The Iomega Media Xporter Drive, a Game-Oriented Portable HDD

Iomega Corporation announced the new Iomega Media Xporter Drive, a game-oriented portable hard drive that provides cross-platform media storage for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 consoles, making it easier than ever to utilize today’s popular game consoles and high definition televisions and other large screen TVs to share photos, videos, and music collections with family and friends.

The wallet-sized USB-powered 160GB Media Xporter Drive utilizes the USB 2.0 ports on the Xbox 360 or the PlayStation 3 to give gaming enthusiasts a convenient new way to enjoy music, digital movies, and photos through the family game console, without the need of a PC or digital media adapter. The new Iomega Media Xporter Drive has been tested for compatibility with the Xbox 360 and the PlayStation 3 and like other Iomega products is a complete storage solution that includes value-added software for converting file formats not natively supported by the game consoles.

About the Iomega Media Xporter Drive
Because the current Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 consoles support HDMI connections and high-definition television resolutions of up to 1080p, photos and videos stored on the Iomega Media Xporter Drive (and displayed through either game console) take on the breathtaking sharpness and clarity of today’s most advanced HDTV’s.
"The new Iomega Media Xporter Drive extends the value of today’s most popular game consoles that are already evolving into home entertainment centers," said Ralf San Jose, global product manager for HDD Products, Iomega Corporation. "For the home-gamer enthusiast, the Media Xporter Drive provides an easy-to-use portal for 160GB of family photos, music files and videos to move beyond the computer room and into the family room for the enjoyment of everyone."

Designed for plug-and-play operation and easy portability, Iomega’s new Media Xporter Drive features a rugged 2.5-inch portable hard drive that requires no external power supply — just connect its USB 2.0 "Y" cable to two available USB 2.0 ports on the Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3. The Media Xporter drive natively supports PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 compatible formats such as MP3, MPEG-4 and JPEG, and it also comes with video conversion software to convert additional video file formats into compatible game console formats. Prism Video Converter MX software can be downloaded free of cost to convert input files in formats such as QuickTime, AVI, VOB and others, into MPEG-4 files that are playable by the game consoles.

"The new Media Xporter Drive is a total solution from Iomega that includes software to convert most kinds of video formats for use with an Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3," continued San Jose. "That means a game console can run an entire media library, be the family video and photo viewer, not to mention run favorite music playlists. The Iomega Media Xporter Drive makes home entertainment accessible and portable in a way that’s fresh and relevant for today’s home gamer."

As an added plus, users of the new Media Xporter Drive can not only take their media files wherever they need them, but also use the Media Xporter Drive as a backup solution for 160GB of media files stored on virtually any computer with a USB port. Iomega’s new Media Xporter Drive can carry up to 640,000 photos, over 2,900 hours of music or 240 hours of video.

About the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 Game Consoles
Microsoft’s Xbox 360 game console, released worldwide in late 2005, supports HD video output of 720p, 1080i or 1080p with the Xbox 360 Component HD AV cable (or HDMI cable for HDMI-equipped Xbox 360 units). It has 3 USB 2.0 ports which can be used with the Iomega Media Xporter Drive.
Sony’s PlayStation 3 game console, released in Japan and North America in late 2006, supports video of 1080p, 1080i, 720p, or 480p and 480i either through the built-in HDMI connector or through Sony’s AV Multi cable for component connections. Most models come with 4 USB 2.0 ports (except for the 40GB model which comes with 2 USB 2.0 ports), any of which can be used with the Iomega Media Xporter Drive.

Compatibility
Designed for use with Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 game consoles, the Iomega Media Xporter Drive USB 2.0, 160GB is also compatible with Apple computers (Mac OS X 10.1 and above) and with Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional or above, including Windows Vista.

Availability and Price
The Iomega Media Xporter Drive USB 2.0, 160GB is now available in the U.S. for $119.95 (U.S. suggested retail) and in Europe for Euro 99.

Iomega Corporation