Tech Watch: Memory Cards, RAID Drive, Dual-Core Notebook

A look at new products and technologies available to solution providers by leading and emerging vendors

This Thing Is Tiny!

The Secure Digital card is shrinking. Leading memory provider Kingston debuted several new cards at the recent Consumer Electronics Show, including the microSD, MMCmobile and miniSD Cards. The new miniSD cards will be suited for mobile phones and other small-form-factor devices. The cards are available in 256-MB and 1-GB configurations. The challenge, though, will be to not lose them. The featured 1-GB miniSD comes with a locking adapter.

Kingston miniSD, www.kingston.com Price: $82 (list)

Terabyte To Go

A 1-Tb external RAID drive for the desktop for less than a grand? Maxtor's new OneTouch III Turbo Edition can connect to any PC or server via USB or FireWire for both Macintosh and Windows-based computers. It comes bundled with an express version of EMC Dantz Retrospect and allows users to synchronize data from multiple systems. The OneTouch III supports both RAID 0 and RAID 1 configurations as well, a capability typically found on more expensive servers or high-end workstations. RAID support makes the OneTouch III suitable for critical data and video. System setup is straightforward, although it does require the drive to be formatted for Windows (still, Macs can access data). Even though it can be used on a network, the OneTouch III Turbo Edition lacks an Ethernet or Wi-Fi interface.

Maxtor OneTouch III, www.maxtor.com Price: $899

Gateway's Dual-Core Addition

The long-awaited dual-core notebooks from Gateway are here, available in a variety of configurations. Gateway has chosen to spotlight its mobile workstation, a 17-inch wide-screen PC with SATA drives, built-in Bluetooth and Nvidia's GeoForce 7600 or 7800 Series graphics cards. Among the first to market is the M685-E, bundled with a 256-MB video card, DVD writer, 100-MB Serial ATA drive and embedded Trusted Platform Module chip for authentication. The system also has integrated 802.11b/g Wi-Fi connectivity. It comes with a 12-cell lithium-ion battery, although this unit is best-suited as a desktop replacement, not a mobile device.

Gateway M685-E, www.gateway.com Price: $2,504