[ 0012 ] fig1 shows a top view of compact flash hard disk drive 100 . as shown in fig1 compact flash hard disk drive 100 includes connector side 120 , removal side 130 , and gripping sides 140 1 and 140 2 . as further shown in fig1 gripping sides 140 1 and 140 2 include finger grips 110 1 and 110 2 , respectively , that are fabricated in accordance with one or more embodiments of the present invention . arrow 150 indicates a direction of insertion / removal of compact flash hard disk drive 100 into an appliance ( for example and without limitation , a digital camera ). in addition , fig2 shows a side view of compact flash hard disk drive 100 and gripping side 140 1 with finger grip 110 1 shown in fig1 ; and fig3 shows an isometric view of compact flash hard disk drive 100 and gripping side 140 1 with finger grip 110 1 shown in fig1 . as shown in fig1 - 3 , finger grips 110 1 and 110 2 are disposed along a back portion of gripping sides 140 1 and 140 2 of compact flash hard disk drive 100 , and are comprised of a series of protuberances in the form of “ gear tooth ” ridges . in addition , as shown in fig1 - 3 , finger grips 110 1 and 110 2 are disposed near outermost comers of compact flash hard disk drive 100 that are opposite from connector side 120 , where connector side 120 is a side of compact flash hard disk drive 100 that is inserted into the appliance to connect compact flash hard disk drive 100 with the appliance . the ridges of finger grips 110 1 and 110 2 are of a height which falls within the form factor of compact flash hard disk drive 100 . further , although the number of ridges may vary , embodiments may be fabricated wherein all the ridges are exposed when compact flash hard disk drive 100 is ejected from the appliance . the number of ridges to be used in a particular application may be determined routinely by one of ordinary skill in the art without undue experimentation . in particular , the size of the ridges , such as , for example , the width and depth may be fine - tuned for good gripping using a finger and / or fingernail . it should be understood that one or more further embodiments of the present invention exist wherein finger grips 110 1 and 110 2 may be a series of protuberances having shapes other than “ gear tooth ” ridges . for example , in accordance with such one or more further embodiments of the present invention , finger grips 110 1 and 110 2 may comprise an array of bumps such as , for example and without limitation , spherical bumps or pyramid - shaped bumps . finger grips 110 1 and 110 2 may be fabricated utilizing any one of a number of methods that are well known to those of ordinary skill in the art such as , for example and without limitation , casting , molding or machining . in addition , in accordance with one or more embodiments of the present invention , a surface of finger grips 110 1 and 110 2 ridges may roughened — or include a high friction material such as , for example , a high friction tape — to provide enhanced friction to aid in gripping wherein the roughness or friction is sufficient to enable a user to overcome forces that retain the disk drive in an appliance with which it is used ( suitable amounts of roughness or friction may be determined routinely by one of ordinary skill in the art without undue experimentation ). in accordance with one or more alternative embodiments of the present invention , finger grips 110 1 and 110 2 may be a rough or high friction surface without ridges wherein the roughness or friction is sufficient to enable a user to overcome forces that retain the disk drive in an appliance with which it is used ( suitable amounts of roughness or friction may be determined routinely by one of ordinary skill in the art without undue experimentation ). for example , in accordance with such one or more alternative embodiments , the outer surface of finger grips 110 1 and 110 2 may be tape with an adhesive that provides the desired amount of friction . alternatively , finger grips 110 1 and 110 2 may be fabricated by treating the surface in accordance with any one of a number of methods that are well known to those of ordinary skill in the art to add grit and so forth . although various embodiments that incorporate the teachings of the present invention have been shown and described in detail herein , those skilled in the art can readily devise many other varied embodiments that still incorporate these teachings .