Protect your data with an external hard drive

They say that three things in life are certain: death, taxes, and the fact that sooner or later your computer will die, leaving you with the taxing problem of recovering your precious data. That's why having a comprehensive plan to back up your computer data regularly -- and sticking with it -- is so important. Using an online backup service is one part of that, but so is using some sort of local back up device, such as a USB flash drive or an external hard drive.

The best external hard drives are relatively inexpensive, considering the huge amount of data they can store, and the very best are both reliable and fast. Some are portable, so you can take your data with you on the road or move it easily from computer to computer. Some are so rugged that they can be roasted or drowned and come up smiling. For the lowdown on the best external hard drives for PC and Mac users, see our newly-updated report.