Meet the Pogoplug

The Pogoplug has just started shipping recently. In a nutshell, it's a networking device that turns a USB drive into a NAS (Network Attached Storage) that you can access from anywhere on the internet or locally.

The unit itself looks like a wall transformer or Apple's airport express. It comes with a gigabit ethernet port to connect to your broadband router. There's also a USB plug for a connection to your USB hard drive. You can plug in a USB hub, and attach multiple drives as well.

After an easy setup process, you can login to a secure web account where you can navigate the entire contents of the attached drive(s). Access your pictures, music and movie files directly through any browser on any computer. There's even a free iPhone app that lets you browse the contents of your drive(s) right from the phone via WiFi or 3G.

The browser interface allows you to view, download, upload, rename, delete, & move files. One of the most interesting and useful features is sharing individual folders with other people. You can send an email containing a private link to your folder. The recipient can then access its contents through Pogoplug’s web interface. Making it very EASY to share huge files with friends without jamming up other their E-mail.

At home or in the office, there's helper application which mounts your Pogoplug onto your Windows or Mac OS desktop, where it shows up like a local drive.

There are no monthly fees associated, just one price of $99 for the device. Makes it hard not to want one of these.

Check it out at Pogoplug.com