R E L A T E D C O N T E N T

Iomega Clik!

newmedia newmedia, What PC? 31 Aug 1999

Innovation tends to be the rule rather than the exception in the computer industry and this makes it difficult for new products to cause much of a sensation. Once in a while though, something comes along that's such a leap forward it almost sells itself and this year it's the turn of the Iomega Clik drive.

The Clik is just another removable storage device, but it's the implementation that'll really grab your attention. For starters, Clik disks are no larger than a book of matches and about half as thick. Encased in brushed metal, they look like futuristic film props, but they work - one disk holds over 38Mb (1Mb is 1024Kb).

Clik drives come in two flavours - the Clik PC Card drive and Clik Plus.

If you thought Clik disks were too small to be true, then the PC Card drive will have you believing in pixies. Although it looks like any other Type II PC Card, it's actually a self-contained Clik drive that uses removable Clik disks. In other words, notebooks and handheld PCs now have a cheap, unlimited storage medium.

The Clik Plus is a more versatile affair aimed at desktop PC users. The main part is a battery-powered unit the size of a mobile phone, with a Clik drive at one end and both CompactFlash and SmartMedia slots at the other. With a piece of media in either end, pressing a button copies the contents of the solid-state media to a folder on the Clik disk automatically, in just a few seconds.

The advantages for digital cameras are obvious and the unit even comes with a carry case that clips to a belt for use on the move. The Clik Plus also comes with a combined docking station/recharger for linking to a PC back at base, together with a PC Card connector for notebooks.

It's hard to see how Clik can fail - 38Mb on a tough, tiny disk that costs just £8. It spells doom for the floppy, and once digital camera manufacturers start using it, you can kiss goodbye to costly solid-state storage too.

SPECIFICATIONS

Clik disk: 38Mb capacity

Dimensions: 55x50x2mm

0.7Mb/s transfer rate

Five-year warranty

Clik Plus drive: Battery-powered drive with SmartMedia and CompactFlash slots

Automatic copying to Clik disk

PC Docking station/recharger with parallel connection

Type II PC Card connection

Clik PC Card: Self-contained Type II PC Card drive

Clik plus drive: £249 (inc VAT)

Clik PC Card drive: £179 (inc VAT)