Other World Computing (OWC) has rolled out two 80GB Mercury On-The-Go external hard drives that are available in a FireWire only version or with both FireWire and USB interfaces. Both have 8MB of cache, data transfer rates of more than 40MB per second, weigh 11 ounces, and measure 3.5 by 5.5 by 1.0 inches.
The US$399.97 FireWire device supports both a powered (6-pin) and an unpowered (4-pin) port. The USB interface on the $419.99 combination FireWire/USB On-The-Go external hard drive supports both USB 1.1 and 2.0 — though only USB 1.1 is officially supported by Apple.
The On-The-Go plug-and-play drives are compatible with Mac OS X and Mac OS 8.6-9.2.2. Built for portability, they sport a shock absorption casing and feature a blue activity indicator light.