Western Digital Delivers Small Drive

The new WD Passport Pocket Drive is a 6GB external hard drive about the size of a matchbox which sports USB 2.0 support.

Western Digital yesterday announced a new miniature USB hard drive storage device which can reportedly store as many as five two hour feature length movies, 1,700 digital photos, 1,500 songs or thousands of documents. The new WD Passport Pocket Drive is priced at $129 and should be available now.

The WD Passport Pocket Drive, said Western Digital, is about the size of a matchbox, measuring about one-third of an inch thin and weighing 1.6 ounces. This USB 2.0 device sports a 6GB hard drive and works with both Macs and PCs. Western Digital says the flip out, rotating USB connector on the Passport is thin enough “that two drives can be used at the same time in the tightly spaced USB ports found on notebook computers”.

The Passport is powered by the computer, eliminating the need for a separate power supply, and sports an activity light to indicate the drive’s current status.

“Digital content, in many forms, is integral to our business and personal lives,” said Jim Welsh, vice president and general manager of WD’s Branded Products group, in a statement. “People want a portable storage solution for their digital library that requires the least effort and gives them peace of mind. WD Passport Pocket Drives offer huge capacity in a tiny package for the ultimate in plug-n-go storage. And like all WD drives, high quality is built in.”