Portable RAID by Sonnet

 onnet Technologies launched the Fusion F2 portable RAID storage system, which provides speed, reliability, ruggedness, and convenience for on-location video capture or remote use when grid power is unavailable. Fusion F2 features 640GB of storage using two 2.5-inch drives mounted side by side in a rugged enclosure, ensuring fast and secure storage in a low-profile, compact design measuring just 5.9 by 6.2 by 0.72 inches. The diminutive Fusion F2 delivers remarkable performance with data transfer rates up to twice as fast as a pair of FireWire 800 drives.

"Products in our Fusion line are designed to bring uncompromising performance and reliability to storage applications in film and video editing, as well as professional content capture. Fusion F2 offers the same high standard in a compact, low-power package intended for portable use," said Robert Farnsworth, CEO of Sonnet Technologies. "The thin unit slides easily into a case for transport, and can be used in virtually anywhere."

Sonnet’s Fusion F2 features two eSATA data connections and is designed for use with the Sonnet Tempo SATA ExpressCard/34 adapter for the MacBook Pro and Windows notebooks. By connecting via SATA interface, Fusion F2 handily supports portable video capture in conjunction with an AJA Video Systems’ Io HD, which requires dedicated use of FireWire bandwidth. To protect priceless field footage, Fusion F2’s drives can be configured in RAID 1 mirrored mode, and still can capture Apple ProRes HQ HD fed from an AJA Io HD. This protected mode also allows safe field transfer of Panasonic P2, Sony SxS Pro, or similar memory cards. Footage verification by a MacBook Pro/Fusion F2 system gives users the peace of mind to erase and reuse cards on location.

With its drives configured as a RAID 0 striped volume, Fusion F2 is capable of 126 MB/sec read and write data transfers (compared with 66 MB/sec connecting via FireWire 800), thus providing the ability to capture and play more streams of compressed video for portable video editing.

Fusion F2 was devised as a high-performance, high-reliability alternative to existing portable drive solutions. Each Fusion F2 drive is individually shock-isolated, not only protecting the drives during transport, but also virtually eliminating cross-coupled vibration, which, unchecked, can induce soft errors — a potential source of skipped frames. Fusion F2 is cool, quiet, and energy-efficient: side-by-side placement of its drives increases the metal case’s cooling surface area, thereby eliminating the need for a fan. Although Fusion F2 communicates via eSATA, it draws power from a FireWire 400 port for truly portable operation.

The Fusion F2 (part # FUS-F2-640M5) will be available this month with a suggested price of U.S. $895. The Tempo SATA ExpressCard/34 (part # TSATAII-E342P) has a suggested retail price of U.S. $99.95.

Sonnet Technologies, Inc.