For those whose major complaint about the Drobo was its lack of FireWire 800, today's your day. The new version of the virtualized-storage device features the much requested interface (and a second port for daisy-chaining), but despite the fact that it still lacks built-in Ethernet / WiFi, it does come equipped with an upgraded processor to better take advantage of FireWire 800's higher throughput, as well as a much larger, quieter case fan. Data Robotics claims their new model can achieve data transfer speeds of more than 2x over the original model, as well as outperform ReadyNAS and LaCie models (in RAID 1/5) when tested with identical drives.

The price stays the same at $500 for the device itself, and (as before) you can buy it bundled with two 1TB drives (for $900) or four 1TB drives (for $1,300). For those waiting for the price to dip even lower, Data Robotics is also clearing out inventory on its earlier model; until they sell out, first-gen Drobos will be going for $350, or $750 and $1,075 bundled with two and four 1TB drives, respectively.

Alright, so we've harshed a little bit on FireWire recently, but we've got to stop and give the venerable interconnect some love: the 1394 Trade Association says that there are now over a billion FireWire ports out there. That's quite an accomplishment, even if we're not so sure that the group's claim that "every 1394-equipped device sold now has 1 billion opportunities to connect" is the most accurate or useful way of measuring the success of the technology. Even still, growth is always a good thing, and with an estimated 15 percent expansion rate in existing markets and some new applications like in-car networking showing potential, it looks like FireWire is set to hold its own against USB and eSATA for a while longer.

The 1394 Trade Association is already talking up FireWire S3200, but Symwave is taking baby steps, demonstrating a 1.6Gbps system known as S1600 (shocking) that's backwards-compatible with FireWire 800 and 400 this week at a conference in China. That's great and all -- transferring 1000 four megapixel images in five seconds sure sounds like a good time -- but speeds like that probably aren't going to cut it when FireWire 800 devices are already thin on the ground, everyone's looking forward to S3200, and the 4.8Gbps USB 3.0 spec is already making appearances on schedule for a launch in 2010. Not to mention that Wireless USB 1.1's target speed is 1.0Gbps -- you know we'll take a slight speed hit if we can ditch the cables.

[Via PC World; Warning: PDF read link]

Just like fine wine, the HDD Stage Rack keeps getting better with age. On its third iteration now, the latest version of the external HDD cradle not only includes the obligatory USB and eSATA ports, but it also boasts a 6-pin FireWire 400 connector and two FireWire 800 sockets. 'Course, this thing isn't slated to be available for US hands until the end of this month, but that'll give you a few weeks to swallow the lofty $165.33 price tag, at least.

[Via AkihabaraNews]

Iomega's svelte portable eGo hard drive lineup got quite a bit of love the first time around, and Iomega is working in new sizes and plugs at this year's Macworld. The 2.5-inch drive now comes in 160GB and 250GB sizes, priced $140 and $210, respectively, for the USB 2.0 versions, while the Dual Interface editions (which toss in FireWire 400) will run you $160 and $230, respectively. Both versions can be powered straight from the data plug. The drives are available now in Cherry Red, Jet Black, Midnight Blue and Alpine White.

USB 3.0 really threw down this September with a theoretical max throughput of 4Gbps, but it looks like FireWire isn't going down without a fight. The latest and greatest FireWire version, dubbed "S3200" by those creatives up in marketing, uses the same ports and cables as FireWire 800, but boosts speeds to 3.2Gbps, which should make it pretty competitive with USB in the real world -- though actual real-life speeds will probably depend on who's adding up the bits. According to the 1394 Trade Association: "The S3200 standard will sustain the position of IEEE 1394 as the absolute performance leader," but we hear they're biased. They are claiming that where current FireWire 800 hard drives can move 90MB per second, S3200 should be able to do 400MB. Speed concerns aside, the power delivery, peer to peer architecture, and handy networking capabilities of 1394 mean that FireWire should hopefully be around for a long time to come.

[Via Slashdot]

Far too many peripheral hubs are cranked out without a single thought given to design, but thankfully, the creators of the Medusa Hub realized that aesthetics do matter. This interesting piece, which is sure to claim a section of prime real estate on your desk, boasts a trendy white finish, four USB 2.0 sockets, a pair of FireWire 400 connectors, a fan and even a light. All of the strands are connected to your PC / Mac via an upstream USB 2.0 and FireWire 400 jack, and the unit is available now for a lofty (but respectable) $79.99. Click on through for a few more snapshots.

[Via Engadget Japanese]

Update: Yeah, look familiar? Seems a lot like these guys swiped LaCie's Huby images or concept to us. You be the judge.

Intel's announced USB 3.0 specification could push throughput beyond 4Gbps (300MBps) at the application level while introducing Quality of Service in support of HD video streams. Besides supplanting Firewire once and for all, a clear goal of the new "SuperSpeed USB" is to keep up with the transfer speeds of flash chips. "We don't want to be the bottleneck in the system," says Intel's Jeff Ravencraft who is overseeing the 3.0 initiative. Intel, HP, Microsoft, NEC, NXP, and TI will present the initial spec for a design review in November with first silicon to be stamped in "early 2009." While the new interconnect (pictured) will remain backward compatible with USB 2.0 and prior devices, new cables laced with an optical link and a max length of 2-meters will be required to take advantage of those high speeds according to a senior engineering manager with NEC. Meanwhile, a 1Gbps throughput is being targeted with Ravencraft's other baby: Wireless USB 1.1. Sounds great, but with existing 480Mbps Wireless USB silicon only achieving about 40Mbps in practice, Intel would be wise to focus on efficiency, not theory. Of course, it's all just a lot of smack-talk 'til they deliver, but with Apple running Intel inside now, Sony putting USB in their camcorders, and eSATA proliferating for external disks... well, Firewire's days sure seem numbered.

