Seagate And MusicSkins Join Forces To Add Custom Options To External Storage

Seagate And MusicSkins Seagate, the world’s leading provider of hard drives and storage solutions, and MusicSkins LLC, the leader in music and music-related, high-quality, vinyl skin products, today announced a marketing partnership to add personal flair to the FreeAgent Go™ and FreeAgent Go™ for Mac external hard drives. With a wide range of skins from a vast catalog of licensed creative or customized designs, this partnership expands on the already extensive range of FreeAgent® drive color, size and capacity options that let people to put their personal stamp on their Seagate external storage devices.

MusicSkins’ utilizes a patented 3M® adhesive technology that prevents air bubbles and allows for both easy application and clean removal. These hassle-free, premium vinyl skins offer a distinctive look, and personal style to Seagate external drives, while also safeguarding the device with a durable anti-scratch, anti-UV coating to protect the exterior of the hard drive. From Bob Marley to John Lennon, Madonna to Lil Wayne, EXPLODINGDOG to Adult Swim, and even personal photos and images, there’s a MusicSkin to suit every personality.

“Our FreeAgent Go™ portable hard drives allow people to store their personal digital treasures in a slim, fashionable, easy-to-carry package. It makes sense that they would want to add their personal stamp to the drives, Your photos, music and movies are a reflection of who you are and through our partnership with MusicSkins, you can now have their drives reflect your personality, too.” said Terry Cunningham, senior vice president, Seagate Branded Solutions.

Tricking out your FreeAgent external portable drive is easy. Consumers can either purchase a skin directly from Seagate.com when purchasing a FreeAgent Go drive, or outfit a previously purchased drive by visiting www.seagate.com/musicskins and selecting a skin from the library of designs, or creating a uniquely designed personal piece with the online customization tool. The skins traditionally range in price from $15.00 to $30.00, depending on the selection and type of device, and arrive via mail in seven to ten business days(1). However, for a limited time(2), those who purchase a FreeAgent Go or FreeAgent Go for Mac drive at any Seagate retailer, can take advantage of a special email offer to receive 20 percent off any MusicSkin and 35 free songs from eMusic when they register their FreeAgent Go on Seagate.com. With even more options for tricking out a Seagate hard drive with fresh looks and favorite tunes, the FreeAgent Go drive makes the perfect addition to any back-to-school, gift or personal shopping list.

“As the leading manufacturer of premium quality vinyl skin products for an array of leading personal digital devices, we’re proud to be working with Seagate to tailor their award-winning FreeAgent Go™ drives to fit the personal style of their customers, People today are inseparable from the tools that give them access to content. They want it with them wherever they go, whether it’s on their phone, iPod, laptop or an external hard drive. They also like to put a personal mark on the device to make it their own.”  said Vince Bartozzi, president, MusicSkins LLC.

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Top 10 External Hard Drives

External Hard Drives An external hard disk drive is a type of hard disk drive which is externally connected to a computer. Modern entries into the market consist of standard SATA, IDE, or SCSI hard drives in portable disk enclosures with SCSI, USB, IEEE 1394 Firewire, eSATA client interfaces to connect to the host computer.

External hard drives are certainly known for their memory storage capacity. They allow one to store data up to four thousand gigabytes, along with easy portability. There are many external hard drives available in the market which have unique features and functions. When external hard drives were newly launched, they were very expensive. However, due to their wide demand and use, the prices have lowered significantly. Let’s take a look at some of the best external hard drives available.

1. Maxtor OneTouch 4 Plus 1 TB 3.5″ USB 2.0

  • 1 TB external hard drive connects to your computer via USB cable or FireWire 400
  • Simple Maxtor user interface for drive management, security, and backup scheduling
  • Two levels of security against unauthorized use – Maxtor DrivePass¿ and data encryption
  • Sync data between 2 or more computers on the same operating system
  • Drive and power management utilities; 5-year limited warranty Price: $119.99

2. Western Digital My Passport Elite Portable 500 GB USB 2.0 Hard Disk Drive (Titanium)

  • Luxurious Soft-touch Finish
  • Capacity gauge
  • Backup and Sync Software
  • Powered directly from the USB port on your PC. No separate power supply is needed
  • Remote access – Connect My Passport to any PC and run MioNet® Key software to remotely access files, music, and photos from any of your computers with MioNet software installed. Free for the life of the drive (Windows only) Price: $134.95

3. Seagate FreeAgent Go 500 GB USB 2.0 Portable External Hard Drive

  • 5,400 RPM Spin Speed, 8 MB Cache Buffer
  • USB 2.0: up to 480 Mb/s
  • Sync and back up quickly at your desktop without having to search for cables.
  • Guard the privacy of important files and folders.
  • Get your storage solution up and running quickly. Price: $114.97

4. LaCie Hard Disk 1 TB USB 2.0 External Hard Drive

  • 1 TB USB external hard drive with a stunning design by Neil Poulton
  • Fast USB 2.0 interface offers connectivity and transfer rates of up to 480 Mbps
  • Plug and Play functionality for both Macs and Windows
  • Includes one-year online backup service providing unlimited off-site backup storage
  • Measures 4.6 x 1.8 x 7.6 inches (WxHxD); 2-year limited warranty Price: $119.99

