Pogoplug Classic Media Sharing Device in Pink or Black (POGO-B01 or POGO-P21) $15 + Free Shipping

For those looking for what this is or it does, it was for $17 via eBay recent.y. Following thread has a ton of information, though I have not got around to testing it myself.

http://slickdeals.net/f/5753232-P...Daily-Deal

[EDIT: Ha - need to read OP more carefully, which has a link to above post ]

Almost got another, but found I got this one on
11/24/12 for $12.99 from Buy.com.

I remember when these first came out and cost $128.99. :-/

Seems like you could lose built-in functionality if pogoplug goes out of business and/or their servers go down. Just sayin since these things look like they've been going through a fire sale lately...

Could someone knowledgeable speak to the pros and cons of doing this versus some other solution using my HTPC (mac mini) and attached hard drives? Wondering what some of the popular alternatives are these days...

I have Plex so I could probably start using it to stream and possibly share media, but being able to securely share files using a common interface would be nice.

Quote from daiei27 : Seems like you could lose built-in functionality if pogoplug goes out of business and/or their servers go down. Just sayin since these things look like they've been going through a fire sale lately... Could someone knowledgeable speak to the pros and cons of doing this versus some other solution using my HTPC (mac mini) and attached hard drives? Wondering what some of the popular alternatives are these days... I have Plex so I could probably start using it to stream and possibly share media, but being able to securely share files using a common interface would be nice.

To some extent you're right, but it's only $15 too. Not much of a commitment. And it's not as if PP just appeared on the scene.

IMO, these are best suited to someone less technical, not sophisticated users. Heck, that's probably why they thought they could get away w/ the pink color! It's a super simple device. No complicated configuration. No firewalls to manage. You just plug it in, activate it online, and voila, instant cloud storage and remote file access. PP's target audience probably won't even understand how it works, but that's the point. It just works.

I don't know about B01, but I've got 4 E02s.
Once you install ArchLinux and Samba on those, you can have a real NAS for the fraction of what some companies charge for their NAS computers.

Quote from daiei27 : Seems like you could lose built-in functionality if pogoplug goes out of business and/or their servers go down. Just sayin since these things look like they've been going through a fire sale lately... Could someone knowledgeable speak to the pros and cons of doing this versus some other solution using my HTPC (mac mini) and attached hard drives? Wondering what some of the popular alternatives are these days... I have Plex so I could probably start using it to stream and possibly share media, but being able to securely share files using a common interface would be nice.

this is an older model so maybe thats why the "fire sale" lately. maybe they want to move product.

Pogoplug makes their money on their cloud storage services. The devices are basically loss leaders.

I have had one of these for about two years - works well for what it is

If you just want to share files between computers in the same house, you can set up a "homegroup" in Windows 7, in just a few minutes for free.

If I only want to use this locally, do I still have to make an account on their site? Just looking to share my media drive on my home network without my computer needing to be turned on all the time.

You can easily install Plex for free and the Plex app for iOS ($5) if you just need to stream media. No hardware. Plex also works on Roku.

Quote from ChpByr : If I only want to use this locally, do I still have to make an account on their site? Just looking to share my media drive on my home network without my computer needing to be turned on all the time.

In that case, you can custom install arch linux on it and achieve that, fairly easy to do that, if one has basic knowledge of linux commands.

Quote from Medic311 : why were these even made in Pink anyways? this isn't a smartphone, or a mp3 player, etc. it's a F'ing network storage device that sits next to your black (not pink) router and your black (not pink) model. it makes absolutely no sense - females aren't even the majority or even close to the majority of Pogoplug's device customers

Huh, only females like choices in color? Pink might fit in well between my white (not black) router and my blue (not black) cable modem...

I almost forgot, it might clash with my silver (not black) switch...

Put Debian on it, runs like a dream, and only uses 4 Watts. Highly recommended

Quote from desifan : In that case, you can custom install arch linux on it and achieve that, fairly easy to do that, if one has basic knowledge of linux commands.

Thanks, jumped in for 1!