LaCie's Rugged line of portable hard drives isn't the first to cram 500GB into your pocket, but they're betting it's the most protected 500GB you'll ever hold, with a shock-resistant (and ugly) orange rubber bumper padding the internal shock protection. Buffalo's 500GB option is sleeker and has thwack-thwarting tech of its own, but the brickier Rugged probably has more brick-like durability, and it's $30 cheaper, so assess your needs accordingly. [LaCie]
DISCUSSION
I looked at the specs and found that this hard drive takes 2 USB connections - one for data and power, and a second for just power. I bought a "portable" hard drive for my MBP and then found the same thing. Since there are only 2 USB ports on my laptop, that's a real bummer because it means I can't plug in my USB mouse and hard drive at the same time. Are all portable bus-powered hard drives like that these days? Or are there any that are powered by just one connection?