Sonnet Technologies announced a new, faster 1TB version of its Fusion F2 portable two-drive RAID SATA storage system that employs 7,200-RPM drives. The system offers 20 percent faster performance than the original Fusion F2 1TB model, with up to 190 MB/s read and write sustained data transfer rates, and it may be bus-powered to enable usage when grid power is unavailable.
The system consists of two 2.5in, 500MB drives mounted side-by-side in a rugged aluminum enclosure. It features two eSATA data ports for maximum data throughput, and is designed for use with the Sonnet Tempo SATA Pro ExpressCard/34 controller for MacBook Pro and Windows notebooks.
The Sonnet Fusion F2 is a high-performance, highly reliable alternative to existing FireWire and USB portable drive solutions. The F2 transfers data via two eSATA ports, but may draw power from a powered FireWire port for a portable operation. It supports portable video capture in conjunction with AJA Video Systems' Io HD, which requires dedicated use of FireWire bandwidth.
To protect field footage, Fusion F2's drives can be configured in RAID 1 mirrored mode, and still can capture Apple ProRes HQ HD fed from an AJA Io HD. This protected mode also allows safe field transfer of Panasonic P2, Sony SxS Pro, or similar memory cards. Additionally, the ability to verify footage by a MacBook Pro/Fusion F2 system gives users the peace of mind to erase and reuse cards on location.
