Huge capacities require reliable solid state technology to ensure data integrity; data volume of 1GB and 2GB - the equivalent of up to three standard CD-R's - can now be stored in a device of half the size of a standard matchbox

Dubai, 25 October 2004: Imation, one of the world's leaders for removable storage solutions, has set a new capacity benchmark for USB Flash drives. Two new products offering storage capacities of up to 1GB and 2GB - the equivalent of up to three standard CD-R's - can now be stored in a device of half the size of a standard matchbox. The new USB Flash drives are available from October 2004 onwards through Imation reseller and distribution partners.

The USB Flash Drive Alliance (UFDA) recently announced that USB flash drives are expected to become the number one removable solid-state storage format in 2005. This new USB flash drive market forecast is provided by industry analysts such as Gartner Dataquest, Semico Research and Web-Feet Research. This data shows that between 67 and 120 million USB flash drives are expected to ship in 2005, producing 2 to 3 billion dollars in revenues worldwide*.

"With the growing storage capacities reliability and data integrity becomes a key factor for the acceptance of all kinds of storage devices using solid state technologies," said Alvaro Valdez, Regional Manager, Imation Middle East & East Africa.

Imation USB Flash Drives are equipped with SLC chips (SLC = Single Level Cell) which are designed to specifically meet the requirements of business users for higher reliability and data integrity. SLC-technology provides:

 Up to 100,000 read/write cycles

 Up to 3 times faster transfer rates than other Level Cell technologies

 Up to 10 times higher device life cycles

 Compatibility to "common files" structure of 512 bytes

Ideal for business users and consumers demanding high quality devices alike, the new Imation USB 2.0 Swivel Flash Drives feature a "never-lose" swivel cap design, delivering an easy, portable means of protecting, transferring and sharing digital information.

"USB flash drives are increasingly popular among people who need to share big files or who need to carry files from one computer to the other," Valdez continued.

Imation's USB 2.0 Swivel Flash Drives weigh less than 15 grams and are about the size of a AA battery (Mignon-Cell). The small size makes the light weight drive highly portable, fitting conveniently onto a supplied lanyard, or easily slipped into a pocket.  The drives read at 8MB/sec and write data at 7MB/sec.  By plugging directly into the USB port of any computer, Imation USB 2.0 Swivel Flash Drives can easily store digital information such as documents, music, presentations, photos and more. Optional public/private drive partitioning and password protection software (available via a free download from Imation.com) can protect data from accidental erasure or unauthorized access. The drive provides an LED showing when read/write operations are performed.

* Source: www.usbflashdrive.org,

-Ends-

About Imation:
Imation Corp. is a leading developer, manufacturer and supplier of magnetic and optical removable data storage media. With one of the broadest product lines in the industry - spanning from a few megabytes to hundreds of gigabytes of capacity in each piece of media, Imation serves customers in more than 60 countries, in both business and consumer markets. From large data centers to distributed networks, Imation's tape cartridges are used in data processing, security, business continuity, backup and archiving applications. Customer needs for reliability, convenience and portability to store and manage business data, photos, video, images and music on professional and home desktops and increasingly in consumer electronics devices drive demand for Imation's optical and diskette products. With more than 300 technology scientists and nearly 300 patents in the US alone, Imation continues to pioneer today's proven magnetic and optical media technologies. As of March 31st 2004, Imation employed approximately 2,800 people worldwide. Revenues from outside the U.S. contribute approximately 60 percent of total sales.

Imation Corp. is located in Oakdale, Minnesota, USA, the European Headquarters is based in Schiphol, near Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Imation Middle East is based in Jebel Ali, UAE.

Imation European Pressroom On-line:

Quick access to the latest news, pictures, backgrounds, the Imation news archive and more is available in 12 languages at: www.online-pressrooms.com.

Imation General Information:

More information about Imation is available at www.imation.ae or via www.imation.com

Local press contact:
Imation Middle East:
Yaser Shan,
Tel: +971 4 8818008,
E-mail: yshan@imation.ae

Market Buzz International:
Cyrus Roche,
Tel: +971 4 3914873,
E-mail: cyrus@themarketbuzz.net

© Press Release 2004