External Hard Drives

Western Digital is a name that everybody knows and recognises when it comes to storage. They have numerous series of hard drives that are devised to suite the specific needs of the individuals. Have your criteria for your storage requirement and we guarantee you that you would find one that is perfect for you in the range of western digital hard drives.

In the following review we will be discussing about the Western Digital Elements 500GB Portable hard drive (WDBAAR5000). This hard drive would suite the people who are looking for a portable storage solution with a clean design, quality built and a decent storage capacity at an affordable price range.

Simple design:

As we had mentioned earlier, Western Digital Elements is not a striking beauty, but has clean looks and not everybody is going to like its boxy looks. It has no patterns on its body and just has the Western Digital Logo on top of it. The facia, that is, the top part of the drive has a matte finishing whereas the sides have glossy black finish. We find that, with the dimensions of (H x W x D) 0.60” x 3.10” x 5” and weight of 0.44 grams, it is on the very light side for a portable external hard drive. Western Digital is renowned for its quality and it has maintained the same with the Elements drive too.

Capacities available:

The Western Digital Elements External Hard drive is available in 500GB, 320GB and 250GB. If you are in search for a higher capacity, you can also opt to use the Western Digital Elements Desktop Hard Drive which is available in 1TB, 750GB, 640GB and 500GB capacities.

Interface and operation:

In the rear of the drive, you will find the USB2.0 interface which allows the handling and maintenance of the device to be very simple. Just plug in the port and you will be performing the operations that you intended to do in just seconds. Since the device is powered directly by the USB port, it does not need any external adaptor. In case, you own one of those systems that limit the power from the USB port, there is an optional cable available.

Compatibility:

The Western Digital Elements 500GB USB 2.0 hard drive is compatible with both Windows and Mac Operating Systems. But the drive is designed and comes pre-formatted to be used with only the Windows Operating System, however, they can be easily reformatted to be used with the Macs.

Features:

It is very disappointing that the drive is not equipped with any of the features that the other portable hard drives of Western Digital have. We accept that the dive comes at a very low price tag but there would have been no harm if WD had included at least password protection. Most of the other costlier WD portable drives have at least a few of the features like the WD SmartWare, Automatic Backup, Password Protection and Hardware Encryption, High Performance, Capacity Gauge, USB dock, High Capacity and Mac readiness. It is really a shame that the Elements drive has been denied of everything.

Performance:

Coming to the performance, the 2.5″ 500GB Elements has a data transfer speed that is in par with the other portable hard drives like Simple Tech Signature Mini and Western Digital My Passport Studio and is better than some of them including the Maxtor BlackArmora and Toshiba drives.

Package:

The package of the drive includes the Elements drive itself, the USB cable and a Quick Installation guide.

Warranty:

Western Digital offers its Elements Portable drive, two years limited warranty for parts and labour.

Verdict:

The Western Digital Elements WDBAAR5000 500GB external hard drive is a very simple drive that serves the needs of the everyday consumers with not many bells and whistles. It appeals people looking for simple drive that does the job of transferring the data in a no hassle way. We have no hesitations in recommending this drive.

Check other Western Digital EHD Reviews, latest 500GB External Hard Drives in this website.

Elements 500GB External Hard Drive - Technical Specification Sheet

Manufacturer	Western Digital
Model Name	Western Digital Elements
Model Numbers	250GB: WDBAAR2500 320GB: WDBAAR3200 500GB: WDBAAR5000
Drive type	Portable drive
Dimensions (H x W x D)	0.60″ x 3.10″ x 5″
Weight	0.44 grams
Colours available	Black
Interface	USB2.0
Capacities available	250GB, 320GB and 500GB
Compatible OS	Windows® XP, Windows Vista®, Windows 7 Mac® OS® X Tiger® or Leopard®
Data transfer rate	480 Mb/s
Microsoft Certifications	Compatible with Windows 7
Compliant Standards	RoHS
Power Source	USB bus
Package contents	USB 2.0 portable hard drive USB cable Quick Install Guide
Warranty	2 years

ST305004EXA101-RK - 500GB Desktop External Hard Drive from Seagate

Seagate are one of the leading manufacturers of hard drives and storage solutions. It was founded in the year 1979 as Shugart technologies and since then they have been very product specific and went on to find milestones in the storage market. Its first ever product was the 5MB ST-506 which was the first hard disk to fit the 5.25” form factor of the Shugart mini floppy drive and its latest being the Seagate Expansion series of external hard drives. In the following review, we will see in detail about the Seagate Expansion 500GB external desktop drive.

