Samsung Spins Out Compact External Drives

The 1.8-inch S1 Mini will sport a footprint as small as credit card, while its larger 2.5-inch brother the S2 Portable gets capacities up to 500GB.

Adding to its extensive line of hard disks, Samsung launched a new line on Wednesday with a focus on compact size and style. The 2.5-inch S2 Portable and 1.8-inch S1 Mini will offer USB connectivity, a professional look, and sizes of up to 500GB and 160GB, respectively.

Samsung has wrapped the drives in a high-gloss plastic casing that will come in piano black, snow white, wine red, and chocolate brown, all of which also come with a leather back cover. To keep size down, the USB controller has been integrated into the actual drives, giving the S1 Mini the footprint as small as a credit card.

Samsung will introduce the S2 Portable in capacities of 160GB, 250GB, 320GB, and 500GB. The smaller S1 will be available in 80GB, 120GB, and 160GB. The drives will be available sometime in the fourth quarter, but prices have not yet been announced.