Iomega StorCenter Pro 150d Review

Introduction

It's been awhile since I checked out Iomega's StorCenter Pro 200D, a business-class Network Attached Storage (NAS) device. When I reviewed the product, I found it to be a powerful, full-featured NAS. But with a starting price of $1400 for an entry-level 320GB model, it was a bit pricey. Times, and prices, have changed. In this review, I'll check out the 1TB 150d, a more cost-effective model in the same StorCenter Pro line.

Like others in the StorCenter Pro line, the 150d is not a terribly small device. It's around 7x12x10 inches, comparable in size to a cinder block. Figure 1 shows the front of the box with the lockable door open.

Figure 1: Door Open

You can see the four hot-swappable drives, two USB ports and a power button. Figure 2 shows the back of the box where two more USB ports are visible along with a gigabit-capable Ethernet port and two large fan vents.

Figure 2: Back Panel

Iomega advertises that the 150d is quiet, but I'm not sure what they're comparing it to. When the unit is powered up and those fans kick in, you know it. It's loud. Measuring the power-draw when the unit was booted showed that it pulled about 53 Watts. And if there's any question about what country you'll be using the 150d in, Iomega supplies six different types of power cords for their switchable power-supply.

Once the unit was fully up, I turned to the installation software supplied on a CD. Iomega supports installation from both Mac and Windows machines, so I ran the setup process on my preferred system, a MacBook Pro. After a couple of clicks, and a minute or so, I was presented with the pop-up shown in Figure 3 telling me that the unit was fully initialized.

Figure 3: Ready To Use

When I clicked the "Mount Volume" button, the 150d was mounted as a network drive, ready to be used. If you have simple needs, your total setup time, start-to- finish would be less than five minutes.