WD My Book Elite features customizable e-label

Western Digital introduced the My Book Elite, this new portable HDD features a e-label that's always visible, even when the drive is unplugged, to let you know what's on the drive and how much space is left. The new My Book Elite series will ship in capacities of 1TB, 1.5TB and 2TB with prices between $169.99 and $279.99.

The e-label smart display on the spine of the My Book drives can be changed easily and as often as desired. It utilizes e-paper technology which reads like ink on paper. With the included WD SmartWare software, users can easily create a label to name their drive or remind themselves of its contents. The e-label also shows available capacity and whether the drive is locked via WD SmartWare software's powerful password protection and hardware-based encryption. Utilizing e-paper technology, the information on the display remains clearly visible, even when the drive is unplugged, and the customized label can be changed easily as often as desired.

According to research firm Parks Associates, the average U.S. broadband household currently has over 120 GB of digital media and files which is projected to grow to over 1 TB of data by 2013. Many consumers store this content on multiple external drives which often makes it difficult to know what or whose content is on which drive. During the development process, WD researchers visited with consumers and frequently noted a variety of ad hoc solutions to the "what's on the drive?" or the "whose drive is this?" problems, ranging from hand-written notes to machine printed sticky labels. The e-label smart display was conceived as an elegant and practical solution to address this consumer need.

The new My Book Elite drives come with integrated WD SmartWare software. When the My Book Elite drive is plugged in for the first time, the simple and intuitive first backup process launches automatically. The real-time visual interface of WD SmartWare software gives users a reassuring view of their backup as it happens. After the first backup, users' files are backed up automatically every time they change or add a file.

My Book Elite drives also feature user-selected password protection combined with 256-bit hardware-based encryption, which scrambles files before they are stored. Typically found only on much more expensive drive systems, the encryption acts as a virtual padlock to keep users' data safe.

"The new My Book Elite drives' unique new e-label smart display and integrated WD SmartWare software give consumers an elegant and practical way to organize their content while enjoying the peace of mind that their data is backed up and secure," said Dale Pistilli, vice president of marketing for WD's branded products group. "Even when the My Book Elite drive is unplugged, consumers can easily see at-a-glance what is stored on their drive, how much capacity is available and whether the drive is locked."

WD My Book Elite features:

Smart display - a customizable e-label that reminds users of what is stored on the drive and provides available capacity and security status at-a-glance even when the drive is unplugged;

Smaller, sleeker, more streamlined design and elegant book-like shape that takes up minimal space and allows multiple My Book drives to nestle together neatly like volumes on a shelf;

WD SmartWare software that visually present consumers' data in a software control center;

256-bit hardware-based encryption and password protection for peace of mind knowing that data is protected from unauthorized access;

USB 2.0 interface - for convenience and compatibility among multiple computers;

WD GreenPower Technology lowers internal drive power consumption by up to 30 percent, a sleep mode reduces power during idle times, and a power-saving feature turns the drive on and off with your computer;

Planet-friendly packaging derived from recycled materials to minimize waste;

NTFS formatting and are compatible with Windows XP, Windows Vista and Windows 7;

3-year limited warranty.