LaCie Unveils Its Latest USB 3.0 Storage Appliance

The USB 3.0 storage market continues to expand, with LaCie introducing a new RAID storage device the incorporates the new high-speed standard.Here is the story, courtesy of InformationWeek: LaCie has introduced a dual hard disk, RAID storage device that includes a SuperSpeed USB 3.0 connector, which provides higher bandwidth for moving video and other large files.

In building the latest 2Big product, LaCie partnered with chip maker Symwave, which is supplying the USB 3.0-compliant dual SATA and RAID bridge controller. The device is bundled with backup software for both the Mac and Windows PC.

LaCie's latest 2Big product attaches to a PC via the USB 3.0 port. The higher bandwidth and large storage capacity is beneficial to professionals who need to move large files back and forth between the 2Big and an attached device.

While the device supports both RAID 0 and 1 modes, it is important to note that it is not a network-attached storage device; rather, it is designed to provide supplemental storage for a single desktop system.

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In order to take advantage of USB 3.0 devices (which offer theoretical data transfer speeds up to 4.8GB/sec), you'll need hardware -- specifically a motherboard -- that is fully compatible. And since that means upgrading to a brand new system or installing an add-in card on an older system, it is likely to be a while before these devices gain any mass-market traction.