World’s thinnest external hard drive: Buffalo’s Shinobi

Posted September 19, 2008 at 03:00 PM by Iyaz Akhtar

Section: Peripherals, Storage

Buffalo is set to introduce what they are claiming to be the world’s thinnest external hard drive.  The official name of the product is the MiniStation Shinobi and it is just 5mm thick.  While the device looks like a run-of-the mill flash drive, it actually houses a 1.8-inch hard drive.  I got to handle one of these tiny drives and it is very light at 2-ounces. 

Encased in a very cool-looking metallic black enclosure, Buffalo placed a tiny retractable USB connector in the side of the unit.  The connector nests within the case when not in use; the drive does not have a mini-USB port.  It will ship with an USB extension cable in case the built-in connector cannot reach your computer’s port.  Buffalo will release two versions in October.  There is a 30GB model for around $120 and a 60GB model for about $170.  Both come with back up software by Memeo.