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ioSafe Rugged Portable Hard Drive Review

Reviewed by: Anthony Garland
Reviewed on: June 6th, 2011 Today I will be looking at the all new ioSafe Rugged Portable 750GB. Unlike the the SoloPro, this device is meant for the portable storage niche; as such it is a much more compact and much easier to carry device. While it is smaller, it is still has all the impressive features which the SoloPro has become famous for; namely fire, water and shock protection. Thus the biggest question I have about the ioSafe Rugged Portable, is it a SoloPro in a more user friendly form factor? Read on to find out.

Rugged & Portable
The all new ioSafe Rugged Portable is a much more compact device in contrast to the SoloPro. Whereas SoloPro is meant to be tethered to a desktop PC, the Rugged Portable is designed for notebooks in mind. Still, when compared against more typical 2.5" HDD based devices - such as the Seagate GoFlex Ultra Portable, WD My Passport Essential and others - the ioSafe Rugged Portable is a tad on the big and heavy side of the spectrum. To be precise, with dimensions of 5.7" x 3.9" x 1.0" and weighing in at 1 lb., the drive is a very robust portable device.

The reason for its over-sized and unusually heavy weight is the fact that when ioSafe says Rugged they really mean Rugged. This well-engineered drive is not only meant to be used in harsh conditions, it has been tested and certified to do so. In fact, it meets numerous Military Specifications and is water resistant (water "proof" to ten foot for 3 days) and also shock resistant (able to survive ten foot drives). The aluminum version is also crush resistant to 2500 lbs. and there is also a heavier Titanium clad version good for 5000 lbs. While the Rugged Portable may be extremely durable and a tad large, its dimensions and weight are not a detriment to its intended niche.

With its graceful, curvaceous all metal exterior the Rugged Portable, it certainly easy on the eyes. It really does look like something LaCie or even Apple would produce. The only real caveat to the Rugged Portable's naked aluminum chassis is the fact that it is a touch slippery. If your hands are wet, there is a good chance that it will slip from your grasp. Of course, where this device is able to shrug off ten foot drops with not risk to your data, this is not all that concerning. If you find it too slippery to have absolute confidence in, there are numerous aftermarket high friction tape like solutions you can employ to negate this issue.

Software
One key area where the ioSafe Rugged Portable differs radically from the SoloPro line is in the software. This is for the simple reason it actually comes with a fairly decent software package. While the software does not come preloaded on the device itself all you need do in order to get your copy of Genie Timeline is register your product. Once you have registered your drive, you are given a serial number and URL for downloading. It is a fairly large download, but unless you only have a dial-up connection this additional step is more than worth it. As a bonus, you know you will be getting the most up to date version as more often than not the version which come preloaded on most device is months out of date.

The software's UI is deceptively simple. On first blush, it appears to be too simple to be taken seriously. However, while it is extremely easy to use, it still has all the advanced features you will need. These features include 256 bit encryption (software based) and the ability to be able to choose backup files by type. This means if you just want to backup say all your photos it is as easy and clicking that option. To put it bluntly, this is a very decent, and robust backup and restore software program that even novice computer users should have no troubles navigating.

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