Hasta La Gadget!

Using network-attached storage is a good way to make sure that your important data is safe from things like hard drive crashes and security breaches, but what happens when natural disasters hit? Most NAS systems don’t protect against water and fire damage, but ioSafe has a new NAS that protects against both of those. The company has introduced the ioSafe N2, which is a fireproof and waterproof NAS, but in order for this product to see the light of day, it needs your help.

That’s why ioSafe has launched a new Indiegogo campaign to raise funding for the N2. Before we jump into the campaign however, let’s cover some of the basics of the N2. The ioSafe N2 is a dual redundant disk system supporting up to 8TB (2 x 4TB) of storage and RAID 0/1. It comes packed with a 2GHz Marvel CPU and 512MB of RAM, with the motherboard and the CPU taking advantage of Synology DSM. The N2 also comes with a Kensington Lock Slot to keep it safe, and starting in Q1 2013, ioSafe will be offering a floor mount and padlock kit to go along with the N2.

The N2 can withstand temperatures up to 1550°F for 30 minutes, keeping your data safe the whole time. It can also be submerged in up to 10 feet of fresh or salt water for 72 hours with no data loss, which is pretty impressive. Naturally, once the N2 has been connected to your network, you’ll be able to store and retrieve data locally or remotely, and through using the Cloud Station app, you can easily sync files between multiple computers and devices. Speaking of apps, the N2 comes packed with a number of them, letting you easily share or stream pictures, music, documents, video, and other data with other devices and those who have been given access to your N2.

The N2 also comes with a 1-year warranty and 1 year of ioSafe’s Data Protection Service, provided your N2 uses hard drives that were supplied by ioSafe. Extensions on the warranty and DPS will be handed out to ioSafe’s Indiegogo sponsors as more funding is raised, as will increases in storage space. At the time of this writing, ioSafe has raised $5,751 of the $150,000 needed to make the N2 a reality, with 30 days left to go in the campaign. Should the campaign turn out to be a success, ioSafe founder Robb Moore says that the N2 should release in January 2013.

ioSafe N2 fireproof and waterproof NAS Indiegogo campaign kicks off is written by Eric Abent & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

The next NAS has been revealed by Synology with the DiskStation DS213+, a 2-bay device with full-featured storage for businesses both medium and small. This device is “the first 2013 model” as they say, bringing on a dual-core 1.067 GHz processor to make both reading and writing take on the next generation of file sharing. This device also employs a brand new System Hibernation mode for major reductions in power consumption.

With Synology’s new System Hibernation mode, the DiskStation DS213+ is able to actively listen for network activity while consuming only tiny amounts of power. When it detects network activity, it’s able to quickly resume full operations. In System Hibernation mode, this machine requires just 2.64 watts of energy consumption.

When the device is in full operation mode, this device attains average read speeds of 110.36 MB/sec, while write speeds average at 84.31 MB/sec – both of these numbers are under RAID 1 configuration in a Windows environment. With AES 256-bit encrypted r/w speeds you’ll have 49.6 MB/sec for read and 24.7 MB/sec for write.

The DS213+ includes a a 64bit floating-point unit to boost the speed at which you’re able to decode and encode on the daily. Another bonus here is the DS213+’s upgraded surveillance environment with the ability to stream 12 channels of high definition IP camera all at the same time.

This device also has two USB 3.0 ports, one eSATA port, and a full-sized SD card slot. Inside you’ve got a noise dampening design and a 92 mm system fan for next-level airflow with just 19.9 dB(A) of noise. Like every other Synology NAS Server you’ll be working with DiskStation Manager 4.0 (DSM 4.0), and the whole system is available this week around the world wherever fine Synology products are sold!

[via Synology]

Synology DiskStation DS213+ 2-bay NAS goes big for small businesses is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

This week the folks at Apple have revealed that they’re bringing massive opportunity – and a renewed flow of clean water – to Crook County, Oregon. Apple has plans to move forward with a 510,000 square foot set of data centers in the area over an unspecified amount of time. This plan is part of an already under construction 10,000-square-foot data center whose construction began earlier this year, and today’s announcement includes a bit of a bonus for engineers in the city who had recently been working to improve the city’s water system.

According to The Bulletin, 500,000 addition square feet have been announced for data halls, office space, loading docks, and parking lots for the new Apple facility. Prineville senior planner Joshua Smith noted that “they really didn’t say how long they are looking at” but that Apple already owned the 160 acres that the facility would be built on.

In a bit of a twist to the developing story, the city revealed that an ancient underground stream running beneath the nearby city that Apple will help develop for the city to improve their current water system. The city suffers from notoriously low-flow wells, and the discovery of this oddly clean system will help them – with the help of Apple development funds – to make the city more viable for the future. Prineville City Manager Steve Forrester noted the city’s excitement on the project.

“We will be converting those to production wells, with Apple’s help, and we will reimburse them over time. It’s going to really be a tremendous upgrade to the system. It will give them the water they need, and it gives us … more capacity than they are consuming. It strengthens our core system.” – Forrester

Forrester noted with Erik Hidle of The Bulletin that the process is still in the works, but that unless there are any appeals or public comments submitted to the city, development will start more than likely inside the first part of September. Apple continues to work with the city, county, and state to make their enterprise zone agreement a reality. Prineville officials also noted that they’ve prepared another 160-acre parcel for future development for other smaller data centers should other companies come forward with need.

BONUS: You may remember that Apple is not the first large company to buy land in the area. Facebook already also has an agreement in the works to develop another center too. Oregon is looking up!

Apple helps tap recently discovered ancient underground stream is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.