5. Maxtor 320GB Black Armor 2.5-Inch External Hard Drive

  • Box Content – BlackArmor external hard drive with pre-loaded security and backup software, Quick Start guide, USB 2.0 cable, and Protective slip case
  • Protected by Seagate Secure hardware based encryption technology delivering Government certification as the strongest data security available for an external storage device
  • Removal of the USB cable from your computer auto locks the drive
  • No tedious manual security procedures found in software-based encryption technology
  • Hint feature offers a reminder in the event of a forgotten password Price: $89.99

6. Toshiba 320 GB USB 2.0 Portable External Hard Drive

  • USB Powered for Portability/ 320GB Capacity/ Up to 480Mb/s Speed
  • Small Size Saves Desktop Space/ Compact/ Lightweight/ Just 6 oz./ Black and Grey
  • Internal Shock Sensor and Ramp Loading Technology
  • Simple Solution for Backup or Increasing Computer Storage
  • Perfect for Music/ Movies/ Photos/ Games/ Large Business Files/ Etc. Price: $82.51

7. Seagate FreeAgent Desk 1 TB USB 2.0 External Hard Drive

  • USB 2.0: up to 480 Mb/s
  • Rotational Speed: 7200 RPM
  • Simple software, energy efficient, and encryption
  • Dynamic display, ultra stylish, brushed metal, and flexible Price: $119.99

8. Western Digital 1TB My Passport Studio II

  • Box Contents – Dual-drive storage system, FireWire 800 cable, FireWire 800 to 400 cable, USB cable, AC adapter, Software CD, Quick Install Guide, 5-Year Limited
  • Lightning-fast FireWire 800 combined with RAID 0 (Striped) yields the speed you need for smooth video editing, rendering complex 3D objects or special effects and saving huge blocks of data in record time
  • Designed to use only WD’s GreenPower drives, this system uses about 30% less energy than standard systems and runs quietly because it doesn’t need a fan
  • 1TB = 1000GB Hard Drive Capacity
  • Pre-configured to RAID 0 (Striped) Price: $223.96

9. LaCie Rugged All-Terrain Hard Disk 320 GB

  • 320 GB external hard disk with rugged, shock resistant case
  • Triple interface including FireWire 800, FireWire 400, and USB 2.0 for speed and universal connectivity
  • Bus-powered so no bulky power adapter required
  • Includes one-year online backup service providing unlimited off-site backup storage
  • Measures 3.5 x 1.0 x 5.7 inches (WxHxD); backed by a 3-year warranty Price: $119

10. Iomega Prestige 500 GB USB 2.0 Desktop External Hard Drive

  • Easy-to-use: simple USB 2.0 interface; just plug and play
  • Stylish and durable: stylish drive – available in a dark silver brushed finish; sturdy aluminum construction with included stand
  • Secure: EMC retrospect HD (PC) license is included for easy file backup (software available via easy download)
  • Energy efficient: powered by an Energy Star qualified adapter for a better environment Price: $79.95

External hard drives aren’t as fast as internal models, but they are great for backups and are easy to install.

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USB devices not detected in Windows ME

Window ME My computer has a USB1.1 port or I have just installed a USB2.0 host adapter. The host adapter shows correctly without conflicts in Windows’ Device Manager but the USB2 Personal Storage device does not appear. I’ve tried many things: disconnecting and reconnecting the data cable to make the drive appear, deleted then refreshed the USB host adapter from Device Manager. The ‘unplug or eject hardware’ icon appears (or is not seen) in the System Tray (located at the bottom right corner of your screen). The USB controller is shown in Device Manager but not the USB2 Personal Storage Device!

There are many reasons an external storage device does not appear connected to the USB controller. Missing or corrupted drivers can sometimes be at fault. The Windows ME operating system typically supplies all needed drivers for Maxtor Personal Storage drives. Sometimes drivers do not load correctly or have never been installed. Some computer manufacturers choose not to load these drivers to the operating system to avoid possible conflicts with other devices. Confirm that these files are loading from the correct directory if your 3000LE is not detected by the operating system.

From Windows Explorer drill down to the directory: C:\WINDOWS/OPTIONS/INSTALL Open the BASE2 folder and scroll to the bottom.

Highlight these files. Drag and drop them to the directory

C:\WINDOWS/SYSTEM32/DRIVERS

  • LIUSBAUTH.SYS
  • USBCCGP.SYS
  • USBHUB.SYS
  • USBNTMAP.SYS
  • USBPRINT.SYS
  • USBSTOR.SYS
  • USBMPHLP.PDR
  • USBD.SYS
  • USBUI.DLL

Windows may note an error message that these files are already loaded. Choose the option to replace the files anyway. Perform a full system restart. The ‘unplug or eject‘ icon should appear in the system tray. Double click this icon and the Personal Storage device should appear correctly.

This procedure is effective in most cases. All OEM (original equipment manufacturers) make specific changes to hardware and software to ensure error free operation of their systems. Adding any after-market peripheral device places a burden of responsibility on you the end user. Maxtor performs extensive compatibility and regression testing with all commonly available computers but ultimately you are responsible for compatibility and error free operation of your particular computer system.

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