Stylish and Practical:

Design wise, you would find that the Seagate ST305004EXA101-RK is not as sleek as its portable sibling. However, it has exactly the same deign, the only difference being its dimensions (H x W x D) 1.57” x 4.96” x 8.15” and weighing a bulky 2.25 pounds. Seagate has put both style and common sense into the design of the drive. By given the top intersection of the drive shiny black finishing, it has given the drive the style factor to attract the style freaks and by adopting matte black finishing to all the other areas, it has avoided the scratches and smudges on the body of the drive. The drive has a rectangular form factor with elegant curves in its facia which sports the attractive logo of Seagate and also a small LED light to indicate the activity of the drive. This light is not very bright and so, it will not bother you much if you have it in front of your system.

As with most of the gadgets, you will find the ports in the rear which includes a USB2.0 port for all the data transmissions and also a port for external power.  The built quality of the drive is excellent and we assure you that it can certainly handle a few accidental knock downs.

Capacities Available:

500GB is the lowest capacity in which the Seagate Expansions Hard drive is available in, the higher capacities in which the drive is available includes 1TB, 1.5TB and 2TB. You can find our exclusive review on the 1TB version of the drive. So, if you are a very storage hungry person, you can make your choice accordingly.

Set-up and Installation:

Recently, the set up and installation of drives have been made extremely easy by the manufacturers so that even a novice user should not have any issues during the process and this Expansion 500GB  USB 2.0 external drive is not an exception as the process takes just minutes and you will be ready to go. Connect the power chord to the electrical outlet and the USB cable to the system and make sure that you do not hook it to any of the USB ports in the front of the drive as it might result in the malfunctioning of the drive. Once this is done, just press the power button that is in the back of the drivel; once the green LED glows, it indicates the activity of the drive.

Once the set-up is complete the installation is extremely easy too. The drive will be immediately recognised the Windows Operating System. Apart from this, you need not install any additional software and there will not be any need for any configuration changes too. The utility that allows you to do some simple backup and restore operations is available in the drive itself and you are also given the flexibility to control when the drive goes to sleep mode. Out of the box, the drive has been pre-formatted NTFS, which is surprising, given that Seagate also markets its drive to the Macintosh users. NTFS is the most advantageous file system as it allows you to have robust security and this system makes use of the drive space much more efficiently by formatting the drive with 4KB clusters.

Compatibility issues:

Seagate Expansions ST305004EXA101-RK 500GB Desktop Drive is compatible with Apple MacOS X 10.4.8 or later and Microsoft Windows Vista / XP. The drive cannot be used with Windows 95 or 98 as the 95 OS does not support USB and the Windows 98/SE does not have native support for USB2.0. Here, some of you may argue that there was an upgrade to Windows 95 that supports USB version 1.0, but the clinch is that this drive is not backwards compatible to USB version 1.0 or 1.1.

Features and Performance:

The management of the drive too is as easy as its installation. The Seagate 500GB External Hard Disk drive instantly adds more space for files and consolidates all of your files into a single location. The drive can also be used to free up the space on your system’s internal drives for the sake of improved performance. All that you ever need to do to save the files is just drag and drop them. Though you cannot enjoy lightning fast data transfer speeds of the external hard drives with FireWire or eSATA interfaces, the Seagate Expansion 500GB drive’s USB2.0 interface offers you with an acceptable data transfer speed. Seagate has stated that the drive has an interface transfer rate of 480Mbps but while testing, we found that the average transfer rate of transferring 400GB of data was 5.6Mbps, which translates to 336Mbps. This is not very bad and it transferred the mixed digital content without any issues. The drive has a spindle speed of 7200rpm and 16MB cache.

Noiseless and energy efficient:

A notable feature of the drive is that, it is energy efficient too. Seagate has employed a built-in power management feature for giving you an energy efficient operation. Additionally, the drive is a very silent operator, even while transferring large number of files, it stays husshhh…

Package:

Seagate Expansions 500GB drive comes in its own yellow and black package. On opening it, you will find the drive, a USB cable, Power supply cable, Quick start guide and warranty information. The power adaptor has a clip that allows you to take out just the pins so that, if you are out of your country, you will be able to purchase the pins that suites that country and clip it into it.

