New 1TB Desktop External HD Goes For $500

Chris Preimesberger of eWeek.com writes:

Thanks to new levels of competition in the market sector, storage devices continue to get smaller in footprint and less expensive - while offering increased capacity and more desirable features, such as auto-backup and encryption.

The latest example of this IT storage bonanza for consumers is Buffalo Technology’s new DriveStation Duo, which features USB 2.0 and FireWire interfaces and ranges from 500GB to 1.5TB in capacity.

It runs two 7,200 rpm SATA drives that can be set up in a RAID-1 configuration - for either mirroring or full-capacity modes.

The pricing for this desktop-size box is also noteworthy: the DriveStation Duo USB 2.0/FireWire External Hard Drive will be available later in October at estimated retail prices of:

• $249 for 500GB (HD-W500IU2/R1)
• $449 for 800GB (HD-W800IU2/R1)
• $499 for 1TB (HD-W1.0TIU2/R1)
• $999 for 1.5TB (HD-W1.5TIU2/R1)