Verbatim to offer 'reincarnated floppy disk' in Europe

Looks familiar?

Yesterday, we reported on Memorex's disk-shaped 16MB USB Flash drive, the company's newly announced bit to bring those few remaining floppy disk users into the sold-state storage era. Today, we learn Verbatim is getting in on the act too - with exactly the same product.

The company's European operation has announced FlashDisc, a 16MB USB Flash drive that looks like a 1970s magnetic tape reel that splits in two to reveal a USB connector. It's selling the product in packs of three - comprising one blue, one red and one yellow drive - for £14.

Judging from the pics, the Verbatim product and the Memorex offering are identical. Europeans buying a FlashDisc will get Verbatim-branded units, while their North American counterparts will see the Memorex name on the packaging.

So who is the source of these odd items? Step forward Flash memory specialist M-Systems, which launched FlashDisc this week as "an exciting new category poised to radically transform the way people share their data".

M-Systems said the product would come to market through "global brand partners" - Verbatim and Memorex, presumably, though M-Systems didn't name names.

It did claim "FlashDisc is the floppy reincarnated in USB flash drive form. A floppy diskette - made smarter." Apparently. ®