Western Digital revamps MyBook external drives

Western Digital on Thursday reworked its MyBook external hard disks with a new design that also adds a dose of new features. Replacing the previous ring of light with a strip, more advanced models now have a single strip that doubles as a capacity gauge. Each new version also provides new features for its class, the hard drive maker says. The Home Edition is the first mainstream drive from the company to include three interfaces. In addition to FireWire 400 and USB 2.0, the Home builds in external SATA for performance matching an internal disk with supporting computers and adapters. The Office Edition also breaks ground as the first MyBook to share its files online without an Ethernet connection; on Windows PCs, special MioNet software makes files and folders available online through USB whenever the PC is online.

Both Home and Office drives will also optionally backup data continuously in the background and intelligently power down with their host computers or after long stretches of idle time. The line is also backed by a simple Essential Edition 2.0 with a USB-only interface for users just concerned with extra space. Prices start at $130 for a 320GB Essential Edition 2.0 disk and scale up in price depending on storage and features, topping out with the 1TB Home and Office models that ship for $380. Every model should be available beginning today.