As most of you know, I work from home. Working from home entails a lot of saved documents, spreadsheets, web design projects, emails, chat files, etc., that are very important. As most of you may also know, I love digital photography. I have had my Nikon 40X, a DSLR camera, for over three years. Over the past three years I have acquired an external flash, several additional lenses (including a Lensbaby Muse — thank you Jason!), a tripod (thank you Jason!), various filters, larger capacity SD cards, and more recently, better skill with taking photos. And then there are my multiple blogs and the product reviews I partake in for a few of them. Bottom line, I have a lot of important data to organize and keep track of. And to compound matters, I have not one but three computers that I use and rotate through on a regular basis.
Between my work and personal data and my three computers, I have a lot of stuff to keep track of. And organization aside, there’s always the risk of losing data. Operating system failures, hard drive havoc, random quirks that cause data to just up and disappear (hey, it’s been known to happen!) — all of these are a very real possibility, and have happened and can happen.
So when I heard about Hitachi’s LifeStudio Mobile Plus, I knew I had to experience it for myself. LifeStudio Mobile Plus is more than an external hard drive — it’s an external hard drive that offers the ability to automatically sync folders of your choosing. What’s more, every LifeStudio Mobile Plus comes with a 4GB USB key that also auto-syncs. The USB key can go anywhere you go, and once you’re done using it simply pop it into the dock that the LifeStudio Mobile Plus hard drive sits in, and it’ll auto-sync its data with the data on the external hard drive (you can also do the reverse — sync data from your external hard drive to the USB key).
LifeStudio Mobile Plus is available in 320GB and 500GB capacities, and your choice of graphite (dark gray with robin’s egg blue accents) or platinum (white with robin’s egg blue accents). The package includes:
- Hard drive
- 4GB external USB key
- Hard drive dock (the hard drive slides into the middle of it, and the USB key magnetically attaches to the front)
- USB cable to connect the dock to your computer
- USB cable to take with you on-the-go, should you need to take the hard drive itself with you
LifeStudio Mobile Plus software features:
- Automatic or scheduled syncing between the connected computer and the hard drive
- Automatic or scheduled syncing between the USB key and the computer it’s connected to
- USB dock — no more fumbling with USB cables
- Easy-to-use LifeStudio software organizes your files, makes it a cinch to set up syncing, and keeps you connected to your favorite social networking sites
The LifeStudio software provides automatic organization, easy setup of syncing for both the hard drive and the external USB key, easy sharing options, and a seamless, amazingly organized blend of your photos, movies, music, documents and more in a spiffy endless 3D wall that you can scroll through with your mouse.
Then there’s Hitachi Backup, which is built right into the LifeStudio software. You can sign up for a free account and get 2GB worth of online storage space for free, or you can update for additional capacity. And yes, Hitachi Backup will allow you to set automatic or scheduled backups. Hitachi Backup can be accessed from your computer, and also from your mobile devices!
My experience with LifeStudio Mobile Plus has been nothing short of amazing. I have to admit that I was slightly overwhelmed by all of the features once I pulled everything out of the box, but after reading through the quick-start manual and checking out the demo and support videos that were included with the LifeStudio software, I was good to go. Everything I needed to do to get completely set up was clearly outlined, and easy to follow in chronological order.
(Cloud Backup is Hitachi Backup)
(The endless 3D wall in action!)
(Catching up with my friends on Facebook.
My setup with LifeStudio Mobile Plus:
As you may be able to see, the LifeStudio Mobile Plus hard drive & dock are connected to my desktop computer. I’ve been using the 4GB USB key to keep in sync the documents I create on my laptop and on my netbook with what’s on my desktop computer, and of course on the Hitachi 500GB external hard drive itself. One of my fav features of the USB key is the fact that the cap stays attached via a transparent plastic strip — no lost caps to worry about! Also, since it attaches magnetically, I don’t have to worry about mis-aligning it and potentially damaging the port.
Most importantly, everything syncs flawlessly. And? The software runs perfectly on all three of my computers — the oldest one being my six year old desktop, and the “weakest” one in terms of processing speed being my netbook.
With alllllllllll of that said, I even took the time to shoot an eight minute video showing LifeStudio Mobile Plus in action:
If you’re looking for generous storage space, the convenience of a USB key (with a whopping 4GB of space, no less!), and the safety and security of automatic and scheduled backups and synchronizations of the folders and files of your choosing, I would definitely recommend LifeStudio Mobile Plus. Its comprehensive setup both answers your every need and does so easily. The software is a breeze to install and use, and the hardware itself is very well made, and it looks great, too! Best of all, there’s no thought required — no more scheduling backups manually, setting reminders for those backups, etc. Just “set it and forget it”, and let LifeStudio Mobile Plus do the rest!
Rating: 
Disclosure: Hitachi sent me LifeStudio Mobile Plus free of charge, in exchange for my honest review of their product.
