10D Portable Storage for CF

[DeeDee]

Now that I am the proud owner of a 10D, and I need to bust a nonexistent bank account to fully “accessorize”. I purchased a Tamron 28-300 XR lens and have had great results with it. The immediate need I have is for portable storage. I am really getting hung up on the choices: microdrive, digital wallet, large capacity CF, are Image Tanks any good?, the list goes on and on. Could this enlightened group inform me if there is a device de jour that is reasonable priced?

[robertwgross]

Vosonics XP-2030 portable storage drive with 5GB disk for less than $140. That works for me.

---Bob Gross---

[cowman345]

wow, i'm all over that. where'd you get it for such a good price?

[cowman345]

ran a goolge search and can't even pull anything up.

[robertwgross]

There is a "liquidator" company known as Computer Geeks. When Vosonics discontinued the VP-2030 model and went to a newer model, they "dumped" the old model through Computer Geeks. The trick was that it was sold with NO hard disk inside. However, Computer Geeks also sells laptop-style hard disks in whatever capacity you want (5GB, 10GB, etc.). So, in one order, I got the VP-2030 and a 5GB hard disk. When it arrived, it took me about five minutes and one screwdriver to install the disk. My total cost was less than $140. I think the total weight is 11 ounces or something.

The VP-2030 came with internal lithium ion battery and a tiny external charger. It is pretty simple to use. You hit the Power button, wait a second, and idiot lights are on. You plug your CF card into the slot, and the CF idiot light is on. You hit the Copy button, and it copies the CF contents to the hard disk. When finished, it will wait for a while and then shut down automatically to save the battery.

When you get to your desktop computer, you attach the USB cable from the VP-2030 to the computer USB port, and it powers up via that cable. Then it appears to my XP operating system like a bunch of new drives (the hard disk is one, then the CF slot is one, then there are other card types).

I've been using this thing on the road since February. After a year or two, if the 5GB seems too small, then I will rip out the disk and slap a larger one in it. They are cheap.

---Bob Gross---