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Technology Bytes
by Francine Brokaw
Iomega Flash Drive
Have you noticed people with their little flash drives hanging around their necks or clipped to their pockets? This is a common site these days as people have really taken notice of the small little devices that can store all their information safely in one tiny portable unit. These devices are smaller than the size of a pack of chewing gum, yet they store hundreds of megabytes of information.
Iomega has a new flash drive that users can personalize. Yep, instead of having a plain gray or black drive, how about adding some photos of your children? There’s a window on one side where users can insert a photo (a miniature one, of course), a drawing, or anything else you want to put in there to make it your own unit. This might sound a little sophomoric, but it never hurts to make sure you know which drive is yours. Especially when so many people have them these days.
The Iomega Mini works with any USB drive. It’s designed to work with the USB 2.0 drives, but USB 2.0 devices are all backwards compatible so they can be used in USB 1.1 ports too. Windows 98 and Windows 98SE users will have to download the free drivers from the Iomega website before they install the unit. Mac OS 8.6 users will have to download the Mass Storage drivers from the apple site. All others can simply insert the unit into their USB port and the computer will do the rest. Then, simply use the drive as an additional drive on your system. The best part is it’s portable.
You might wonder how much these little drives can actually hold. They come in several size capacities – 128 MB, 256 MB, 512 MB and 1 GB. The 128 MB drive is equal to 88 floppy discs and can hold about 36 MP3s and about 100 digital photos. The 256 MB drive is the capacity of 177 floppy discs. It averages about 72 MP3s and 200 digital photos. The 512 drive is equal to 354 floppy discs and stores about 144 MP3s and 400 digital photos. And the one gigabyte drive is equivalent to 711 floppies, holding 800+ digital photos and about 288 MP3s. That’s a lot of storage in a unit the size of a pack of chewing gum.
With Iomega’s Active Disk intelligence, users are able to run their software applications from their mini drive.
The Iomega Mini USB Drives come with a built-in clip and a sturdy “handle” so it can be added to any chain.
The best part about these units is their portability. Users are discovering that portability is the way of the future. If you don’t have a laptop, you’re still able to take your computing with you on vacation. Just put your work on a flash drive, find an internet café or a computer in your hotel, and plug in the drive. In seconds you’re off and running with your own files/programs at your fingertips. That is, “if” you want to do some computing and work while you’re on vacation!
Sharing files and photos has never been easier. Just transfer them to the drive and take them with you. The next time you go visit your friends or family, you can have your latest photos or music handy to share.
Privacy is another reason to use a portable USB drive. Store your personal information and files on the drive so they remain for your eyes only. This is also a good place to store passwords and other data that is yours alone.
The Iomega Mini USB Drive is a handy little unit. And with the mini window, you can personalize it. Iomega is a leader in storage devices. The Mini USB Drive is a great valuable addition to their product line.
© 2004 Francine Brokaw
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