hyperdrive colorspace

hi there sorry to ask a basic qn. is the above device like a hard disc drive ( the external drive ) or a flash memory kind of device.
I am asking because it seems it is so expensive like about 500 dollars for 500gb. i could have bought a cheap netbook or ultraportable notebook with a little bit more money to get a portable 1 tb drive to get much more storage space?
isn't this a more cheaper per Gb solution?

It's a hard drive with batteries, an LCD so you can see the photos, and a card reader. You can use it instead of a computer. It's much smaller than any netbook, which is one of its principal advantages.

I guess it comes to preference.

The hyperdrive seems like a nice small package with the convenience of having provisions to simply plug in your card for backup purposes. My Sony viao doesn't have a built in CF card slot

Card readers and a netbook is a cheap alternative.

I had a Colorspace UDMA...and ended up with the new "Album." I had a small issue with the Colorspace and when I sent it in for repair, they gave me the option of upgrading to the Album. I have made the devise part of my workflow...loading my card into the unit and then transferring the files to my computer from there. Serves as a good backup that way, too, since it has a huge memory (different capacities available). Better color, larger images. Both units are much smaller than having to tote around a computer when traveling. They fit in a camera bag. That's a good thing!

thanks much guys. i wondered if this is a flash memory card like device or a regular fancy hard drive with spinning parts where it can be prone to failure?
Also, i would like to seek your opinion on, if say i am going to spend 500 dollars on the 500gb hyperdrive, why don't i spend it on more flash compact flash card or sdhc cards, where the flash memory is much safer and less prone to storage damage like the hard disc drive.

Thanks for your insight


dennis

Yes, they are vulnerable to damage,
but then, so is the rest of your camera equipment.
((If you wonder about durability in the field, do a search on here for the colorspace. There's a member who's taken one on safari & was very pleased with it's performance.))

It's still the best bang for your buck; a smaller screen than the Epson, but way more storage capacity & it's much, much easier to swap drives if need be.

You aren't going to get the same GB/$ in cards or SSDs as you are in any HDD devices.
You'd get maybe three good 16GB cards for the same price (if you're lucky).

Transfers to the Colorspace are fast.
Another bonus is it's easily concealable...
for those times when you need to clear a card, but there might be too many "interested" eyes to be whipping out a valuable laptop.

I liked the idea of having the Hyperdrive, but only as a backup solution. If I'm going to dump my images onto this device, I still wouldn't wipe them off my CF until I get home. So if I really needed to clear my CF, I would have to buy 2 of these or 1 hyperdrive and more CF cards. I definitely wouldn't trust my images just on the hyperdrive. I've seen too many laptop hard drives fail.

Right now I travel with a laptop and external HD. I dump the images to the laptop then they get copied to my external HD. Once I know my images are in 2 physically different locations will I then format my CF. I guess working in IT has made me pretty cautious when it comes to backing up important files. Nothing is worse than loosing all your images you have captured for that day.

vmdc wrote in post #10155216
Right now I travel with a laptop and external HD. I dump the images to the laptop then they get copied to my external HD

Which is fine - until your laptop dies. Then you can't access either of your backup locations. That's why I travel with a netbook and a Colorspace. If either of them dies I can still use the other one for backup.

The Hyperdrive uses a standard laptop harddrive. There is a cheaper version, which is just the case itself from Hyperdrive, and you buy and install the laptop drive yourself. There is a thread here about exactly how to install it, very simple.

The Hyperdrive is a superb backup device. There are those here who use 2, one to backup the backup!

hollis_f wrote in post #10159417
Which is fine - until your laptop dies. Then you can't access either of your backup locations. That's why I travel with a netbook and a Colorspace. If either of them dies I can still use the other one for backup.

Good point hollis. But I guess what I'm saying is that I would rather leave my images on my CF as opposed to transferring them off my CF to the hyperdrive. The chances of the hyperdrive failing are much greater than the CF failing.

This would be the other route I would take if I didn't carry my notebook.

thanks so much everybody. i think i will buy a hyperdrive.
i have a qn please. should i get the colorspace or the album.
cost is not an issue. also, will it make a difference if i got the
notebook internal 2.5 inch drive 7200 vs 5400, and 16 mb cash vs 8mb.
Thanks for sharing your insight.

On another note, how many types of hyperdrive cases are there for the album and the colorspace?
i read from the thread that there are normal ones and the on the go one or somthing like that.

dennis

dennisatmph wrote in post #10149390
if say i am going to spend 500 dollars on the 500gb hyperdrive, why don't i spend it on more flash compact flash card or sdhc cards,

Price out 500GB of solid-state storage (CF or SDHC cards) and get back to us

Generally, the faster the storage, the more expensive.

egordon99 wrote in post #10166322
Price out 500GB of solid-state storage (CF or SDHC cards) and get back to us

Generally, the faster the storage, the more expensive.

For the money you'd need to spend on CF cards I'd rather buy an SSD and use it in the Colorspace.

120GB Kingston SSD = £200
16GB Sandisk Ultra = £74

hi hollis
i thought that the ssd drive does not work with the hyperdrive album or colorspace?

dennis

Just to add.. I have had a hyperdrive for about 3 years. I use my CF card and when I change cards, I put the used card into the hyperdrive. I store the card so that I have both hyperdrive back up and the CF card.
I do carry a lot of CF cards. I use 4GB and 8GB cards. The advantabe to the hyperdrive is the fact that traveling for 2 weeks, it never needed to be charged. To me that is an advantage to a laptop, that and size.
I have the 120GB btw

I just checked and I charged the drive up before I left on a trip on March 26th.. I used it every day, downloaded images from it and it is still nearly fully charged today.