Most people store sensitive data on networks for safety. We just use John Gillooly's brain.
Designed to pair a 2.5in notebook hard drive with an 802.11g wireless access point, the WL-HDD is made to sit on a network and provide a central space for file sharing via FTP or shared network drive. It can also work in client mode, attaching to a pre-existing access point, but it is designed mainly to attach to a switch via Ethernet and provide wireless access where none already exists.
The product does not come with a notebook drive, which enables users to choose the most appropriate drive for their needs. Drive installation is incredibly simple, all you need to do is open the caddy and attach the drive with three screws. Then it is simply a case of powering the drive and attaching it through an Ethernet switch or directly to your PC's Ethernet port for configuration via a simple web interface.
You can set the wireless function to run as either an access point or client, as well as setting up multiple SSID profiles for roaming to different wireless networks. Once added to a network it appears as a shared drive, and files can be copied to and from the drive via Ethernet or Wireless. If you are shunting large files around, Ethernet is still the superior option, but 802.11g works adequately for most small files. Seeing as the product is designed to attach to an Ethernet switch, the assumption is that there is already a wired network available, so wireless access will be a secondary option for most users anyway.
This is a decent product, that just has a few niggles keeping it from greatness. For the majority of power users with Ethernet networks the wireless functionality probably won't be used to the fullest, and while the cost of the caddy makes it comparable to other access points, you need to be using the wi
Issue: 133 | February, 2012