"Speed seems to be the only issue here...though come on, be fair; this is 250 MB of storage to read and write from, via a USB cable. Put all that into play --as well as how slow most removable storage mediums usually are-- and the speeds here aren't too bad. ."

---from the review

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The need for speed...AND storage. Granted, modern PC users are spoiled into thinking that the saving of a file is as lickety-split as saving to a high-speed hard drive. However, what happens when you need to re-install, or after a computer crash, or maybe just after the purchase of a new computer? Disks were always slow, and what was worse, they stored a paltry 1.4 meg in their 3 1/2" form. This is a similar sized disk that stores 250 Megabytes. If it takes a minute or two to save a whole disk worth, let it take time. This is one cool way to save your data, and it is a mainstay of my computer setup.

Iomega has tried valiantly to revitalize the floppy disk industry for many years now. Their original 100MB Zip disks were easily passed through the computer's parallel port, yet they were admittedly slow. Since then, the device has been upgraded to USB status, with even faster 250 MB disks. What's even sweeter; the new drives are completely powered by the USB port, so there are no power plugs to untangle as you transfer data on the go. What's not to love?

The new design is nothing short of snazzy; rubber-like places to hold the unit cover the mid-section on each side, while the top offers a translucent shell to view the disks as they are inserted and ejected. If its mere four and a half inch width is still too wide for your limited desk space, no problem; a rubber stand is offered to place it vertically, making it take less space than a typical pen holder. A status light on the front doubles as an eject button when not using a Macintosh, where disks are ejected in the typical drag-to-trash-icon method. Best of all, as I said, there is no other ports other than the single, square-like socket for the translucent USB cable, which powers the unit via the USB connection. Yes, as a matter of fact, that cool power-from-USB feature is worth mentioning twice!

Speed seems to be the only issue here...though come on, be fair; this is 250 MB of storage to read and write from, via a USB cable. Put all that into play --as well as how slow most removable storage mediums usually are-- and the speeds here aren't too bad. What's even better, the drives hardware/software seems to have a buffer of sorts, allowing you to continue working long before a large file has fully transferred itself to the Zip disk. Making things even sweeter is downward compatibility with prior 100MB zip disks, making little excuse to upgrade to this new drive, which is much larger storage, yet still much faster.

There's little else to say about this unit, save for its ease of use. My desktop computer has a USB port right behind a small door in its front; my laptop includes two USB ports in the back. The power-cord-free use of this drive allows me to transfer files to and from these computers with ease. What's even better, I can connect this drive to my laptop while on the go, with the power coming via the USB cable, direct from the laptop's battery; no fuss, no major cables! If you're sick of laying waste to whole CD-ROM discs just for the most casual of file transfer, this 250MB disk drive can't be beat. You can even buy it for a few bucks more with three free zip disks, as I did.  Unless you foolishly compare the read/write times to your internal hard drive, you're unlikely to be disappointed...