Storage stalwart Iomega is carving out a niche for itself by releasing networked storage products with unexpectedly generous amounts of high-end features. Back in August, it announced the StorCenter IX4-200, a four-bay device. And now it’s been joined by the two-bay StorCenter ix2-200, available in 1TB ($269.99), 2TB ($369.99), and 4TB ($699.99) versions.
The ix2 packs Gigabit Ethernet and 3 USB ports; a feature called QuikTransfer lets you copy files from the device to an external drive by pressing a button–no PC required. It provides remote access to its contents from any Internet-connected computer, and can talk directly to up to five Axis surveillance cameras. It provides support for RAID 1 data redundancy, supports the iSCSI storage network standard, and is certified by VMware for virtualization applications.
As the above specs suggest, the device is primarily aimed at small and medium-sized business users. But it also has a bunch of features aimed at home users: It supports DLNA and iTunes for streaming of media around a home, can be used with Apple’s Time Machine feature for networked Mac backups, and can download torrents directly from the Internet. Oh, and it also has an optional Bluetooth feature that lets you wirelessly back up photos, contacts, and other information from your phone.
Iomega is also pitching the ix2-200 as an eco-friendly storage product: It’s got an Energy Star-certified power supply and automatically spins down its drives when not in use.
Unlike its predecessor, the plain old StorCenter ix2, the ix2-200 has user-replaceable hard drives, but there’s no empty bay, and the drives aren’t hot-swappable. Iomega says that the 1TB and 2TB versions are available now, and the 4TB one will show up later this month.
