Iomega Unveils High-Capacity Portable Drive System

ROY, Utah (Reuters) - Data storage company Iomega Corp. (NYSE:IOM - news) on Thursday unveiled a portable disk drive system that can hold massive quantities of music and data and fits in a jacket pocket.

Roy, Utah-based Iomega, known for its Zip and Jaz drives and disks, said that it was now shipping its Peerless system, a standalone, peripheral drive that comes in 10 gigabyte and 20 gigabyte capacities, greater than that of DVD- or CD-writeable disks.

The two-piece system includes a disk roughly the size of a handheld computer or PDA, which slips into a vertical docking station. The drive will sell for about $250 while the disks will retail at $160 for 10 gigabytes and $200 for 20 gigabytes. Combined packages will be discounted, Iomega said.

Encouraged by the growth of gadgets that let consumers tote contact lists and scheduling information in one handheld device, Iomega launched Peerless as a means for users to quickly carry and share large-scale files between destinations.

For example, a user at an office workstation would could save a corporate application, hundreds of MP3 files, and graphics onto the drive and easily take it home and download the information.

Iomega is also working on internal versions that, for example, would fit in television set-top boxes and in cars, giving users the ability to save, or back up, prized data, as well as expand the capacity of devices such as personal video recorder and digital music players.

``I could save my office files and my MP3 music to Peerless, and plug it into a system in my car and listen to my music while I drive,'' explained Iomega senior vice president of marketing Doug Collier. ``Then, at home, I plug it into my computer and I finish my work, until I plug it into my set-top box, where I download a movie and save it to the same disk.''

``We are looking at Peerless as a way to bridge the spectrum of data management,'' he said.

Iomega said it worked with International Business Machines Corp. (NYSE:IBM - news) to develop the hard drive.

The company said it has a backlog of about 25,000 units. It will begin to ship drives this week to those who ordered early, and the models will hit retail store shelves in late June.

The Peerless systems was originally discussed under the tenure of Bruce Albertson, who resigned on Monday over differences with the board of directors about the long-term direction of the company. Albertson is the second CEO to leave the company in less than two years.

Shares of Iomega on Wednesday closed at $2.91, up 10 cents, but remained close to its 52-week low of $2.68.

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