Hard drive redux

The unfettered rise of flash storage hasn’t stopped hard drives from remaining a mainstay in many devices. Providing ultimate portability is Edge Tech Corp.’s DiskGo, a 1-inch portable hard drive that fits in the palm of your hand. Archos Inc.’s new 104 entry-level MP3 player, which ships with a 4G-byte hard drive, is the company’s smallest portable media player yet. Hard drives consistently need upgrades, made easy by Apricorn Inc.’s EZ Upgrade Serial ATA, a kit that effortlessly transfers data from one Serial ATA notebook hard drive to another. Outside of storage, look for D&M Holdings Inc.’s ReplayTV PC Edition software, which turns PCs into DVRs (digital video recorders).

Archos’ smallest MP3 player

Archos recently canned the popular Gmini XS 100 portable music player, replacing it with the smaller and sleeker Archos 104 MP3 player. It has a 4G-byte hard drive, matching the highest storage capacity of Apple Computer Inc.’s popular iPod nano. It weighs 2.8 ounces (79.37 grams) and is the company’s smallest MP3 player yet, measuring 3.6 by 1.7 by 0.5 inches (9.14 by 4.3 by 1.27 centimeters). It plays MP3, WMA (Windows Media Audio) and WAV files.

The Archos 104 sports a 1.5-inch OLED (organic light-emitting diodes) color screen that also displays JPEG2 image files. A lithium-ion battery runs the device for 14 hours, after which it can be recharged from a PC via a USB (Universal Serial Bus) 2.0 port. A charger can be bought separately. It is available in silver, black and pink.

The US$159 music player is targeted at entry-level users who don’t want to invest heavily in an MP3 player, said Jen Roberts, an Archos spokeswoman. It began shipping July 1 and is available through Archos’ distributors.

More information about Archos 104 is available here.

Honey, I shrunk the disk

Edge Tech Corp.’s 1-inch DiskGo portable hard drive is so small it could disappear with the blink of an eye. A USB port pops out of the box to fit into a PC and minimal wires make it convenient to carry. Launched in June, DiskGo comes in capacities of 4G bytes to 8G bytes, priced between $100 and $150. The 8G-byte capacity seems less than ideal, but I can’t ask for the world in such a small device.

The magical drive upgrade

Upgrading and transferring data from a notebook’s internal hard drive to another is child’s play with Apricorn Inc.’s EZ Upgrade SATA, a Serial ATA hard drive upgrade kit. The kit ships with all the tools needed for a successful notebook hard drive upgrade: a USB 2.0 enclosure, a USB cable, a PS/2 auxiliary power cable for backup power, and proprietary upgrade and recovery software.

Upgrading a notebook hard drive using the kit is a three-step process, explained Apricorn spokeswoman Jennifer Olson. First, slide the new hard drive into an EZ Upgrade enclosure and connect the cable to the notebook’s USB port (which has the old hard drive). Then boot the machine with Apricorn’s EZ Gig II Upgrade and Disaster Recovery Software, which begins the drive-cloning process. Finally, remove the old drive from the notebook and replace it with the new, cloned drive. Voila, the drive is upgraded.

The old drive can then be used as a backup device.

The kit shipped in June and is available for a reasonable $49. It works only with Windows 2000 and Windows XP systems.

ReplayTV’s redefinition

After going underground for a while, ReplayTV is back, this time as a DVR for PCs. D&M Holdings Inc., makers of ReplayTV, in late June announced ReplayTV PC Edition software, DVR PC software that seemingly has better channel navigation and program search capabilities than its set-top box. With certain Hauppauge Digital Inc. WinTV PVR TV tuner cards, the software turn PCs into DVRs.

The PC Edition’s biggest draw seems to be its program search tools. Features like “Surprise Me” and “Find More” automatically record or discover programs based on a specific actor, director or genre. The software displays programs in groups, making it easier to find and select programs for recording. An interesting feature is “Useful Searches,” which digs out series premieres or finales to record. Channels can be listed in the order of preference.

Multiple PCs on a network with the software can share programs, the company said.

ReplayTV PC Edition pulls programs only from Hauppauge’s WinTV-PVR-150 (model 1045) or Hauppauge WinTV-PVR USB2 (model 941). Some future Hauppauge models will bundle the software, the company said. It will be available as a download for $99.95 starting September, which includes the cost of the electronic program guide. Thereafter users will pay $19.95 a year, according to the company.

More information about ReplayTV PC Edition is available here.

Logitech’s saving the power

Logitech Inc. in June added the power-saving V450 Laser Cordless Mouse for Notebooks to its line of portable mice. Users don’t have to worry about changing batteries often as two AA batteries operate the mouse for a year, the company said. A USB receiver fits into the mouse’s storage slot and powers it down. The V450’s rubber grip makes it easy to hold, said Kate Brinks, a Logitech spokeswoman. The $49.99 mouse is available in the U.S. and Europe.

More information is available here.