BIOS: Technology Means Business

Maxtor's fourth generation external hard disk, the OneTouch II, builds on the One-Touch concept, which allows you to initiate backups at the touch of a button. It also comes with a DriveLock security feature which password protects the contents of the drive once it is powered down. The 7200rpm drive (140x220x41mm, 1.38kg) is available with a capacity of either 250GB (£205 ex. VAT) or 300GB (£220 ex. VAT), has a 16MB cache, as well as average seek time of 9ms. Both drives connect to your Windows or Mac OS-based computer via either FireWire or USB 2.0, and come with Dantz's excellent Retrospect software for easy backup. Maxor claims backing up and restoring data is easy with the drive, thanks largely to the drive's support for historical backup copies. This technology allows you to restore your entire system to its backed-up status from yesterday, two days ago or even two weeks ago. The drive should also self-manage its storage space and delete older backup versions as the drive fills up.

Pros: Dual interfaces; one-touch backups; 16MB cache; built-in security
Cons: Maximum capacity of 300GB; no Kensington-type lock

Release: Simple, safe and powerful describe the new Maxtor OneTouch II drive, the next generation of Maxtor Corporation's (NYSE: MXO) award-winning external drive family that allows consumers to easily back up family photos, MP3 music collections, and other important personal and business data with a simple touch of a button. No high tech knowledge is required to set up the new drive, giving consumers no excuse to not backup their computers.

Leveraging the company's first-to-market leadership and proven expertise in external storage and push button backup, the new Maxtor OneTouch II drive offers an exclusive version of Dantz Retrospect software for easy backup, a Maxtor DriveLock security feature for added data protection and more powerful restore capabilities, including historical backup recovery.

'Combine all this with a new, consumer-friendly user interface, and now the most difficult part of a backup solution may be choosing which capacity Maxtor OneTouch II drive to buy,' said Mike Williams, vice-president of marketing for Maxtor's Branded Products.
'The new Maxtor OneTouch II drive is unequalled in its intuitive functionality,' he said. 'We listened to our customers and incorporated features and functions that improve upon our existing solution. The Maxtor OneTouch family continues to be the leading external hard drive for consumers, creative professionals, mobile warriors and small-business users.' New features of the Maxtor OneTouch II external drive include:

Simpler backup: No complex menus or commands or in-depth technical knowledge are required to set up the Maxtor OneTouch II drive. The new click-through installation asks a few simple questions such as the user's name and preferred language, while configuring the software in the background to automatically back up all locally connected drives and files on the computer every day. This powerful, yet simple, default setting backs up virtually everything on the local drives including all Microsoft Outlook e-mails, address books, Internet favorites, My Documents folder, operating system, applications and more. Once installed, the Maxtor OneTouch II drive runs quietly and automatically. Users do not even have to close an application or a file for the drive to back up the saved versions.

DriveLock security: The Maxtor OneTouch II also offers Maxtor's new DriveLock feature for added data protection. This feature allows users to password-protect the contents of the drive, keeping important data safe from unauthorised users. Once a consumer powers down the computer, or the drive is removed from the system, access to the drive will be automatically locked until the correct user defined password is provided.

More powerful restore: If data is lost, restoring a backed up copy from the Maxtor OneTouch II drive to the source system is simple. With historical backup copies, users can restore their entire system to its backed up status from yesterday, two days ago or even two weeks ago. The user is simply guided though a three-step process that includes clicking on the desired point in time, selecting the files or folders to restore and then choosing the destination for the restore. The drive also self-manages its storage space and deletes older backup versions as the drive fills up.

New user interface: Maxtor has redesigned the graphical user interface from the ground up so that installation and setup are easier than ever. The wizard has an exclusive design that combines storage, security and backup in a single solution, in contrast to other offerings that only drop in software without integration.

Mac bootability function: Mac users have the option to create a fully bootable backup copy of their main system drive. Once a bootable backup copy is made, users can restart their system quickly using their Maxtor OneTouch II drive as if it were their system drive. Nothing needs to be moved or disconnected.

New look: The Maxtor OneTouch II drive sports a new, sophisticated, contemporary look that suits a home or office setting and distinguishes it from competing products. 'Maxtor has helped make external storage and backup solutions a popular and growing consumer market category,' said Larry Zulch, CEO and president of Dantz. 'It's been a pleasure working with Maxtor to develop Retrospect Express HD backup software for their next generation Maxtor OneTouch II drive. The Maxtor OneTouch II is a significant achievement in consumer data protection, combining true backup power and honest ease of use.'

The new Maxtor OneTouch II external drive comes with a 7200rpm 300GB or 250GB hard drive with a 16MB buffer. Both feature a combo FireWire/USB 2.0 interface for easy connection to a Mac or PC. The drives are available through Maxtor's network of leading retailers, distributors and online stores. They are also available at www.maxstore.com. Suggested retail price is £259 for 300GB and £239 for 250GB. Additional capacities will be rolled out later this year.