Iomega kicks out Mac Companion drive with iPad charging
updated 09:25 am EDT, Tue August 2, 2011
Iomega intros Mac Companion Hard Drive
Iomega made an unusual contribution to external hard drives built for committed Apple fans. The Mac Companion Hard Drive both provides pre-formatted storage for the Mac itself but a high-power USB port for charging. The connector can work with most any USB device but is intended for iPad owners who either don't have a Mac with the extra-power USB or who already have their ports full.
The drive is otherwise intended to fill in the needs of most Mac users with a pair of FireWire 800 ports for daisy-chaining devices as well as a USB 2.0 input and a two-port USB 2.0 hub. Cables come in the box to hook up to both FireWire 800 and USB 2.0 as well as FireWire 400 through an adapter. Iomega bundles both its own QuikProtect for those who aren't using Time Machine backups as well as a preloaded copy of Mozy's online backup and Trend Smart Surfing to screen against identity attacks.
The design is made to feel at home in a Mac environment, Iomega says. Along with a black-and-metal look, an LED-based capacity gauge gives a quick look at how full the drive might be.
Versions of the Mac Companion come with 2TB or 3TB of space for $195 and $295 respectively. It should be available very soon at the Apple Store online and in retail, and it should reach other stores osmetime later this month.
Forum Regular
Joined: Jan 2010
Bad idea, bad company.
Why not make that "charging port" a real USB 2.0 port? So you can daisy chain disks?
Iomega is infamous for the "Click of Death" in two of its product lines. I'll never buy an Iomega product again, no matter how many iOS device charging ports they have.
Company history including class action lawsuit:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iomega
Click of Death Product #1: Zip drive
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zip_Drive
Click of Death Product #2: Jaz drive
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jaz_Drive