Iomega eGo Helium Review

External hard drives especially made for Apple OS X are hard to find. IomegaeGo Helium is one such drive that not only comes natively formatted with Apple HFS+ file system but also has a design that goes well with Apple Macbooks. The device is priced attractively that puts the icing on the take.

Iomega eGo Helium specifications :

• Dimensions : 3.5″ x 4.7″ x 0.6″
• Weight : 7.1 0z
• Capacity : 320 GB
• Drive speed : 5400 rpm
• Interface : High-speed USB 2.0
• Max. transfer rate : 480 mbps
• Compatibility : Apple OS X 10.1.5 or later, Windows XP, Vista
• Warranty : 1-year limited warranty
• Approx. price : $125

The design of the drive matches Apple products with its simple but elegant styling. The color used is silver which goes well with Apple Macbooks. The exterior is similar to the Macbooks and the curves are smooth and rounded. The dimensions of the drive are small making it easy to carry around in your pocket.

The drive comes pre-formatted with Apple HFS+ file system compatible with Mac OS X. The drive can be formatted in FAT32 or NTFS file system to be made compatible with Microsoft Windows. The drive is only USB 2.0 compatible but we would have loved to see Firewire or eSATA interfaces. The drive draws power from the USB port itself. The drive has a small LED that acts as activity meter.

The drive comes with Drop Guard technology that protects the drive from drop of 50 inches. The devices has been priced attractively that is its biggest attraction, leading to a low cost per GB ratio. The cost per GB comes out to 45 cents per GB, lower than most of its competitors. The performance of the drive is good too and it has a write speed of 20MB/sec. The read speed also clocked the same number. 1-year limited warranty for a product like portable hard disk is less.

Pros :

• Native OS X support
• Excellent design
• Good performance
• Low cost per gigabyte
• Drop Guard technology

Cons :

• No Firewire, eSATA support
• Short warranty

Final Thouughts

The Iomega eGo Helium is a perfect companion to a Macbook due to its elegant design and fast performance. The device is priced attractively and also has Drop Guard technology to protect it from drops. Firewire and eSATA support would have been awesome though. The warranty is something you should really consider before going in for this drive.

Rating : 4/5