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New Iomega drive bets on eSATA tech

Stephen Shankland Former Principal Writer
Stephen Shankland worked at CNET from 1998 to 2024 and wrote about processors, digital photography, AI, quantum computing, computer science, materials science, supercomputers, drones, browsers, 3D printing, USB, and new computing technology in general. He has a soft spot in his heart for standards groups and I/O interfaces. His first big scoop was about radioactive cat poop.
Expertise Processors, semiconductors, web browsers, quantum computing, supercomputers, AI, 3D printing, drones, computer science, physics, programming, materials science, USB, UWB, Android, digital photography, science. Credentials
  • Shankland covered the tech industry for more than 25 years and was a science writer for five years before that. He has deep expertise in microprocessors, digital photography, computer hardware and software, internet standards, web technology, and more.
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Stephen Shankland

Iomega on Wednesday placed a second bet on a new technology called eSATA for connecting external hard drives to computers.

The storage system maker announced a $240 320GB external hard drive, joining a 250GB drive the company introduced in June. Both drives also can link with USB 2.0, which transfers data three times more slowly.

Iomega drive

SATA (Serial AT Attachment) technology connects hard drives inside computers; eSATA (external SATA) uses a connector on the outside of the computer chassis so drives can be connected externally. Iomega and rivals such as Seagate started selling eSATA drives this year.

But while USB is universal and IEEE 1394 "Firewire" connectors are common, PCs today don't come with built-in eSATA ports. Iomega supplies a separate PCI add-in card that computer users must install before using the drive, though the drive also has a USB connector.

The add-in card has several eSATA ports, letting customers plug in several drives. The drive comes with an eSATA cable, a USB cable and EMC's Retrospect Express backup software.