Review: Leyio Personal Sharing Device

Leyio has produced a portable storage unit known as a Personal Sharing Device (PSD) that can be used to send and receive files in multiple ways including ultra-wide band (UWB).

The 16GB PSD is small but quite chunky, and the soft curves make it look like its designers have been taking tips from Apple. Even the box it comes in closely resembles that of an iPod.

On the front there is a small 1.5in screen and a fingerprint reader and single button. On the sides you'll find a USB slot, a mini USB port and a detachable USB memory stick.

The interface is as simple as the rest of the design. Pressing the solitary button starts the device, prompting the user for a fingerprint to access. The PSD can only store a single fingerprint at a time and five incorrect guesses brings up a number code entry to bypass the fingerprint reader as well as reset it, so you don't have to be too concerned when setting it up.

All navigation is done by swiping your finger across the fingerprint reader. Up and down scrolls through the various folders and files, while side to side goes between levels. Pushing the button acts as a back or cancel option, while holding it down starts the wireless transfer mode.

What makes the PSD pretty unique is the number of ways of sharing data. You can plug it into a PC via the mini USB port and it acts like any other removable storage device, or you can transfer data to and from another USB device by plugging it into the USB slot, or to the inbuilt 2GB USB key and then plug that into a PC's USB port. Anything copied to the detachable unit is automatically copied to the main device when it's plugged back in.

Data stored on the device can be sorted into photos, music, video, documents, internet shortcuts, social networks, contacts and everything else. However, even though the various files are detected and shown as different icons, they are not automatically sorted into these folders; this has to be done manually when the PSD is connected to a PC.

Furthermore, images can be displayed on the tiny screen, but no other file information, such as videos, music or contacts, can be seen directly on the PSD. Given that the PSD has the interface, we would love to have seen a media player as well.

Thus far the PSD is interesting but nothing special, but the feature that really sets it apart from other storage devices is the use of UWB. Once you have the file or folder you want to send, you simply hold down the button for a few seconds to enable the wireless data transfer mode. The recipient does the same and, as soon as the two devices are paired, the data is transferred with a rather novel flick of the wrist.

Leyio reckons that the data transfer speed over UWB is around 10Mbyte/s and will work at a range of three to five metres. Although we couldn't test the exact speeds, transfers between two of these devices were very quick and, as long as the units were within a few metres, the connection was completely stable.

As well as using UWB to share data between two Leyio PSDs, it is theoretically possible to use this to share with other UWB devices, should they ever materialise. The problem is that the UWB standard is still undergoing global ratification so, although Ofcom in the UK and the Federal Communications Commission in the US have approved it, other countries have not, meaning that, even though several electronics firms are developing products that use UWB, it isn't a done deal yet.

Battery life is set at 30 days of average use and, although we can't guarantee that, over the two weeks we've had the PSD the battery is still showing as three-quarters full, having had a top up while connected to the PC over mini-USB.

To test the strength of the fingerprint reader we handed the PSD around the office and nobody was able to gain access, and plugging it into a PC won't allow access until the fingerprint has been approved. It's worth noting that the default code is set to six zeroes, so users will want to change that to make sure their data is secure.

Now we reach the Leyio PSD's biggest drawback: the £159 price tag. It's a pretty interesting device and a very convenient way of carrying around data, especially as the number of connectivity options means that you're guaranteed to be able to share or access any of that data with others and on any device. That said, you can pick up a 16GB USB key with built in encryption and synchronisation software for a third of the price.

As interesting as the Leyio PSD is, until UWB becomes more commonly used, or unless you need to quickly transfer data among colleagues, friends or family on a regular basis, there are plenty of other devices that do the same job for a lot less money.