Google and Amazon are rolling out their early contributions to the world of "Cloud Computing," (or at least cloud media storage) and Apple has announced their own "i" flavor, too. (Any surprise there?) For those not in the know, this artfully named technology invites us to store our files somewhere remote, then see and hear them on command via a computer or compatible mobile device (including the iPad 2), anywhere in the world we can establish an internet connection.
Buffalo Technology has leveraged their experience in network- and direct-attached storage solutions to bring us a new family of hard disk drives that delivers our own personal cloud, with no per-gigabyte data charge and no access or usage fees, which is an enticing departure from the current standard cloud business model.
All of our data resides on a drive--installed on our home computer--such as the flagship CloudStor Pro personal storage solution. This is certainly no ordinary external hard disk drive: Hardware-wise, it's packing a 10/100/1000 Mbps Ethernet port, 256 MB of DDR3 memory and an impressive onboard 1.6 GHz processor. These combine with cloud-expert Pogoplug's secret sauce inside to perform quite a number of nifty feats. The Buffalo CloudStor line is in fact the first and only Pogoplug device to offer integrated storage.
CloudStor Pro comes with one two-terabyte HDD (the system's OS is located on there, and actual usable capacity is slightly less of course) with a second, empty bay too, to add another drive.
Setup is extremely user-friendly, with no real printed instructions other than directions to the CloudStor support site. We plug one end of the bundled Ethernet cable into the CloudStor Pro, the other into an open port on our router, then connect to AC power. There might be a bit of waiting here or there, but the process is largely automated and any troubleshooting along the way is virtually painless.
After we activate our free account at MyCloudStor.com, we can subsequently use this as our portal to access the contents of the drive remotely via the web. Once we drag and drop our videos onto the CloudStor Pro drive, they are automatically transcoded, playable across the web and mobile applications. Photos can also be resized for easier viewing.
The OneView interface carries over to any connected, supported device, sorting our media by Movies, Music and Photos. Music is displayed by album, artist and genre. Photos are displayed chronologically, and ten-second video previews can be played just by clicking on a thumbnail. We can also share a file or an entire folder with a trusted friend or family member--freeing us from the tedium of uploading or attaching large files as in the past--by clicking a Share button and then sending an email with the appropriate URL to whomever. Those links can also be posted on Facebook.
CloudStor also serves many traditional consumer network-attached storage functions including pairing with the popular µTorrent client (no more downloading torrent files to the computer!), as well as streaming to popular living room devices such as the Sony PlayStation 3 and Microsoft Xbox 360. The integrated Time Machine system also allows Mac users to backup their data to the CloudStor when at home. A USB 2.0 port is also provided, to attach a network printer or even another hard disk drive.
The potential hitch? Bandwidth. With this type of solution, you are limited not only in the download bandwidth available wherever you'd like to stream your content to, but also the upload bandwidth available in your home to deliver that content over the web. DSL and basic cable internet users may have to deal with buffering issues, depending on the type of content accessed.
The two-terabyte Buffalo CloudStor Pro (model CS-WV2.0TL) is available now, at an estimated street price of $249.99, with a limited one-year warranty and toll-free 24/7 US-based technical support.
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