The idea of the Gnarbox started as a rapidly funded project on Kickstarter about three years ago, and since then the little-rugged box has found its way into the bags and workflows of many photographers, videographers, and creators alike. It was a particular device that was meant to leverage laptop-type internals and pair them with the ease of use of a mobile application for backing up, editing and sharing still images and video footage in the field.

We tested first generation, and retested, and concluded its ambition didn’t match the finished product and couldn’t sign off on it. It had many pitfalls, as pointed out in our review, but to give credit where due, the team over MyGnar Inc. have pushed multiple further updates to the device including integration with applications like Lightroom Mobile, and now the team is back on Kickstarter with the Gnarbox 2.0, with many welcomed upgrades over the original. We will get a unit in for review as it looks promising.

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The Gnarbox 2.0 SSD has taken the concept of an app-based ecosystem that the first generation started and brings it to a new level. There are software integrations with LumaFusion, Adobe Premiere Pro, Final Cut Pro, Adobe Lightroom, and Dropbox. Gnarbox 2.0 also had a host of first-party applications to help speed up your workflow: Safekeep, Sequence, Selects, and Showcase.

Venturing from the utilitarian design of the V1, the Gnarbox 2.0 SSD adopts a sleek black exterior with improved thermals, removable battery, a built-in OLED display, and one-touch backups with checksum verification.

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Gnarbox 2.0 Specs

  • Intel Quad Core, 2.40GHZ CPU
  • 4 Core Intel HD Graphics GPU
  • 867mbps 802.11 ac/b/g/n WiFi
  • 4GB RAM
  • NVMe SSD up to 1TB
  • SD Card Backup: 100MB/sec write speeds
  • USB-C Backup: 500MB/sec read/write speeds
  • USB-C Computer Connect: 500MB/sec read/write speeds
  • USB-C (x2), SD, and mini HDMI ports
  • 4-hour continuous use
  • 3200mAh 7.4v removable lithium-ion battery
  • IP67: Waterproof up to 1 meter for 30 minutes

If you are an owner of the first generation Gnarbox, the company affirmed that they will continue to support GNARBOX 1.0 and the GNARBOX Classic App. As the software for 2.0 rolls out, GNARBOX 1.0 users will enjoy the same Lightroom, Premiere, and Dropbox integration.

If you would like to support the Gnarbox 2.0 and see it come to market, the Kickstarter page here. Backer rewards start at $299 for 128 GB model and range up to $699 for the 1 TB version. The expected delivery of the rewards is December 2018.