External Hard Drives: Reviews

Updated October 2009
 

Best external hard drive

LaCie d2 Quadra *Est. $125 for 500 GB Compare Prices
 
Expert & User Review Sources:

Government Computer News: Government Computer News tests the LaCie d2 Quadra with a Dell PC running Windows XP. Its performance would have put it among the ...

IT Reviews.com: This U.K. site tests the LaCie d2 Quadra on three separate PCs running Windows XP or Vista. Performance is swift and smooth, ...

Macworld: The 500 GB version of the LaCie d2 Quadra earns a four "mouse" rating (out of five). Macworld likes that it offers all four ...

Amazon.com: The LaCie d2 Quadra earns four stars in more than 85 reviews at Amazon.com. Most of the ratings are a perfect five stars, though ...

 

Best portable external hard drive

Seagate FreeAgent Go *Est. $70 for 250 GB Compare Prices
 
Expert & User Review Sources:

TomsHardware.com: The Seagate FreeAgent Go ranks as one of the best portable hard drives in this six-drive test. The reviewers particularly like ...

ConsumerReports.org: ConsumerReports.org tests a few portable hard drives, including Seagate FreeAgent Go. Testers concentrate on the drives' ease of ...

Amazon.com: In more than 325 user reviews, the average rating for the FreeAgent Go is 4.5 stars out of five. The vast majority of owners say ...

NewEgg.com: Newegg.com offers reviews of the Seagate FreeAgent Go in multiple capacities and versions. Some get no or only a few ratings, and ...

 

Mass storage external drive, network capable

Western Digital My Book World Edition *Est. $170 for 1 TB Compare Prices
 
Expert & User Review Sources:

Register Hardware.co.uk: This British site tests the latest version of the Western Digital My Book World Edition and declares it a great value. Reviewer ...

The Wall Street Journal: Walter Mossberg, The Wall Street Journal's technology critic, tests the Western Digital My Book World Edition on multiple PCs and ...

ConsumerReports.org: ConsumerReports.org includes a few NAS drives in this test, including the Western Digital My Book World Edition. Editors evaluate ...

Amazon.com: The Western Digital My Book World Edition averages four stars in more than 30 owner reviews here. Reviews aren't unequivocally ...

 

Fireproof, waterproof external drive

ioSafe Solo *Est. $140 for 500 GB Compare Prices
 
Expert & User Review Sources:

BigBruin.com: Blake James tests the ioSafe Solo on a Dell laptop, head-to-head against a 500 GB Western Digital My Book external hard drive, ...

TestFreaks.com: The ioSafe transfers data just about as quickly as the Seagate BlackArmor WS110, as long as tester Kristofer Brozio sticks with ...

The Wall Street Journal: The Wall Street Journal posts a video taken at the 2009 Consumer Electronics Show, where the CEO of ioSafe drowns and torches an ...

IT Reviews.com: This U.K. source doesn't burn or flood the ioSafe Solo, but it does test the drive and find it's instantly recognized by Windows ...

Amazon.com: Most of the nearly 20 reviews here give the product five out of five stars. However, other users suspect that a handful of the ...

 

External Hard Drives Runners Up:

Clickfree *Est. $95 for 250 GB

5 picks by top review sites.

Iomega eGo *Est. $80 for 250 GB

3 picks by top review sites.

Maxtor OneTouch III *Est. $360 for 1.5 TB

2 picks by top review sites.

SimpleTech ProDrive *Est. $115 for 500 GB

2 picks by top review sites.

Seagate Replica *Est. $130 for 500 GB

2 picks by top review sites.

     
 
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Clickfree 250 GB Portable External Hard Drive With Auto Backup
Buy from Amazon.com
from Amazon.com
New: $94.41   
In Stock.
Average Customer Review:  
 
 
 
 
     
 
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Western Digital WDMLZ2500TN 250GB 5400 USB 2.0 My Passport Elite 2.5-Inch External Hard Drive (Bronze)
Buy from Amazon.com
from Amazon.com
New: $99.42   
In Stock.
Average Customer Review:  
 
 
 
 
     
 
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Buy from Amazon.com
from Amazon.com
New: $133.00   
In Stock.
Average Customer Review:  
 
 
 
 
     
 
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Maxtor 1.5 TB OneTouch III Turbo Edition Hard Drive ( C01W015 )
Buy from Amazon.com
from Amazon.com
New: $359.99   
In Stock.
Average Customer Review:  
 
 
 
 
     
 
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SimpleTech PRO500Q Pro Drive 500 GB Quad Interface External Hard Drive (Grey)
Buy from Amazon.com
from Amazon.com
New: $114.97   
In Stock.
Average Customer Review:  
 
 
 
 
     
 
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Seagate FreeAgent Desk 500 GB USB 2.0 Port External Hard Drive for Mac-Silver ST305005FJA105-RK
Buy from Amazon.com
from Amazon.com
New: $112.49   
In Stock.
Average Customer Review:  
 
 
 
 
     
 
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Seagate FA Replica 500 GB Complete Multi-PC Backup System with Dock ST905004BDA101-RK (Silver)
Buy from Amazon.com
from Amazon.com
New: $111.99   
In Stock.
Average Customer Review:  
 
 
 
 

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