Silicon Power Armor A65M is a waterproof and military-grade USB 3.0 hard drive for Mac

Using cloud-based storage is extremely convenient, and arguably safer than traditional hard drive storage. Why? If, God forbid, there is a fire or other disaster in your home or office, your files are safe and secure offsite.

With that said, there are some deficiencies with the cloud, such as a need for an internet connection, and the potential lack of control of your own files. Yes, internet is seemingly ubiquitous nowadays, but do you feel uncomfortable not having access during an outage? If so, a USB solution coupled with offsite storage for redundancy is a smart choice. Today, Silicon power announces the ultra-rugged Armor A65M. Designed for Mac, it should work with Linux and Windows too.

"Maximizing the shockproof and waterproof specifications of the Armor Series, the Armor A65M is specifically designed for Mac users with all-inclusive safety shields fighting against various threats that may occur during daily operations, and it also complies with the U.S. military-grade drop test and the IP67 standard. The Armor A65M pioneers data protection measures with its exclusive cup-shaped design for optimizing its waterproof and dustproof functions, which makes the Armor A65M the first portable hard drive that meets the IP67 standard in the industry", says Silicon Power.

The company further explains, "in addition, the Armor A65M is especially rigid with its three-layer construction including two layers of rubber and one unibody frame in the middle, altogether promising great protection to withstand drops and shocks. Incorporating complete inside-out protection, the Armor A65M is guaranteed to keep your data safe under all sorts of conditions and is ideal for Mac users on the go. Furthermore, the Armor A65Menables easy plug-and-play use for it is already formatted in HFS+ format and supports Time Machine".

Silicon Power lists the following features and benefits.

• Easy plug-and-play use for Mac, already being formatted in HFS+ and supporting Time Machine
• Compliant with the U.S. military drop-test standards MIL-STD 810G Method 516.6 Procedure IV (transit drop test), a freefall test (122cm) on 26 contact points
• Industry's-first to meet IP67 dustproof/waterproof standard
• Advanced internal hard drive suspension system
• Delicate cable-carry design
• SuperSpeed USB 3.0 interface
• Intelligent LED indicator
• SP Widget for Mac free software download, providing back-up and security functions

So, what makes this a "Mac" hard drive? It is formatted as such out of the box, plus has white and silver design cues that are Apple-esque. It should look very attractive connected to an iMac or Macbook.

With that said, if you love the design and specs, but don't use OS X, you are in luck. Simply reformat the drive in exfat or NTFS for Windows, or ext4 (or something else) for Linux. Keep in mind, however, the manufacturer only suports it on OS X.

As a Linux and Windows user myself, this drive is quite attractive as I like the design very much and put a high value on the rugged nature. I particularly like that the USB cable attaches to the bottom of the drive.

If you are interested, it will come in 500GB, 1TB and 2TB sizes, but pricing and availability are not yet announced.

You can see the specs below.

• Dimensions：143.4 x 86.7 x 20.7 mm
• Weight：242~277g (by capacity)
• Capacity：500GB、1TB、2TB
• Material：Rubber/ Plastic
• Color：Grey
• Interface：USB 3.0 / USB 2.0 compatible
• Data transfer rates：Max. 5 Gbps (USB 3.0 Mode); Max. 480 Mbps (USB 2.0 Mode)
• Power supply：DC5V (Power supplied through USB)
• Supported operating systems：Mac OS 10.5 or later
• Operating temperature：5°~ 55°C
• Storage temperature：-40°~ 70°C
• Warranty：3 years