PCWorld: Review: Seagate FreeAgent GoFlex Net Online USB Drives
Plug the drives into the dock, go through the set-up procedure and, as with PogoPlug, the drives become available online – an instant private cloud.
“If you’ve read about the Cloud Engines Pogoplug, you know most of what you need to know about the Seagate FreeAgent GoFlex Net. This USB storage sharing device ($100 as of September 1, 2010)–which looks a little like the upper couple of inches of a compact black toaster–incorporates the same technology as the Pogoplug, so you get supereasy access to your files from any Internet connection, along with the ability to share them with others.
The main difference between the GoFlex Net and the Pogoplug lies in the connection hardware: The Pogoplug provides four USB 2.0 ports for attaching storage, while the GoFlex Net has two 2.5-inch SATA hard drive bays (designed to accommodate the Seagate GoFlex portable hard drive) and a single USB 2.0 port for attaching USB drives. Seagate sells GoFlex drives that fit snugly into the dock, but the connectors inside are standard SATA and I successfully connected several non-Seagate drives to the ports. In fact, you should be able to use any 2.5-inch SATA drive that has separate data and power connectors, though you might have to remove it from its case first.”