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What is it?

The Pogoplug is an easy way to get your files from a USB hard drive on the Internet in under five minutes.  More technically, the Pogoplug is an easy to set up home server that uses a web interface to access your files available for $99.00.

The good

The device is incredibly simple in design and setup is a breeze.  The Pogoplug people even included an extension cable to power the device if you don’t want a wall wart on your surge protector.  All needed items are included in the box (except a hard drive).

There is no user manual.  Instead, follow the three step instructions that are printed in the box.  Setup is done via web browser.  Plug the Pogoplug into your network and it will be automatically detected as you run through the setup.  If it is not automatically detected, you can attempt to find the device using a long keycode. 

Hooking in a hard drive (or multiple hard drives via a USB hub) lets you have access to the drive’s contents.  Downloading an optional piece of free software from Pogoplug.com lets you use the hard drive attached to the Pogoplug as a local hard drive. 

Listening to audio or watching video is possible via the web interface thanks to a built-in flash player.  Files are also downladable and shareable.  If you want, you can set up a folder to have an RSS feed.  You share that RSS feed and people can get notified of your latest pictures or files uploaded to that folder.

An iPhone app also gives access to shared files.  The app also allows for mobile uploads to your Pogoplug enabled hard drive.

The bad

The built-in flash player does not support every video format.  Xvid files did not play as the player supports only FLV and H.264 MPEG-4 files.  However, if you know what an Xvid file is, you can probably get around this.  Additionally, the RSS feeds are not iTunes friendly, so you can’t use the Pogoplug as a quick and dirty server for a podcast just yet.  More functionality is coming to the RSS feed feature in the future.

The crux

If you want a drop-dead easy way to access your files on the Internet, the Pogoplug is hard to beat.  The web interface is powerful, yet simple.  The Pogoplug is easily worth the $99 price tag.

Product Page: [Pogoplug]

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