Lenovo recently announced a new ThinkPad USB Portable Secure Hard Drive that offers consumers the unique combination of portability and security when using portable HDDs.
Several different manufacturers have released secure USB keys and external drives, but this marks one of the first times a portable HDD has 128-bit encryption alongside a numeric keypad. Users will have to enter their passcode each time they want to access their data, which offers an extra layer of security to help keep data safe.
The HDD itself is less than inch thin and measures just 3 x 5 inches. It's powered via USB, so an external power adapter isn't needed. Lenovo made it possible for 10 unique user IDs plus one administrator account to be used for each HDD, and encryption is done in real time.
Lenovo will ship 160 and 320 GB of the portable hard drive, with availability expected sometime this week. The 160 GB model will retail for $179 and the 320 GB will be available for $219.
Manufacturers are trying to come up with clever ways to help market secure products, especially USB keys and portable HDDs. Higher storage capacities and wider adoption of such products often can lead to security nightmares, as most users simply neglect to encrypt their data -- and data theft, especially among corporations, is a major risk.