[Via EETimes and The Inquirer]

LaCie's 4TB Biggest Quadra certainly isn't the largest drive to rock the LaCie badge, but it does give users four ways to sync it up with their PC or Mac. The four-disk RAID drive touts FireWire 800, FireWire 400, USB 2.0 and eSATA interfaces, supports RAID levels 0, 0+1 and 5, and will automatically shut down if temperates get too high. Reportedly, the device will ship with backup and recovery software and is slated to land in October for $2,199, right alongside the $1,099 2TB and $1,599 3TB versions.

[Via TGDaily]

Those making their ends in the video production biz just might fall head over heels for the V3HD, you know, if you're down with an all-in-one solution for capturing SD / HD video as well as audio on the side. This semi-professional device can handle up to 32-channels of simultaneous audio input and output, touts HDMI output for watching your work on nearly any display, and includes just about every input you could ask for including HD / SD BNC connections, component, composite, S-Video, FireWire 400 / 800, RS-422, and XLR ins / outs for starters. You'll find MOTU's Video Console software bundled in, but both Mac and PC users will have no qualms syncing this up with their favorite editing suite. Expect to see this thing ship sometime in Q3, but as of now, there's no telling how much loot it'll demand.

[Thanks, Kaku]

Sharp's HD DVR lineup has been steadily (albeit quietly) growing for a few years now, and while the company did loose five new offerings in the AQUOS DVR arena earlier this year, the multi-faceted DV-ACV52 has the stage all to itself now. Besides packing a built-in digital TV tuner, 250GB hard drive, and HDMI outputs, this convergence device allows playback and dubbing on a variety of formats including VHS, DVD, or DV / HDV via the i.Link FireWire connector. Other niceties include composite / S-Video outs, optical audio output, and the ability to record one OTA broadcast to the HDD while another goes straight to VHS / DVD. Sadly, we don't envision this Japanese-bound unit ever gracing US shores, but it will be making smiles across the sea next month for around $925.

[Via MediaMentalism]

If your current drives are just stuffed the the gills with 10 megapixel photos you never resized and episodes of Still Standing that you forgot to erase, Iomega's got a new RAID array that'll bulk up your storage by two terabytes and let you continue living your carefree, digital pack rat lifestyle. With four independent, lockable 500GB drives, though, you could just as easily shift the Power Pro Desktop Hard Drive into RAID 1 and make sure that your 1TB of never-used files are doubly secure; RAID status plus free space, fan speed, and temperature are all displayed on the built-in LED. Connectivity options are also plentiful here, with the PPDHD offering both the 400 and 800 flavors of Firewire and, of course, USB 2.0 as well. Mac and Windows compatible, this one will set you back $1,700 when it hits on April 10th.

[Via Macworld]

If you're like us, you've probably filled all your USB ports long ago -- we're daisy-chaining hubs at this point -- and yet most of our FireWire jacks, including the front panel one, remain perpetually unoccupied. So instead of doing the four port shuffle every time you want to load up a thumb drive, why not get a model that connects via FireWire instead? OCZ is showing off a pair of its Rally 2 drives that do just that, with one featuring dual 4-pin and 6-pin FireWire 400 plugs and the other sporting a single FireWire 800 connector. Sustained transfer rates on both devices promise to outperform USB 2.0 versions, so you're getting both speed and convenience here. No word on cost or availability, but you can't really put a price on freed-up USB ports anyway.

[Via Engadget Japanese]

Although it's not likely that you'll want your optical drives to be 820 feet away from you at all times under normal circumstances, we're sure we could envision a few scenarios where it'd be beneficial (or at least rather nifty). Matrox is adding another unit to its Extio lineup with the F1220 (closeup after the break), which gives users the ability to extend up to two displays, audio, twin FireWire connections, and up to six USB devices 820 feet from the workstation. Marketed for use in "mission-critical systems, media creation, broadcasting, control rooms, and digital signage applications," this remote graphics unit (RGU) supports resolutions up to 1,920 x 1,200, 128MB of graphics memory, and features fanless operation and a Matrox-designed graphics chip within. The unit it connected to a Matrox PCI or PCI-Express Extio adapter and the data is transferred over a "standard multi-mode fiber-optic cable with Dual-LC connectors." As for availability, the firm's latest RGU won't land until sometime in Q2, and while pricing is currently unlisted, you've got a few months to save up for this presumably costly piece if you so desire.

[Via PCLaunches]

Getting the jump on the CES and Macworld madness, LaCie has announced no less than a half dozen new products providing various sorts of external storage, with a pair of speakers thrown in for good measure. Likely to grab the most attention is the company's new external Blu-ray burner, compatible with Mac and Windows and packing dual USB and FireWire ports for your connectivity pleasure; it's set to ship later this month with a $1,149 price tag. On the hard drive-based front, LaCie's busted out the 500GB LaCie Quadra Hard Drive (available now for $299), the biometric-enhanced 500GB LaCie D2 SAFE Hard Drive (also now available for $299), the LaCie Ethernet Disk Mini and Ethernet Big Disk network storage solutions, available in a range of sizes from 250GB to 1TB for between $199 and $499, and the LaCie Ethernet Disk RAID, which'll give you up to 2TB of storage for $1,299. Lastly, LaCie's announced what appear to be the first bus-powered FireWire speakers, which will supposedly provide better sound than their USB-based counterparts while still letting you leave the AC adapter at home -- they'll set you back $79.

[Via MacMinute]