Iomega iConnect Wireless Data Station 34779

by Iomega

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 3 x 7.6 x 8.1 inches ; 9.6 ounces
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• ASIN: B0035JCI6M
• Item model number: 34779
• Average Customer Review: 2.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (141 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,860 in Electronics (See Top 100 in Electronics)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: September 14, 2004

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

The Iomega® iConnect Wireless Data Station is the simple way to bring all of your USB storage into your network. Connect, share and access files anywhere — even over the Internet. Share & stream media from your USB storage with the Iomega iConnect Wireless Data Station! Simply plug your USB drives in, and your files are accessible from any computer on your network or remotely via the web. Remote access to everything stored on the connected drives via a personalized web address Built-in iTunes® and media server for easy playback One-touch file copy with Iomega QuikTransfer Device-to-device replication for data protection Torrent download manages peer-to-peer file transfers without the need of a dedicated PC Integrated Cooliris™ slideshow functionality Retrospect® Express backup and support for Apple® Time Machine® Connects directly to your router in either a wired or wireless (802.11b/g/n wireless protocol) configuration Simple three-step setup: plug it in, install the software, and add your USB storage (additional steps required for wireless configuration) Simple expandability by connecting more external USB drives Intelligent print sharing capability for up to 2 USB printers Embedded RSA® BSAFE® encryption for protected installs and upgrades Contents Iomega® iConnect Wireless Data Station Ethernet Cable Power Supply Printed Quick Install Guide Solution CD with StorCenter Manager software and User Help documentation Service & Support: Three year limited warranty with product registration. System Requirements PC: Pentium® 300Mhz processor or higher Must meet minimum RAM requirements for your operating system Microsoft® Windows® XP Home / XP Professional / XP Professional x64 / Windows Vista™ Home Basic/ Home Premium/ Business / Ultimate / Windows 7 Microsoft® Internet Explorer® 6.0, Firefox® 1.5, or higher 256MB RAM or higher CD or DVD drive to install software Available 10/100/1000Mbps network Ethernet port (required for initial set-up) 1000 Mbps recommended for maximum performance DHCP-configured network (recommended) Network hub, switch, or router (Wireless router required for wireless operation) Mac: Mac OS X 10.4 or higher Apple Safari 2.0 browser or higher CD or DVD drive to install software Must meet minimum RAM requirements for your operating system Available 10/100/1000Mbps network Ethernet port (required for initial set-up) 1000 Mbps recommended for maximum performance DHCP-configured network (recommended) Network hub, switch, or router (Wireless router required for wireless operation) Linux: Supported Linux distributions: Ubuntu 7.10, Fedora 8, Fedora 7, FedoraCore 6/5, Redhat Enterprise Linux 5 Desktop/Workstation, Redhat Enterprise Linux 4 Desktop/Workstation, OpenSUSE 10.3, Debian 4 Available 10/100/1000Mbps network Ethernet port (required for initial set-up) 1000 Mbps recommended for maximum performance DHCP-configured network (recommended) Network hub, switch, or router (Wireless router required for wireless operation) NOTE 1: All specifications are subject to change without notice and may change depending upon your computer’s performance and specifications. NOTE 2: A very small initial number of Iomega iConnect devices shipped out and are not booting correctly. The blue LED on the device continuously flashes (never goes to a solid blue), and customers cannot connect to the unit. The issue has been resolved; new units will not exhibit the problem and all stock has been screened and updated.

Product Description

The Iomega iConnect Wireless Data Station is a simple way to bring all of your desktop and portable USB storage to your network. Plug in your external USB drives or USB thumb drives (any brand) into the Iomega iConnect device and they are automatically connected to and accessible on your network. Remote access allows you to connect, share, and access your files securely from anywhere in the world via the Internet. Wireless connectivity allows you to place the Iomega iConnect device in the most convenient location in your home without having to run another cable. Taking backup data off-site for disaster recovery has never been easier. Simply back up all your networked computers through the Iomega iConnect device, and then take your hard drive off-site for safekeeping. The Iomega iConnect device truly makes your USB drives "smart" and includes the ultimate set of advanced media features, such as DLNA-certified UPnP AV media server, and iTunes server so that content can be easily shared between computers and any other digital media adapters such as game consoles, Iomega ScreenPlay products, digital picture frames, or networked TVs. Picture Transfer Protocol, torrent download compatibility, and the Cooliris slide show plug-in round out the advanced media features. Embedded RSA BSAFE encryption for protected installs and upgrades. Supports PC, Mac, and Linux clients. Three year warranty with product registration.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

52 of 53 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars It worked for me, June 3, 2010

By 

SteveH - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Iomega iConnect Wireless Data Station 34779 (Personal Computers)

I was very wary about buying this product with so many negative reviews, but I wanted a way to make my USB printer accessible by the rest of the family from their wi-fi enabled laptops. I also thought it would be handy to add USB storage in the future. I looked at various NAS storage solutions, but all of them were more expensive than I needed for this simple job. The iConnect arrived, I followed the simple instructions, and, so far, it has done everything I wanted it to do.

