Robb Moore, President & CEO of Sacramento region tech company ioSafe, is well-known for his flashy Consumer Electronic Show (CES) demos of the company's almost indestructible hard drives. This year, he outdid himself by inviting journalists to fire a 12-gauge shotgun at ioSafe's new product, the Rugged Portable. The demo was held at American Shooters, a gun range close to the Las Vegas Convention Center, and participants included the BBC, Wall Street Journal, MSNBC, PCWorld, MacLife, the Canadian Discovery Channel and more. In addition to blasting the drive with a shotgun, journalists were also able to crush it with a vice, immerse it in water and hit it with a hammer. In each case the data was still recoverable, despite the extensive abuse.

CES announced today that ioSafe’s Rugged Portable is a Best of CES 2011 finalist. Sacramento can vote for the Rugged Portable in the People’s Voice awards. Voting closes Saturday 1/8 at 10 a.m. (PST) and winners will be announced at 11 a.m.

Just released this January, the Rugged Portable is CNC-machined from a solid billet of aluminum or titanium. This Full Metal Jacket™ Technology makes the drive crush resistant up to 5000 lbs (Ti) or 2500 lbs (AL). Like all ioSafe portable drives, the Rugged Portable can withstand fire, immersion and just about any kind of abuse as Moore continues to prove in his ever-popular annual CES demonstrations.

“This drive will make sure your data reaches its destination safely," said Moore. “Whether you need to protect important business data during your daily commute or protect photos during your family vacation, the Rugged Portable will do it. The drive will keep data safe from everyday knocks and bumps associated with travel as well as from moisture, chemicals and extreme environmental and weather conditions.”

ioSafe, a high tech startup in Auburn, manufactures fireproof, waterproof hard drives – like an aircraft black box but for consumer and business data protection. The company's customers include the Pentagon, the Army and Navy, numerous Fortune 500 companies, small businesses and home consumers. Consumer products are sold through Costco, Wal-Mart, Amazon, BestBuy and Dell. The Rugged Portable starts at $149.99 and is now available for pre-order at www.iosafe.com.

Robb Moore, a mechanical engineering graduate of UC Santa Barbara and Professional Engineer in the state of California, has developed hundreds of designs for the high tech, medical, consumer, and aerospace markets. In addition, he serves as CEO of Kollabra, a product development company, and on the Board of Directors for SARTA (Sacramento Area Regional Technology Alliance).  SARTA, founded in 2001, is a non-profit organization founded to foster entrepreneurial growth in emerging technologies & attract venture capital to the greater Sacramento region.

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Disclosure:  Author Laura Good is a HUGE fan of Robb Moore's guerilla marketing tactics and has invited him to speak at SARTA marketing for technology entrepremeurs workshops on on more than one occasion.

Photo credits:  Johnny Klemme