Lenovo's ThinkPad USB Portable Secure hard drive will make you look, feel more important than you are

This anonymous, yet nefarious looking device -- Lenovo's ThinkPad USB Portable Secure Hard Drive -- has a passcode system that uses a physical keypad (see photo), which should be handy for you always on-the-go, James Bond types. In fact, the tiny unit (3 x 5-inches), which is designed to pair up with ThinkPad laptops, can have up to 10 unique user IDs, and an admin account, enabling the whole family to be in on the encrypting-action. We hear the "Vault" (as they like to call it) will be available by month's end, and that the 160GB model will be $180, while the 320GB will run $219. All we need to do now is find some data worth protecting...

[Via I4U News]

[yopopoy @ Nov 14th 2008 5:33PM]

Ill bet the buttos dont work, they just scare people into not stealing it & make the user feel safe ( /kidding )

[StalematE @ Nov 14th 2008 5:33PM]

I'd get this if it had a skull and crossbones instead of the thinkpad logo. And that keypad better beep when you press the buttons.

[Flashpoint @ Nov 14th 2008 5:43PM]

I'll get one if entering the wrong code 3 times causes it to burst into flames.

[iEye @ Nov 14th 2008 8:37PM]

Naw, there should be a place to strap your hand in and it locks with a selonoid... if you get the code wrong once it gives you a mild buzzer shock...

[LondonConsultant @ Nov 15th 2008 7:22AM]

Jack is gonna get Chloe to crack one of these in Season 7. Dammit...

[telepheedian @ Nov 14th 2008 5:34PM]

"All we need to do now is find some data worth protecting..."


I'm sure I can help you with that, just send it via FedEx to my house. I'll email you the address.

[sinai @ Nov 14th 2008 5:35PM]

1. plug into ATM
2. upload custom code
3. punch in a few numbers
4. ???
5. PROFIT!

[Josh @ Nov 14th 2008 5:39PM]

That may be the best headline ever.

[Dakota @ Nov 14th 2008 6:03PM]

Even owning a Thinkpad itself would make me feel more important than I am... even if it's from the DOS era.

[goebbels @ Nov 14th 2008 5:40PM]

ah. perfect place to keep the greatest porns.

[The Dude @ Nov 14th 2008 5:55PM]

Seriously.

Is the numeric password "69" too easy to guess?

[CitizenjaQ @ Nov 14th 2008 5:46PM]

I don't suppose it functions as a numberpad?

[thatrotierkid @ Nov 14th 2008 7:22PM]

dude that would be a sick idea. most laptops dont have a dedicated keypad. seriously, it couldnt be that hard to implement. all it needs is a numlock key to switch from password to keypad mode

[Roadie @ Nov 15th 2008 4:03PM]

That was EXACTLY my first thought! What a great double duty device, an external keypad and secure HDD all in one. Someone needs to run with this idea.

[Joe @ Nov 14th 2008 5:48PM]

I prefer the "you-have-a-5-gallon-and-a-3-gallon-jug-make-4-gallons" approach.

[iEye @ Nov 14th 2008 5:49PM]

I'll put it in the Vault, I'm locking the Vault, its a Vault!

[Dean @ Nov 14th 2008 5:49PM]

So is the data actually encoded, or can this security mechanism be bypassed with a screwdriver?

[sam @ Nov 14th 2008 5:56PM]

Don't worry, in order to prevent copyright theft and/or terrorism, screwdrivers have been banned as of today, so your data is safe!

[StalematE @ Nov 14th 2008 6:46PM]

"The new secure hard drive meets the 128-bit advanced encryption security standard to help ensure information remains secure, and real-time encryption means users don’t have to wait for the “lag time” that typically accompanies encrypted drives. The hard drive features full-disk encryption for up to ten unique user ID’s and one administrator, making it an ideal tool for ThinkPad notebook PC users on-the-go or collaborating at work."

[James @ Nov 14th 2008 8:42PM]

A little too much for securing my porn collection.

[PointP @ Nov 14th 2008 5:50PM]

I rather put a combination lock on a usb port.

[ckluis @ Nov 14th 2008 6:00PM]

Don't you think it would make more sense if that could also function as an attached 9-key for laptops? At least it wouldn't be as pretentious.

[bigcow05 @ Nov 14th 2008 6:02PM]

Hmm, there seems to be a groove on the side. I don't suppose it can read ID cards and the like?

[Dakota @ Nov 14th 2008 6:04PM]

No, it's a holder for the USB cable. The cable wraps around the groove and fits into the larger end of it. Solves the whole mess with cable managment.

[BlurMagic @ Nov 14th 2008 6:12PM]

Yes, because everyone needs a credit card scanner on their hard drive.

[John @ Nov 14th 2008 6:30PM]

"card reader" means "magnetic strip reader", and can read a lot more than just credit cards, such as, I don't know, any freakin card you swipe.

[BigD145 @ Nov 14th 2008 6:23PM]

Pop it open, pull the drive out, toss said drive into another enclosure, and copy all the data you could want.

[nikster @ Nov 14th 2008 6:44PM]

Try the "Read" link and everything will become much clearer...

[KIFF @ Nov 14th 2008 7:08PM]

The data is encrypted mate.

[MarbleMind @ Nov 14th 2008 6:46PM]

Uh... yeeeeeah. If you don't mind, I'll take the LaCie Safe Mobile 160 GB with fingerprint reader for $122.


(and yes, I've seen that MythBuster's episode)

[Bruce @ Nov 14th 2008 7:08PM]

Batman would use this

[rita hainsworth @ Nov 14th 2008 7:12PM]

I like how it looks like M&Ms.

[Str1ker @ Nov 15th 2008 12:00AM]

"has a passcode system that uses a physical keypad (see photo)"

Yeah thanks engadget for letting me know that it's shown in the photo; I wouldn't have noticed otherwise.

[Wwhat @ Nov 15th 2008 2:16AM]

These drives, if you have a disk error then no normal recovery utility will work right? Not even chkdsk.

[linuxamp @ Nov 16th 2008 11:02PM]

Not necessarily. Some disk utilities work on at a lower level; they don't care if a series of bits make a file, they only care if a bit is a 1 or 0. Even encrypted data is comprised of 1s and 0s so even if a bit is ambiguous to the OS, the utility may be able to best guess what the bit was and rewrite it to the same location or move it to a new location. The problem is that this enclosure may not give such utilities direct access to the drive. Removing the disk from the enclosure might work if the encryption hardware is not on the drive itself.

[hipauliee @ Nov 15th 2008 2:53AM]

dude omfg. pr0n ftw!

[Sin @ Nov 15th 2008 5:20AM]

Why is this one not equipped with a / * - + , and a Enter?

[Str1ker @ Nov 15th 2008 6:12AM]

Because it's not a numpad.

[Sin @ Nov 15th 2008 8:07AM]

I'm implying that it easily could have been, and why not make a numpad, harddrive (with code) gadget?

[Miles @ Nov 15th 2008 8:09AM]

...Where's my Bog Roll, I'll have that lifted in 20 seconds

[Jeff @ Nov 15th 2008 9:35AM]

Why is it facing the back of the laptop?

Obviously to thwart would be villains who think you cannot open the lid that way.....ingenious.

[Aeskel @ Nov 16th 2008 7:18PM]

"All we need to do now is find some data worth protecting..."

porn.

[PENIX @ Jan 7th 2009 1:59AM]

I'm not sure I like the look of those buttons. What happens after you've typed in your password a thousand times and your password keys are worn and easy to tell apart from those you don't use?