Rachel King| Zdnet
Following in the footsteps of the GoFlex Satellite wireless drive, the Seagate Wireless Plus hard drive bumps things up several notches being that it sports a 1TB hard drive. Seagate described that should fit up to 500 HD movies. With up to 10 hours of battery life promised, that makes this wireless storage device look like an ideal companion for frequent travelers — most notably those on the road with mobile devices containing less onboard storage. Multimedia stored on the Wireless Plus drive can be accessed through a free mobile app available for iOS, Android and Kindle Fire HD devices. But Seagate insists that “just about any device” can still connect when a Wi-Fi network is available.
Nevertheless, for iOS, Android and Kindle users, the sheer amount of space and battery life reduces dependence on the necessary Wi-Fi or mobile broadband access often needed for accessing cloud-based content stored elsewhere. That’s because this storage device creates its own Wi-Fi network, which communicates directly with your mobile devices and PCs.
The Wireless Plus drive is also designed for use within the living room, supporting Apple Airplay and DLNA connectivity. Seagate developers have also produced an app specifially for Samsung’s connected TVs and Blu-ray players.
For getting content onto the Wireless Plus in the first place, the hard drive also includes a removable SuperSpeed USB 3.0 adapter.
Seagate’s new Wireless Plus 1TB storage device is available now for $199.99.
The Cupertino, Calif.-based hardware giant also unveiled a few more new storage solutions on Sunday, including a networked home storage device dubbed Seagate Central.
Touted to be the “the first storage device” to feature a smart TV app for access to files on larger displays, Seagate Central is designed to automate data backups for all networked devices while offering remote access to these devices when the user is outside of the home network.
Certified for both DLNA and Apple Airplay at home, access from outside the home network is available through apps for iOS, Android and Kindle Fire HD devices.
Rolling out this March, the pricing scale for the Seagate Central is as follows: 2TB for $189.99, 3TB for $219.99, and 4TB for $259.99.