I followed a couple of steps that may not have been obvious - I first of all plugged a 2GB flash drive into one of the USB ports to give it some local storage for its print serving function and connected it to a LAN port. I was able to see it fine, I checked for updates and found a newer release of firmware - that downloaded without problems and the device restarted. Then I set up the wireless information - no problem with seeing the WiFi from the basement. Then I disconnected the LAN and tried to connect wirelessly. It wasn't immediately seen by the iConnect software, and I noticed that there was an updated version of that software as well, so I downloaded and installed that. At that point, I could see the device and its storage wirelessly. I did give it a static IP address on my router, but that may not have been necessary. Finally, I plugged in the USB printer, loaded the drivers and it all worked fine.

I loaded the iConnect software on a couple of laptops (XP and Vista), updated the software, and then could see the printer.

Overall, this has worked as planned - I haven't stressed it yet, and I wish it had been seen wirelessly as soon as I had disconnected the LAN, but I got there in the end.

37 of 40 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars It works, but it needs work, June 16, 2010

By 

Bobbie Lynn (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Iomega iConnect Wireless Data Station 34779 (Personal Computers)

(What's this?)

I've hooked this up and experimented with it from Windows XP, Linux, and OS X and so far the basic functionality seems to work fine. Many of the negative reviews seem to be related to an early bad batch that went out, and as far as I can tell Iomega corrected that particular problem before they sent me this item to review.

I do have a few concerns here.

The documentation isn't great, particularly when it comes to the Linux support. I'm very pleased that they chose to support Linux, but it seems as if it may have been an afterthought. In the manual that comes in the box, for example, it mentions how to run the software on Windows and Mac, but mention of what to do on Linux is completely absent. I was able to figure it out without much difficulty, but I would be hesitant to recommend this as an option to a very new Linux user for this reason.

When it comes to the documentation included on the install disc, and the documentation on the company website, I didn't find it to be as complete or clear in its explanations as I would hope.

I also have some concern about the way it seems to use the drives. When I normally connect an external hard drive, if it's not being used for a while it will go into a low power mode. That never seems to happen if I'm using the drive through the iConnect. That fact alone would make me hesitant to set this system up with a couple of drives plugged into it and just leave it running. If I'm going to have to be connecting and disconnecting the drives from this anyway, I'm not sure how much I'm really gaining over the option of just connecting the drives to the computers themselves as needed.

It's entirely possible that these are things the manufacturer address, and I hope that's what happens. In the meantime, I could certainly see this as being very useful to use with printers, and perhaps to plug in a hard drive in one room so that you can easily work from a laptop in another without having to lug the drive around. Unless you have a specific use in mind for it though, I'm not yet convinced that this has enough to offer to users in general to recommend it as a general convenience item.

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Another blinking blue light of death experience, April 22, 2010

By 

Ron A. Iovine - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Iomega iConnect Wireless Data Station 34779 (Personal Computers)

First unit I bought, blinking blue light of death. Returned it & figured I'd give it another shot, hoping I just got a bum one. Second unit, blinking blue light of death, item will be returned. 0 for 2, done with them until I read they've worked the bugs. Great idea, and features look good on paper, but the POS does not work.

BTW, I bought this as a replacement for my Hitachi SimpleNet, which is slow as dogmeat, esp on the writes. I thought the GigE of the Iomega would be a big improvement, but alas no luck. So I am back to the Hitachi, which worked right out of the box, no client side SW to install, just plug & play. It also works with a USB hub. I currently have 1 320G Iomega, 2 2T Western Digital, 1 80G Wolverine and 2 flash thumb drives plugged into the USB hub, and then the USB hub plugged into the SimpleNet. I was able to map all of those drives as network drives to all my home computers (2 wired & 1 wireless) with no problem. My Asus media streamer was also able to see all drives and I was able to stream video content from these drives over the SimpleNet to the Asus and my TV. Since the writes (esp to the NTFS drives) is so slow, I just unplug the whole USB hub from the SimpleNet & plug directly into the USB port of my computer when I want to copy a lot of data to the drives, then I just plug the USB hub back into the SimpleNet and they are all back on my network. I can go back & forth like all the time with no problems.