Compactdrive-portable harddisk for digital cameras

[eftpos]

The Compactdrive is a very cool product. It is essentially a box with a USB card-reader and a notebook hard disk.
It allows you to copy your digital photos into it so that you can free your memory cards for more photos. It connects to your computer via a USB port. Even if you're not using it for digital photography, you can use it for storage, just like a portable hard disk!

I've been using this for a month and I have no problems with it so far. I think it has saved me a lot of money (I only own one memory card which is 128mb) because memory cards are horribly expensive. I got my Compactdrive from a friend in Singapore. Its capacity is 40gb and costs only SGD 400, that's around A$355 or USD240! This product should be available in most countries.

I hope this is useful to those who love digital photography, and backpackers on long trips. If anyone is using a similar product please post your experiences too. Thanks!

here are some links
www.compactdrive.us/

www.mrgadget.com.au/2004/10/compactdrive-pd7x-portable-storage.html

[Eagle]

Thanks for posting the information on the Compactdrive. This appears to be a similar concept to the Flashtrax device and other PHD's, and I'm sure this will make travelling with your digital Camera much easier.

I'd be interested in your "long term" experience with this device. Post another note once you've had a chance to test this out for a while.

Cheers!!!

[dumbdiety]

That's a cool little device, but it just adds (a) to the weight of your pack and (b) it's one more expensive thing that you may lose. That's the only reason I wouldn't take one. If your digital camera supports some kind of flash memory, I suggest you buy a REALLY large card that can hold lots of pictures. I have a 1gig SD card in my camera that can hold over 1000 pictures! You can get any number of cards from places like Newegg REALLY cheap.
www.newegg.com/app/manufact.asp?catalog=68&DEPA=7

Doug

[CanadaCasey]

I found another great buy on memory cards as well, I bought this one:

www.buy.com/retail/product.asp?sku=10318746&loc=101&hdwt=30421&sp=1

unfortunately they only ship to US addresses, which can be a pain for Canadian customers

[eftpos]

Doug, I agree that this adds weight to the pack and is one more item that you might lose.

My camera does support large-sized memory cards, but they're expensive. I usually shoot lots of photos when I am on holiday (over 200 a day) and mostly in high-quality mode, so a portable hard disk is a must for me. But you probably won't need such a product if you're not so trigger-happy!