Re: Why a Zip Drive?

[sirius@spirit.com.au (Michael Hickey)]

In article <4p83o6$iht@news2.widomaker.com>, rsarner@widomaker.com
(Richard Sarner) wrote:

> While reading the posts about the Zip drives I came to wonder:
> Why did you choose a Zip drive rather a SyQuest? While the Zip is a fine
> drive, the SyQuest is (or claims to be) twice as fast and holds 35 meg
> more. I am thinking of buying a drive, and welcome any input to help me
> decide.

When it was time for me to buy, I thought the EZ135 was just a
single-sided SQ270.  I'd used a SQ88 for a while and wasn't imppressed
with the way you had to wait to power up/power down AND the fan in it got
noisier as the months went by.

The Zip is (almost) instant mount/eject and is so quiet you forget it's there. 

The $100 I saved (at the time) will/has paid for a lot more capacity than
the 35 "lost" mb I could potentially have had. I can get Zip disks
anywhere, even my local stationery supplier has them!

The Zip is _still_ heaps faster than my CD-ROM and is only 1/2 the speed
of my Quantum Trailblazer.  

I think SQ missed the boat by holding onto profit margins too long.  Now
that clone-Macs can come equipped with Zips, the battle for high-capacity
storage will be short unless SQ can up the ante.  

Remember Beta vs VHS format wars?  Whoever gets accepted by more 3rd
parties and OEMs will win!

-- 
                 Michael Hickey, Canberra, Australia
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