, which is basically the de facto media streaming server out there. The 409 also bundles an iTunes Server as well so no matter what your needs are you are basically covered with this storage unit. Years ago storage units were just storage units. These days companies realize they need to offer more to the consumer to attract them.

We have played with the TS-209 which is their 2 bay offering and we can tell you first hand that it is an amazing product. It couldn't be more simple to set it up and within minutes of turning it on you not only have a secure way to backup your data, but you have a very robust media server. The 409 will stream to just about any device capable of dealing with UPnP including the PS3, Xbox 360, PSP, and the Nokia N95. We're sure there will be more added to this list in time.

If you don't have a good system for backing up your data and/or you need a quiet, low power, secure way to stream your media look no further, you just have seen the holy grail of storage solutions.

Drobo Share: Finally Network Connectivity for the Drobo

We had reviewed the Drobo NAS device awhile ago and found that while it was a pretty cool device, the fact that there was no network hookup was very disappointing. Well now they have released the Drobo Share, a base unit for your Drobo that will allow it to become a true NAS server. This base unit plugs into any existing Drobo unit and will add the ability to plug a network cable in and share it to anyone on your network. One of the cool things that this offers is that you can switch between using it as network attached storage and directly connecting it to your computer via USB. No extra steps are required, just unplug the ethernet cable and plug it into your computer via USB and it will adjust.

While the DroboShare is only $199 the actual Drobo unit itself is $499 without discs so this isn't a cheap solution, but the system truly makes backing up your data and keeping it safe about as simple as you can imagine. There are countless people on the web saying how amazing these devices are and if we hadn't already plunked down a bunch of cash on our existing backup strategy we would surely be picking this unit up. Check after the break for the full press release.
Continue reading: "Drobo Share: Finally Network Connectivity for the Drobo"

Great Example of why Everyone Should Backup Their Media All the Time

We are always preaching here about the importance of a good backup strategy for your media files. More times then we care to count we have lost files because of a drive that failed. In the end we went overboard and created a large RAID 5 storage system that will keep all of our data safe even with drive failure. Well, it seems that as much as we tell people that they should buy storage to back their files up they don't want to listen. A bunch of people we know over the past year have lost a lot of very important files because of a drive that failed. Even the simple act of buying an external USB drive can save you in case of a crash.

Well to hammer home the point a little further we would like to point you at a real world example of what can happen if you don't take a lot of care with your data. Baratunde Thurston writes an excellent blog over at baratunde.com and he has a very sad article about what happened to him one day when his hard drive crashed. If you think you've lost something important go check out his article and you will learn about how devastating it can be to lose your data. Losing some MP3s or some photos is one thing, but losing the last recording of your dead mothers voice puts it on a whole new level.

So once again, please, go out and buy an external hard drive and make sure you protect the files that are important to you.