Seagate has unveiled the GoFlex Satellite, the company’s latest external drive, and the first from its range to pack a battery and integrated WiFi connectivity. The Seagate GoFlex Satellite is a 500GB portable HDD, capable of sharing content either via USB 3.0 (using Seagate’s interchangeable GoFlex connector) or with its WiFi b/g/n radio to your iPad, iPhone or Android device.
Once connected, you can browse movies, pictures, music and documents stored on the GoFlex Satellite from your iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Android smartphone or laptop. Currently Seagate only has an iOS-specific app, GoFlex Media; Android phones and tablets, and any other devices, have to access shared media through a web interface. The company tells us an Android version is in the works, however, and should arrive later in the summer. Up to three devices can connect simultaneously, either viewing the same content – so three iPad users can watch a film together in the car – or accessing different media.
Seagate predicts GoFlex Satellite users will see five hours of active video streaming out of a full charge, or up to 25hrs standby. The iOS GoFlex Media app actually caches the video you’re watching on the device itself, so that the drive can go into standby. There’s some intelligent content management, too: dump all your videos, photos, music and documents onto the drive however you want, using the bundled Media Sync app for Windows or Mac, and it will automatically index them into categories for the app or web interfaces. The drive is visible to third-party apps, too, so if you have DivX video you want to watch on your iPad, you’ll be able to play it using VLC for iOS or an alternative app.
Right now, the biggest issue is that the drive demands a direct WiFi connection, which means that you can’t, say, hook your iPad up to it and simultaneously have the tablet connect to your WiFi router or mobile hotspot. However, Seagate is promising a firmware update in the near future that will allow the GoFlex Satellite to connect to a WiFi router itself and – since it actually has twin wireless radios inside – bridge that connection to whatever gadgets are accessing its storage.
The Seagate GoFlex Satellite will go on sale in the US in July 2011, priced at $199.99. Global availability should be later this summer.
http://www.slashgear.com/seagate-goflex-satellite-500gb-of-wifi-drive-for-your-ipad-16152073/
