LG joins external HDD race with XD1 drives

Normally making just PCs and their displays, LG today expanded into external hard drives through the XD1. The notebook-sized disks are designed to be stylish with a unique, gradiated color scheme in black or red that mirrors the look of the company's Scarlet HDTVs. All the hard drives are completely bus-powered but are still thin enough to slip into bags or to an optional leather case.

Two versions of the XD1 are available and include a basic USB-only version with between 120GB to 320GB of storage as well as a same-sized XD1 COMBO model that adds external SATA for computers that can use the higher-speed format. The drives should already be available in Korea at prices ranging between $89 and $168 depending on the storage and interface.

LG hasn't yet announced US plans but notes that the drives work with Linux and Mac OS X systems as well as Windows PCs. [via AVING]