Page 3: Use, Conclusion
Use
The Pro WX is formatted with NTFS for Windows. Mac users will probably want to format the drive to something that a Mac will be able to handle more easily. Linux users will probably do the same, but NTFS is supported very nicely by FUSE and we had no problems reading and writing to the drive using NTFS. Out of the box, 1.36TB are usable on the drive. The internal drive is a Seagate 7200.11 1.5TB drive. The use of a Seagate drive is comforting since Seagate makes excellent drives. NTFS over FUSE was nearly the same speed as formating the drive to EXT4, so there is no need to worry about that.
We would have loved to test the Pro WX in Wireless USB mode, but since Linux doesn't support this chipset, we can't. Besides, the wireless support is stated to be 15MB/s which is nearly half the speed of the wired USB2. Wireless USB supports speeds analogous to USB2, though. We aren't sure why this would be the case. Using USB2, read speeds easily saturated the USB2 bus at about 33MB/s. Writes were much slower at 12MB/s. It could be that the mass storage controller is at fault for the slow writes, but USB2 is generally pretty intensive for block data transfer. Since the drive is a Seagate 7200.11, it shouldn't be the bottleneck which leads us to the USB2 controller.
We voiced our concern over the lack of Linux support, but we really can't fault Imation for this. It is the entire hardware community that is at fault. Give the community a working implementation and merge it into the kernel and let the community run with it. Still, WUSB is not as mainstream for people to be pushing for general kernel inclusion.
Conclusion
The Imation Pro WX Wireless USB hard drive retails for a »very expensive $450 at the time of posing. Even though the Pro WX shows that the money is being put into the details, we just can't justify the ultra premium price for the unit. Let's go through the bundle, piece by piece. The Wireless USB dongle with a Wireless USB hub goes for about $100. The Seagate 7200.11 1.5TB drive retails for about $120. The USB hard drive enclosure goes for about $30 and a really good one for $50. We're talking about something you can do on your own for about $250. We think the choice is clear. While we applaud the product design and build quality in general, we cannot recommend a purchase at this price.
Still, we're happy to see companies test the waters with new products and at least Imation is stepping up to the plate to provide a Wireless USB enclosure. This is probably the first device to come on the market for Wireless USB that wasn't a wired hub. Kudos to Imation are in order. Keep pushing the envelope. Just bring down the price and we'll be the first to recommend it.
We'd like to thank Imation for making this review possible.
The Pro WX is formatted with NTFS for Windows. Mac users will probably want to format the drive to something that a Mac will be able to handle more easily. Linux users will probably do the same, but NTFS is supported very nicely by FUSE and we had no problems reading and writing to the drive using NTFS. Out of the box, 1.36TB are usable on the drive. The internal drive is a Seagate 7200.11 1.5TB drive. The use of a Seagate drive is comforting since Seagate makes excellent drives. NTFS over FUSE was nearly the same speed as formating the drive to EXT4, so there is no need to worry about that.
We would have loved to test the Pro WX in Wireless USB mode, but since Linux doesn't support this chipset, we can't. Besides, the wireless support is stated to be 15MB/s which is nearly half the speed of the wired USB2. Wireless USB supports speeds analogous to USB2, though. We aren't sure why this would be the case. Using USB2, read speeds easily saturated the USB2 bus at about 33MB/s. Writes were much slower at 12MB/s. It could be that the mass storage controller is at fault for the slow writes, but USB2 is generally pretty intensive for block data transfer. Since the drive is a Seagate 7200.11, it shouldn't be the bottleneck which leads us to the USB2 controller.
We voiced our concern over the lack of Linux support, but we really can't fault Imation for this. It is the entire hardware community that is at fault. Give the community a working implementation and merge it into the kernel and let the community run with it. Still, WUSB is not as mainstream for people to be pushing for general kernel inclusion.
Conclusion
The Imation Pro WX Wireless USB hard drive retails for a »very expensive $450 at the time of posing. Even though the Pro WX shows that the money is being put into the details, we just can't justify the ultra premium price for the unit. Let's go through the bundle, piece by piece. The Wireless USB dongle with a Wireless USB hub goes for about $100. The Seagate 7200.11 1.5TB drive retails for about $120. The USB hard drive enclosure goes for about $30 and a really good one for $50. We're talking about something you can do on your own for about $250. We think the choice is clear. While we applaud the product design and build quality in general, we cannot recommend a purchase at this price.
Still, we're happy to see companies test the waters with new products and at least Imation is stepping up to the plate to provide a Wireless USB enclosure. This is probably the first device to come on the market for Wireless USB that wasn't a wired hub. Kudos to Imation are in order. Keep pushing the envelope. Just bring down the price and we'll be the first to recommend it.
We'd like to thank Imation for making this review possible.