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SINGAPORE - Iomega Corporation (NYSE: IOM), a global leader in data storage, today announced that the Iomega® Zip® drive has reached the 50 million milestone: more than 50 million Iomega Zip 100MB, 250MB, and 750MB drives have been shipped worldwide.

Launched in 1995, the Iomega Zip drive is one of the most successful personal computer products ever. Home and business users have adopted the Zip platform by the millions, cementing its reputation as the reliable, high-capacity removable storage standard that is rugged, convenient and secure. With firmware-based password protection, drag-and-drop file management, and high read-write speeds (the Zip 750MB drive outpaces most CD-RW drives in rewritable performance), the Zip platform continues to be a favourite portable storage solution for users today.

"The Zip drive continues to be a favourite choice for portable removable storage. It has helped many individuals and small businesses backup and protect desktop and notebook data by simplifying backup procedures using Iomega Automatic Backup software. We are committed to continuing support for our wide user base with this product," said Lim Chong Gee, director, product management, Asia Pacific, Iomega Pacific.

Origins
The original Zip® 100MB drive first captured public attention at its unveiling in November 1994 at Comdex Las Vegas. When it went on sale in March 1995, the little blue drive was heralded as a model of simplicity and a welcome splash of colour in a world of beige PCs.
Superior performance set the Zip drive apart from its peers. It transformed the removable storage category with a disk that could hold 100 MB of data-a sensational improvement on the 1.44 MB floppy-and became one of the fastest selling peripherals in the history of computing. Computer users everywhere were ready for a low-priced, reliable, high-capacity removable magnetic drive with superior portability.

Zip Products Today
Other storage technologies have come and gone, but Zip drives and disks continue to be a popular option for easy file backup, security and portability for users who want to protect their valuable digital information.
Today's Zip 750 drive is more than six times faster and holds 7.5 times more data than the original Zip 100MB drive. A single Iomega Zip 750MB disk holds about the same amount of data as 520 floppy disks, and a Zip 750MB drive reads and writes that data more than 100 times faster. A Zip 750MB drive outperforms 40x CD-RW drives in most operations and offers more capacity and convenience.

Every Zip disk made-over 315 million Zip disks have now been shipped by Iomega-has the same appealing and practical design as the original. Zip disks are pocket-sized. They have a rugged plastic shell that is stronger than a floppy disk and does not scratch like a CD. Zip disks are password-protectable and extremely reliable, with built-in error correction capabilities.

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Source: HardwareZone