Disclaimer: I was given a 1TB ioSafe SoloPro to review for this article and was allowed to keep it. The vendor was notified that there was no guarantee I would write a review. I get contacted frequently to review products and services, but only choose the ones that look like they’d be good investments for my readers. Once I saw the fire burning test (see video below) I was sold on reviewing this. The ioSafe they gave me to review is already full. I will definitely be buying a new one.
A necessary component of any backup strategy is having some sort of off-site drive to store duplicate copies of your crucial data. The logistical problem for many of you small, particularly home-based businesses is this: where the heckfire will you store it offsite. At your neighbor’s house? A safe deposit box? U-haul Storage? Those are all workable solutions, but can be extremely inconvenient.
Other popular solutions include services like Backblaze or Carbonite, where for $5/month you can upload your data to the cloud. That solutions is great for manageable-sized data (Word documents, photos, program files, etc.) But there really isn’t a realistic solution for filmmakers and videographers who have dozens TB of data.
“Offsite” Level Protection in the Comfort of Your Home or Office
Well, what if you didn’t have to store your duplicate data offsite? The main reason you want to store that data offsite is because if your house or office burns down, gets in an earthquake, or if you’re robbed, you’ll have your offsite data to recover. But what if you could accomplish the same thing right at your home or office. That’s where ioSafe comes in.
ioSafe is a fireproof and waterproof hard drive solution. It can withstand temperatures up to 1,50o°F and submersion in up to 10′ of water for up to 72 hours. You can also cable lock it down for theft protection.
I get so many requests a day (for all kinds of things besides reviews) that I just don’t have time to respond to them all. But when ioSafe contacted me, they sent this video. It got my attention.
My Experience with ioSafe
The drive came in a nicely packed box. The first thing I noticed was the weight. It feels like a safe. It’s pretty darn heavy for its size (5″W x 7″ H x 11″ L). I also have a first generation Drobo, and the ioSafe is a tad bit taller.
I’ve used the drive for nearly a year now and I love it. I’ve never had any corruption issues. I’ve edited video with it, and have never experienced slowness. The model I have is a USB 2.0 connection with an eSATA drive that has up to 3GB/s transfer rates. Since I first got the SoloPro,
But what I think I love most about it (besides the insane protection of course) is how quiet it is due its forced air cooling system. I frequently shut down my Drobo when I don’t need it because the fan is so freaking loud (I have no idea of the newer models are quieter). The ioSafe has a low, computer-like hum.
The reason I’ve waited so long to write this review was because the one downside was that the drives are not hot-swappable and expandable. I knew based on my own experience that for this kind of drive and investment, I would want to be able to add more drives later. I asked my contact at ioSafe if they had any kind of RAID storage in the works. He said, “Yes, but we can’t mention it yet.” I told him that once they can mention it, I’d write my review because I knew this was a feature my readers would want.
It’s been nearly a year and I’m happy to announce they finally have their RAID solution just over the horizon. It’s called the N2 NAS RAID, and perhaps the coolest thing about it, is that you can hook it up to the internet, and it becomes your own private cloud solution. With it you will be able to wireless or remotely access photos, music, and any other data you have on the drive. They’ve started an IndieGoGo campaign for it. The video below has the info.
I admit that I did not test the fireproof or waterproof abilities. The video I saw and the other reviews I read myself did that pretty well. But I can with good conscience add my “two thumbs up” to their already long list of positive reviews and awards.