Dave's Download

SanDisk Wants Us to Push Their Backup Button

By David LaGesse

Posted: January 7, 2009

Our refusal to back up our PCs also caught the attention of SanDisk, which is launching USB drives with a push-button for saving data. It's another effort by SanDisk to find a new use for the memory chips it makes.

This one doesn't seem a big winner. But there might be a market in people who already rely on USB drives for crucial files. Like a friend of mine, a non-techie who's always baffled by backup software and manually copies a few files to a thumb drive.

SanDisk's concept borrows from external hard drives, which come loaded with software that is invoked with a button on the drive. Smaller USB drives seem awkward for reliable backup. They are more portable, so maybe it's good for someone who wants to routinely haul a number of files with them. Even then, it depends on the software, which I haven't seen, and how easy and reliable it is to use.

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Dave's Download

Our in-house gadget guru, Senior Writer David LaGesse, checks out the latest technologies and gizmos, from computer software to GPS systems -- and reports back to you in plain English.


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