World's Thinnest USB 3.0 External Drive Announced
By: David Murphy
Just how slim is the "thinnest external hard drive?" Well, if we're talking about the thinnest, USB 3.0-compatible device, then the crown goes to the recently announced Mobile Drive Mg by Freecom. It's just one centimeter (0.39 inches) thick, with overall dimensions of 12-by-8.1-by-1 for the 320-gigabyte version of the device. Additional storage will cost you physical space, as the 750-gigabyte version of the Mobile Drive Mg kicks the device's height up to a whopping 1.5 centimeters.
A USB 3.0 and FireWire 800 version of the device comes in at 750 gigabytes of storage as well, with the same dimensions as the USB 3.0-only variant. The external hard drive's "ultra lightweight" magnesium enclosure should put it at roughly 50 to 60 percent of the weight of similar aluminum-based external hard drives—a mere .37 pounds for the 320-gigabyte "slimline" variant.
If the coloration didn't give it away, then the formatting of the drives should—the Mobile Drive Mg drives come preformatted for Mac HFS+. Of course, an Apple product that comes with support for USB 3.0 out of the box has yet to exist, so Apple users will (for now) have to tolerate the maximum data rate of 60 Megabytes per second for USB 2.0.
If, or when, Apple jumps onboard the USB 3.0 train, the theoretical maximum connection speed jumps up to 614 Megabytes per second. But, remember, the physical parameters of the hard drive within the Mobile Drive Mg itself constrain the connection speed: One can only transfer as fast as the drive can process, after all.
Of course, USB 3.0 is backwards-compatible with USB 2.0, so owners of the Mobile Drive Mg won't be left out in the dark regardless of which version of the connection format they sport.
Expect to see all versions of the Mobile Drive Mg hitting Apple Premium Resellers in mid-January. The 750-gigabyte version of the device with both USB 3.0 and FireWire 800 support will set one back $120. The 750-gigabyte drive with just USB 3.0 will cost $110, and the ultra-slim, 320-gigabyte drive will cost $70.
A USB 3.0 and FireWire 800 version of the device comes in at 750 gigabytes of storage as well, with the same dimensions as the USB 3.0-only variant. The external hard drive's "ultra lightweight" magnesium enclosure should put it at roughly 50 to 60 percent of the weight of similar aluminum-based external hard drives—a mere .37 pounds for the 320-gigabyte "slimline" variant.
If the coloration didn't give it away, then the formatting of the drives should—the Mobile Drive Mg drives come preformatted for Mac HFS+. Of course, an Apple product that comes with support for USB 3.0 out of the box has yet to exist, so Apple users will (for now) have to tolerate the maximum data rate of 60 Megabytes per second for USB 2.0.
If, or when, Apple jumps onboard the USB 3.0 train, the theoretical maximum connection speed jumps up to 614 Megabytes per second. But, remember, the physical parameters of the hard drive within the Mobile Drive Mg itself constrain the connection speed: One can only transfer as fast as the drive can process, after all.
Of course, USB 3.0 is backwards-compatible with USB 2.0, so owners of the Mobile Drive Mg won't be left out in the dark regardless of which version of the connection format they sport.
Expect to see all versions of the Mobile Drive Mg hitting Apple Premium Resellers in mid-January. The 750-gigabyte version of the device with both USB 3.0 and FireWire 800 support will set one back $120. The 750-gigabyte drive with just USB 3.0 will cost $110, and the ultra-slim, 320-gigabyte drive will cost $70.
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