WD intros My DVR Expander with USB interface

Western Digital on Thursday released its My DVR Expander External Hard Drive USB Edition made to work with DISH Network ViP-series HD DVRs to more than double their recording capacity. The 500GB drive is capable of storing up to 60 hours of HD programming or 300 hours in standard definition. The drives connect to the DVRs via a USB 2.0 connection, unlike WD's previous Expander, which featured an eSATA interface.

While the drive is currently only supported by the DISH Network's ViP612, ViP622 and ViP722 receivers, compatibility with more DVR brands is expected in the future.

WD's newest drive triples the ViP612 and ViP622's recording capacities of 30 hours of HD programming and adds 300 hours to their 200-hour capacity of standard TV. The ViP722 is rated at 55 hours of HD recording and 300 hours of standard definition capacity, with WD's solution more than doubling these numbers.

The WD My DVR Expander drives include a no-fan passive cooling system and
eco-friendly WD AV-GP hard drive with GreenPower technology, for quiet operation and less power consumption than standard external hard drives.

The My DVR Expander USB Edition drive can be purchased now on WD's web store for $150 and the DISH Network charges a one-time port activation fee of $40 for the external drive support.