Hitachi learned a thing or two when it bought drive manufacturer Fabrik, maker of SimpleTech and G-Technology drives. Just look at this spiffy SimpleTOUGH drive, available in 500GB, 320GB and 250GB capacities for $150, $120, and $100 respectively. No, that's not carbon fiber, but it looks a lot like it, and this sucker is tough as nails, able to survive a drop from 9 feet, and also sporting an attached USB connector for extra convenience. We like.

Check out the gallery below for the more colorful SimpleDRIVE Mini, available in the same capacities for 10 bucks less because they're not quite as tough. Also in the gallery you'll see the $79 SimpleNET adapter, letting you hook up a couple of USB drives to your network, albeit with meager 10/100 Ethernet speeds. Still, it would be fast enough for backups.