NEW YORK — Long known as a
flash and USB memory supplier, Dane-
Elec will break into a new category next
month with the shipment of its MyDitto
home server.
The MyDitto, shipping April 15 with a
$279 price tag, will combine Dane-Elec’s
flash-memory heritage with a 1TB home
server, said Jon Christeson, the company’s
marketing director.
Christeson readily admitted his firm
is not the first to roll out a home server,
but he thinks Dane-Elec’s home server is
more user-friendly then other versions,
which will help it catch on with consumers
and small businesses.
“The MyDitto is remotely accessed
with a USB key,” he said, comparing
this breakthrough to what Apple accomplished
with the iPod. “There were MP3
players on the market before the iPod,
but Apple figured out how to easily get
the music onto the device.”
Installation is also plug and play, he
said, and does not require software to be
installed on the attached computers.
The server can be accessed directly
from a PC in the home and remotely
via an encrypted USB key that is coded
to work specifically with a particular
MyDitto server. The key is plugged into
any remote computer, creating a peer-topeer
connection allowing access to all the
files stored on the server.
Christeson said this differs from other
home server and network-attached storage
devices that require the user to access
the data by typing in an IP address.
The USB key also adds a layer of security
because any activity takes place on
the USB drive, not the host computer, so
keystrokes, passwords and other data are
not left behind, he said.
The MyDitto comes with two readyto-
use keys, but the user can make up
to 25 separate keys by plugging an empty
USB drive into the server and pressing
the copy button. A lost key can be removed
from the server’s safe key list. The
server can handle between six and eight
people accessing it at any one time without
bogging down.
The server comes with two drive bays,
each capable of holding a 2TB drive. The
two bays give the product RAID storage
capability, so it can be used by small businesses.
In fact, Christeson thinks the MyDitto
will probably sell better into the
SO/HO market at first because it allows
a small business to instantly create
and maintain an easily accessible network
for its workforce without requiring
an IT staff.
Dane-Elec expects to issue a firmware
upgrade within 60 days for the MyDitto
that will allow remote media streaming.
The company has also developed mobile
applications allowing server access to a
variety of smartphones.
“This will basically turn your iPhone
into a 1TB storage device,” he said.
The server comes with its own backup
utility that runs directly off the device so
the user does not have to install software
on all the network’s computers.
The MyDitto will be available first
through Newegg.com and MacMall,
and Christeson said discussions are being
held with CE retailers and mass
merchants.
