Most external hard drives live life in relative luxury: They remain on their owners’ desks or in drawers, and are generally kept safe from any harm, save for accidental drops and spills.
LaCie’s Rugged drive though, is meant for a more active, outdoor lifestyle.
LaCie has updated its Rugged drive with a built-in Thunderbolt cable for super-fast data transfers, and comes in both mechanical hard drive and SSD format. From a capacity standpoint, it comes in one of five flavors: 120GB, 256GB, 500GB, 1TB, and 2TB. The first three are available via SSD, while the last two are standard hard drives only. There is no crossover here.
On top of the Thunderbolt cable, the LaCie Rugged drive is also USB 3.0-compatible. LaCie claims that the SSD version boasts average transfer rates of 385 MB/s, while the standard drive model shuttles data at rates of 110 MB/s.
Measuring 3.5 x 5.5 x 0.97 inches, and weighing 9.2 ounces, the LaCie Rugged drive is covered in what looks like an orange bumper guard, and can sustain drops of up to 4 feet. However, it’s worth noting that mechanical hard drives are much more prone to taking damage, considering that those drives, unlike SSDs, have quite a few moving parts inside them. Both the SSD and mechanical LaCie Rugged drive are also guarded via AES 256-bit encryption.
If you work in a typical office environment, you probably don’t need one of these. However, if your workspace is based on a construction site or a similar locale that’s rife with danger, perhaps a LaCie Rugged drive is just what the doctor ordered.
Now, for pricing details. The 120GB SSD costs $200, the 256GB SSD is $300, while the 500GB SSD version will run you $500, a cost of $1 per GB. As you might expect, the mechanical versions are a lot cheaper, with the 1TB model carrying a price tag of $220, and the 2TB unit going for $300.
You can check out the LaCie Rugged drive here.
