MRM's Performance |
|
|
Why do I NEED Removable Storage? Why do you need removable storage? Well, you don't really NEED removable storage, but you want it. Why? Removable Storage provides you with unlimited storage capacity, portability, speed, and in some cases a more reliable form of storage than your conventional hard drive. So you see all of these removable storage drives in your local computer shop, but you wonder which one is right for me? First, there are a few items you need to take into consideration before attempting to purchase a removable drive:
Interfaces Available:
Storage Media:
Performance:
Price: $149 MSRP (External SCSI/EPP & Internal IDE/SCSI) - $25 per 100MB Disk The Good The Iomega ZIP Drive is the perfect addition to every computer system. With each disk having a decent 100MB capacity and the storage extremely cheap and reliable, the ZIP drive is a great product. It still isn't a true floppy drive replacement, but it is perfect for transferring large files from your home to work or from one computer to another. The standard Parallel Port interface allows you to port the drive from one system to another without a hitch. The Guest and Guest95 software make installing the ZIP drive as easy as tying your shoes. The Bad Iomega made a great drive, cheap, reliable, and very portable, so what's the catch? Well, the Zip drive is quite slow. Actually, the Parallel Port version is beyond slow, it is horrible when transferring large files. The SCSI version is much faster, and if extreme portability isn't your number one concern I suggest getting the SCSI version over the Parallel Port version. Another problem with the ZIP Drive is its inability to cope with the higher bus speeds. My Parallel Port ZIP drive works fine at a 75MHz bus speed, but at 83.3MHz it is barely functional. The SCSI version doesn't seem to be plagued by these problems but you lose some of the portability with the External SCSI ZIP drive since it requires a SCSI-2 controller which is rare in the PC scene. Overall Rating:
Interfaces Available:
Storage Media:
Performance:
Price: $399 MSRP
(Internal SCSI) $499 (External SCSI/Parallel Port) The Good This drive is truly amazing, it is the perfect addition to any powerhouse system. With each disk holding a whopping (and I use the word whopping lightly here) 1GB and the option of a less expensive 540MB disk the JAZ drive is both affordable and speedy. An average 11ms seek time makes the JAZ as fast as, if not faster than most EIDE HDDs. It is definitely a worthy successor to the ZIP Drive. And it isn't plagued by the same problems as the ZIP drive. ALL versions of the JAZ drive reportedly work perfectly with the higher bus speeds including 83.3MHz (the Parallel Port version has yet to be confirmed at this speed)! As I mentioned before, speed is definitely NOT a problem with the JAZ drive, especially if you purchase the SCSI version. The 5400 RPM platter rotation speed is higher than most EIDE HDDs (including the Western Digital Caviar) and the 256KB buffer also adds to the shattering performance of the JAZ. The Bad As with the Zip drive, the JAZ drive also has a catch. First, the obvious, the price. $499 for an external removable drive?!?!?! And $130 a pop for disks? Well, if you can afford it the JAZ drive is great, but the price is not its only problem. Many users have complained that the JAZ diskettes are simply not reliable storage media. I would put it this way, the JAZ drive is not nearly as reliable as its predecessor, the ZIP Drive. Overall Rating:
Interfaces Available:
Storage Media:
Performance:
Price: $199 MSRP (External SCSI/EPP & Internal EIDE) - $30 per 230MB Disk The Good Well, this drive is simply aimed at giving the ZIP Drive some tough competition. With the price of the drive only $50 more than the ZIP Drive while delivering 2.3 times the storage in a much MUCH faster manner (13.5ms seek time for the EZ Flyer vs 29ms of the ZIP) the EZFlyer seems to be a much better alternative to the ZIP Drive. Running programs off of one of these isn't as much of a chore as it is on the ZIP drive. So are YOU willing to spend the extra for a better drive? Not sure? Lets take a look at the downsides to this drive... The Bad As with any SyQuest product, you lose the advantage of having a mainstream name. How many computers out there have you seen being sold with a Zip or JAZ drive? Now how many have you seen being sold with anything made by SyQuest? I love SyQuest, but they are just not as big or as widespread as Iomega. Sorry. Sometimes finding an EZFlyer disk is a pain, you always see ZIP and JAZ disks in stock, but in most cases EZFlyer disks are on "backorder" or the salesman simply says that they just sold the last one...a month ago. Its a small price to pay for a great drive, you make the decision. Overall Score:
Interfaces Available:
Storage Media:
Performance:
Price: $399 MSRP
(Internal SCSI/IDE) $499 (External SCSI) $549 (External Parallel
Port) The Good This drive is fast, affordable ($0.07 per MB!!!), and VERY high in quality. The reliability of this drive is outstanding, its carefully sealed drive door keeps the drive both cool and clean. It doesn't allow any foreign particles (i.e dust, dust, and more dust) into the drive and keeps the fast spinning cartridge quiet. The SyJET is the perfect solution for every power/space hungry individual, can it compete against the Iomega JAZ Drive? In my opinion...yes. The Bad I had to really search for some dirt on this drive, but the only things I could come up with were the obvious flaws. The price of the drive isn't really something to brag about, although it provides great bang for the buck. Once again, cartridges for this drive are very hard to come by (as is the drive). Egghead has so far done the best job of stocking these cartridges although they only carry about 5 - 10 in my location vs the 30 - 50 JAZ Cartridges. Once again, it is a small price to pay for such a wonderful drive. Overall Score:
|
