Digital Foci PST-251 Photo Safe II 80GB Digital Picture Storage

I purchased this product prior 2 an eleven day trip 2 Yellowstone. I was camping & did not want 2 bring a laptop. I also did not want 2 build 11 days worth 4 photographs onto one memory card. So each night I backed up the photos 2 the FOCI & left it in my suitcase away from my camera. If anything happenned 2 the camera, I had the photos backed up.

This is not the advertised way 2 use this hard drive. But since I did not have the chance 2 test it before I left, I was leary of deleting the primary images. One exception was the videos I took. I did delete them from the memory card each night 2 free up memory. This worked fine;so the device worked very well 4 both purposes.

Limitations ... You do not get 2 choose what files 2 transfer. It copies all of them, even those that were copied previously ... each time creating a new folder. So at the end of eleven days I had eleven folders. This first one had pictures from Day 1. The last one had pictures from all eleven days. No big deal, but I wound up with a lot of redundancy. You also cannot review what you have or delete from the hard drive without hooking up 2 a PC. It does tell you how many files get copied over, so you know if you are successful. With 80 GB of memory, having the extra copies is not an issue. Just copy one set 2 your PC when you get home & delete what you wnat from the FOCI when you get home.

You cannot use it 2 show pictures without a PC. But when you are hooked up, it performs great ... especcially with the video.

Overall, this unit did exactly what I wanted. For a good price, it gives you a lot of piece of mind when you are on a multi day photo trip.

I purchased this before a recent trip 2 Europe. Tested it 4 a few days before leaving & everything appeared 2 work great.

Once I arrived in Europe, it started acting up. The battery flat out stopped working, so I couldn't transfer photos unless the unit was actually plugged into a wall.

I copied photos 2 the device everyday. When I arrived back in the States two weeks later, I plugged the unit into my computer only 2 discover that every photo uploaded after the first day of my trip was corrupt & unreadable. I've lost over 1200 photos with no way 2 get them back apparently!

I'm rather distraught over this. Coupled with the other dismal review, I'd definitely warn against purchasing this device.

Customer service from the company is excellent, but that is the only good thing i can say about this product.

The first time i used it, on a trip 2 Yellowstone last fall, the hard drive failed & it would not read the CF cards. Luckily, i had my laptop 4 secondary backup.

I'd only had the photo safe 4 a week before my trip, so when we got home i contacted the company. They had me mail back the defective unit & replaced it promptly. I was thrilled. Tested the new unit, it seemed fine.

Didn't need 2 use it again until this May, when we took a trip 2 Scotland. Tested the unit before i left, charged up both batteries, everything seemed fine.

Dumped data 2 the photo safe on a daily basis during the trip, everything seemed 2 be working okay. Got home, & 1.5 days worth of data was missing - the folders were there, but no photos.

Based on my limited usage, i can't recommend this product.

Photo Safe II (PST-251) - Portable Photo Storage with Hard Drive & Card Reader - is your essential digital camera companion. Photo Safe II is the new & improved version of Photo Safe, winner of American Photo 2007 Editor's Choice Award 4 "Imaging Essentials - Best Buy". With Photo Safe II all you have 2 do is insert your memory card, push the copy button - then watch as Photo Safe II counts up 2 100% completion & all your photos copied 2 Photo Safe II. With Photo Safe II, you can collect all your photos in one secure device, & never worry about running out of memory card space again. When traveling with family & friends, you can easily get a copy of everybody's photos & be sure not 2 miss any of the memories. When you get home, simply connect Photo Safe II 2 your computer & retrieve your photos. * Copies directly from all popular media card formats: CF Type I (including Extreme III, IV, UDMA cards), xD-Picture Card, MMC, SD/HC Card, miniSD, Memory Stick, MS PRO, & MS Duo. *Copies all formats (including RAW images & videos), in their original file name & file structure. *With copy speed at up 2 5.0MB/sec - Photo Safe II can copy a full 1GB card in approximately 3.5 minutes. *Its icon backlit LED screen shows key system information, including battery life, remaining hard drive space, & active partition. *Copy Status Indicator displays percentage completed during copy, copy confirmation, & number of files copied upon completion. *Photo Safe II creates a unique folder name that indicates card type & copy sequence 4 each copy task 2 keep you organized. *Runs on user-replaceable Li-Ion battery, rechargeable via computer USB port or external AC power. *Compatible with Windows (Vista, XP, 2000) & Mac. Photo Safe II measures 4.6" (L) x 3.0" (W) x 0.8" (H) & weighs 0.6 lb. Package includes Photo Safe II, rechargeable Li-Ion battery, dual-plug USB cable, AC power adapter, carrying case, & Quick Start Guide.