USBs are convenient little things. Today, a modestly-priced USB will allow you to fit over a hundred gigabytes of data into your pocket. But what if even that is not enough? What if you need to store hundreds of gigabytes, perhaps even several terabytes?

Oct 24, 2015 - Hi,I want to purchase a USB 3.0 portable hard disk with support for USB2.0. WD My Passport Ultra 2TB (ver.2 - Apr 2015+)2) Seagate Backup.

That’s where external hard drives come in! They utilize different technology but their application is pretty much the same as that of a USB drive – storing data externally in a safe and cost-efficient manner, be it for the sake of transporting large volumes of data or simply as a backup. In this article, we will be bringing you a selection of the very best external hard drives available at the moment, but we will also answer some common questions that you could have regarding how to choose the one best suited to your needs! About the Product Western Digital is among the leading HDD manufacturers in the world, so it is no wonder that a product of theirs would be on this list – and it’s a rather oddly-named one. The is a reliable external hard drive that is pretty much everything that the majority of people would expect an external hard drive to be.

It is compact, easy to transport, and it looks good to boot, coming in a total of eight different colors and color schemes. As a cherry on top, it is also easy to use and comes with some of WD’s highly useful software. Specifications Capacity 1 TB, 2 TB, 3 TB, 4 TB Dimensions 1 TB model: 110×81.5×21.5mm (4.33×3.21×0.64in) 2-4 TB models: 110×81.5×21.5mm (4.33×3.21×0.85in) Weight 1 TB model: 170g (0.37lb) 2-4 TB models: 250g (0.54lb) Colors Black, Blue, Orange, Red, White, Yellow, White-Gold, Black-Gray Interface USB 3.0 Our Thoughts The biggest strength of WD My Passport is, above all else, its size. It can easily fit in your hand, bag, or purse with no problem. All the color options and the matching USB cables they come with are a welcome addition, and the bundled software makes it ridiculously easy to use. There are no glaring issues with this HDD, although it does lag behind some more high-end models when it comes to performance, especially in the case of larger files.

This will undoubtedly make it less appealing for professionals and those who need to backup large volumes of data on a regular basis, but for the average user, it is pretty much an ideal choice. About the Product After My Passport, we have yet another external HDD from Western Digital. This time it’s the models that we will be taking a look at, which are a more affordable alternative. WD Elements external hard drives sport a rather unremarkable exterior as compared to their pricier brethren but they sacrifice almost nothing in terms of storage capacity. They might feel cheaper and look a tad bulkier, but they can more or less match My Passport models in terms of performance, although they do lack that convenient software which My Passport has. Specifications Capacity 1 TB, 2 TB, 3 TB Dimensions 1 TB model: 111x82x15mm (4.35×3.23×0.59in) 2 and 3 TB models: 111x82x21mm (4.35×3.23×0.28) Weight 1 TB model: 130g (0.29lb) 2 and 3 TB models: 230g (0.52lb) Colors Black Interface USB 3.0 Our Thoughts As you can see, the WD Elements may not be as good looking as my passport, but it is more affordable and even slightly lighter and thinner on top of that. But of course, seeing as the performance is comparable, it will not blow anyone away with its speed.

There are no major shortcomings to the HDD, apart from what we’ve already mentioned. About the Product Toshiba may not be as widely present in the HDD market as WD, but they do make some of the best hard drives around. Naturally, external hard drives are not excluded. Is, as the name implies, a rather basic external storage solution but a highly reliable and efficient one nonetheless. These external HDDs come in several sizes and in two different styles: classic (a more bland-looking model with rounded edges) and contemporary (a sleeker, more angular variant). Specifications Capacity 1 TB, 2 TB, 3 TB Dimensions 119×78.7×20.5mm (4.7×3.1×0.81in) Weight 230g (0.5lb) Colors Black Interface USB 3.0 Our Thoughts There is not much to say about this HDD other than the fact that it is highly similar to the WD Elements both in terms of pricing and design. However, it does perform a tad better, if only marginally so.

But all in all, it shares most of the strengths and weaknesses of the aforementioned WD external HDDs. About the Product After the above three drives, all of which focus on compactness and portability, we have a vastly different solution from Seagate: the.

As you can see, it is a rather massive external HDD compared to the others, coming with its own rubber feet to stand on. How to change quicktime player screen on mac os x 10. The storage capacity of these models is just as huge, going as high as 8 TB. It doesn’t offer much in terms of aesthetics, though, as the exterior is covered entirely by a polygonal pattern – but of course, some might appreciate this look more than others. Specifications Capacity 2 TB, 3 TB, 4 TB, 5 TB, 8 TB Dimensions 176×120.6×36.6mm (69×4.7×1.4in) Weight 950g (2lb) Colors Black Interface USB 3.0 Our Thoughts The Seagate Expansion is an all-around solid desktop external HDD, packing good performance and hefty storage in one sizeable package – as far as external hard drives are concerned, that is. Furthermore, while it couldn’t exactly be called affordable since it starts with such high capacity models, it actually has a rather low price per gigabyte. The biggest drawback of this HDD is that it is more difficult to transport, but that’s a given considering that it is made as a desktop model. Still, it might be too conspicuous for some users’ tastes if actually placed on top of a desk, especially considering that it’s designed to stand vertically.