Digital photogrophers need media… it’s a fact of life. You can be away on vacation or lost in the Australian bush, and inevitably you’ll run out of storage space on your memory cards. You can run out even quicker if you shoot in RAW mode or have one of those new-fangled HD video cameras that eat 2GB cards for snacktime.
Normally, you only have a few options. You can stop what you’re doing, go through all your photos, and delete some to try and recover some critical space, or whip out another memory card. Memory cards are relatively cheap today (although the fast ones can be expensive), but you’re not likely to have 10 of them so you can shoot willy-nilly. There is one other option: you can dump your cards onto a laptop, but they are usually too bulky to carry around with you.
Digital Foci has another option: their Photo Safe II. This little device is essentially a portable hard drive and media card reader in one, complete with battery pack for complete PC independence. All you have to do is plug in your cards, press the copy button, and the files on the media card are copied to the Photo Safe’s hard drive.
An essential digital camera companion – a portable photo storage device
Imagine being on vacation and you are snapping digital photos like crazy. Having Photo Safe II with you means having a place to save your precious photos so you can keep snapping away. Just insert the digital camera memory card into Photo Safe II and directly download images – no cumbersome cabling or computer needed. Never worry about running out of memory card space again. Photo Safe II frees up expensive memory card space and lets you reuse your card to keep shooting. When you get home, simply connect Photo Safe II to your computer to retrieve your saved pictures.
Photo Safe II easily copies the entire content of your memory card with the convenient one-touch Auto Copy button with copy speeds of up to 5.0MB/sec, so a full 1GB card can be copied in approximately 3.5 minutes. Photo Safe II works with all popular card formats, including CF Type I (including Sandisk Extreme III, IV), xD-Picture Card, MMC, SD/HC Card, miniSD, Memory Stick, MS PRO, MS Duo, and MS Pro Duo. You can also make copies of photos taken from friend’s and family’s cameras by inserting their cards into Photo Safe for instant archival of special moments.
A unique folder name that indicates media card type and copy sequence is automatically created for each copy task to help you keep organized. When you get home, simply connect Photo Safe II to your computer to retrieve your saved pictures. With its user-replaceable Li-Ion battery that is rechargeable via computer USB port or external AC power, Photo Safe provides the ultimate convenience both at home and on the go.
When connected to a computer, Photo Safe II also functions as an external hard drive and memory card reader. Use Photo Safe II to back up and archive digital images, music and important files from your computer through its high-speed USB 2 connection. Photo Safe II is compatible with both Windows and Mac. Photo Safe is available in 80GB and 160GB. Comes with worry-free one-year warranty.
Package contents:
Photo Safe II / User-replaceable Lithium-Ion battery / Dual-plug USB cable / Carrying case / AC power adapter / Quick Start Guide
Features
- One touch photo backup directly from your digital camera memory card without a computer (copies all formats, including RAW and video files)
- Built-in memory card slots directly support CF Type I (including Sandisk Extreme III, IV), SD (including SDHC), miniSD, MMC, MS, MS Duo, MS PRO Duo, and xD-Picture card
- Fast copy speeds – can copy a full 1GB card in approximately 3.5 minutes
- Backlit LCD screen displays operational status, active partition, remaining hard drive capacity, battery life
- Copy status indicator displays percentage completed, copy confirmation, and number of files copied
- Automatic sequential folder numbering: For each copy, Photo Safe II creates a unique folder name indicating media card type and copy sequence per card type to keep you organized
- Rubber covers for memory card slots to protect slots from dust
- High-speed USB 2.0 connection for fast uploads and downloads to and from your computer
- LED indicators show data access status for memory card and hard drive
- User-removable Li-Ion battery rechargeable via computer USB port or external power adapter
- Functions as external hard drive and memory card reader when connected to computer
- PC & Mac compatible
- Supports multiple partitions on hard drive
- Auto shut off function saves battery power
Specifications
| Model no. | PST-251 |
| Memory card supported | CompactFlash Type I (including Sandisk Extreme III, IV) MultiMedia Card SD/HC Card, miniSD Memory Stick, MS PRO MS Duo, MS PRO Duo xD-Picture Card |
| Hard drive capacity | 5400rpm 2.5″ SATA hard drive |
| LCD screen | 2.0” text/icon-based LCD screen with backlight |
| Computer interface | USB 2.0 (compatible with USB 1.1) |
| Transfer rate | PST-251 to computer: Up to 60 MB/sec Memory card to PST-251: Up to 5.0MB/sec* (* Copies a full 1GB high-speed card in 3.5 minutes) |
| Battery power | Rechargeable Li-Ion battery Rechargeable via USB or external adapter |
| Battery life | Approximately 80 minutes (Copies a 1GB card 16 times on a full charge) |
| OS compatibility | Windows Vista, XP Home/Pro, 2000 (SP4) Macintosh OS 10.5 & 10.4 Linux 2.4 & later |
| File system | FAT 32 |
| External Power | 100-240V AC to 5V/2A DC |
| Dimensions | 4.6″ (L) x 3.0″ (W) x 0.8″ (H) |
| Weight | 0.6 lb. (with hard drive and battery) |
The Photo Safe is a plastic enclosure for a 2.5″ laptop hard drive, but has two buttons on the front, and LCD display, and media slots on the side to accept all the popular storage formats. The slots are concealed behind vinyl covers, which should help keep dust out. The bottom of the device has a small AC adapter plug and mini USB 2.0 connector.
Using the Photo Safe II is remarkably simple, which is both a good and bad thing. First, the unit must be turned on, which is easily done by holding the power button for two seconds. When you insert your memory card into the proper slot, the LCD display shows the sum of all the files on that card. All you have to do is press the copy button, and all the files are copied. The original files are left on the source card, so if something happens in the middle of the transfer (like the battery running out) you still have everything.
Dumping your card is an all or nothing deal. You cannot specify to copy any one particular file, and you can’t browse or otherwise navigate the contents of the media card from the LCD display. Each time you press the copy button, the contents are dumped into sequentially-numbered directories on the root of the hard drive, so if you press the Copy button twice with the same media card in the slot, then you will have two directories with the exact same pictures.
Attaching the unit to a PC maps 3 drive letters: one for the internal hard drive, and two for the multi card readers. That’s right: the Photo Safe II doubles as a portable card reader.
Transferring files to the internal hard drive takes only slightly longer than copying them directly to a PC. I previously reviewed Cirago’s Smart Mobile Storage (reviewed here), which had similar functionality, but was painfully slow. I am glad to see that there actually is a device that dumps media cards without wasting precious time or battery life.
The inability to pick and choose which files to transfer is one of my major gripes about the unit. Suppose your friend takes a great picture of you, your wife, or a really embarassing moment of one of your frat buddies. You’d like to get a copy, and your friend probably doesn’t want you copying ALL his pictures. Unforunately, there’s no way to select that one file and copy it… you either have to copy his card when he’s in the bathroom, or have him email it to you (which of course nobody ever does).
The Digital Foci PhotoStore II can be really helpful for the digital photographer in the field. Entire memory cards can be saved to this portable hard drive easily and quickly, which saves you from investing in (and toting around) many multiple memory cards. I just wish it had more features.
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||