Warranty:

Seagate offers its 500GB Expansion External Desktop Hard Drive 2 years limited warranty. We are disappointed with this warranty as the other rivals offer a minimum of three or five years warranty for their products.

Verdict:

Seagate Expansion 500GB ST305004EXA101-RK External Desktop USB 2.0 Hard Drive is a very economical solution for those who are looking for a budget drive with large capacity. The good looks, nominal speed and energy efficiency features of the drive drives us to recommend the drive.

Check 2010 Best External Hard Drives, other Seagate external hard drive Reviews in this website.

Seagate Expansion 500GB EHD - Technical Specifications, Features

Manufacturer	Seagate
Model Name	Seagate Expansion 500GB External Desktop Hard Drive
Product Code	ST305004EXA101-RK
Colour	Black
Dimensions (H x W x D)	1.57″ x 4.96″ x 8.15″
Form factor	3.5″
Hard disk drive capacity	500GB
Other capacities available	2TB, 1.5TB and 1TB
Buffer size	16MB
Data transfer rate (max)	480 Mbit/s
USB 1.1 Full Speed	12 Mb/s (max)
Average seek time	8.5ms
Compatible operating systems	Microsoft Windows Vista / XP Apple MacOS X 10.4.8 or later
Software	Back-up utility
Additional features	Built-in power management
Package contents	Seagate Expansion 500GB External Desktop Hard Drive USB cable Power Adapter Quick Start guide Warranty Information
Power consumption	AC 110/230 V (50/60Hz)
Warranty	Two years

S2-320 - USB 2.0 interface, 320gb capacity Portable hard drive from Samsung

We know that Samsung is an established manufacturer of 2 inch internal laptop hard disks and so, it is not a surprise that they have decided to release their own range of portable external hard drives. S2 is Samsung’s current flagship model portable hard drive that is unique in its own right. We say that the hard drive is unique as it relies on the on-board USB technology, in order to reduce the length of the chassis, making it an extremely compact hard drive; in fact it is smaller than the Western Digital Passport. So, what have they done? We have to assume that the engineers of Samsung have native SATA interface and replaced it with USB. In the following review, we will see in detail about the Samsung S2 320GB USB 2.0 Portable Hard Drive.

Sleek and stylish design:

We are sure that most of you must have came across the Samsung Costume hard drive concept back in mid of 2008. The S2 drive is styled in such a way that it looks completely at home when placed along with the various make-up products. So, no wonder, this portable hard drive is a hit among the techie ladies. Weighing just 154grams, the Samsung HXMU032DA is one of the lightest 2.5″ portable storage solutions available in this capacity. The drive has a very stylish and clean design and is available in four very pleasing colours like Piano Black, Snow White, Wine Red and Chocolate brown to suite the tastes of everybody.

Construction and Interface:

The enclosure is made out of plastic but is attractive nonetheless. The casing and the mountings have a very solid construction. While the front of the device is plain with the matte finishing of the above mentioned colours, the sides of the unit are given a metallic finishing of the corresponding shade. The top surface has simple and repetitive pattern of circles printed to it. The rear side of the drive has leather like surface and has the anti-slip characteristic, which prevents the drive from sliding away from the desk. The drive has a mini USB 2.0 port as interface. A blue LED on the facia of the S2 drive indicates the operation of the drive.

Checking capacity:

You can also easily check available space in the S2 through the capacity gauge icon located on the taskbar of Microsoft Windows operating systems.

Capacities available and Compatibility:

The Samsung S2 external hard drive is available in four capacities which includes 160GB, 250GB, 320GB and 500GB.

The drive is compatible with both Windows and Mac Operating Systems.

Set-up and Installation of S2 320:

The installation of the Samsung S2 320GB hard drive can never get easier. Just plug in the drive, and the system will recognise it, simple and straightforward. Once the drive is installed and the auto-run application loads, you will be presented with the screen that allows you to either read the manual or install the backup software of Samsung that includes some backup and security features. The interface looks very green, may be the drive is eco friendly.

Performance:

The Samsung S2 HXMU032DA external computer hard drive is based on the Spinpoint M hard drive series that runs at 5400rpm, offering 8MB of cache and a Serial ATA 300 interface.

We did three simple tests on the drive. A file copy to, file copy from and a file copy within the drive itself. We also have the Western Digital Passport Essential for the sake of some comparison. The transfer rates turned out to be pretty similar between both the drives; while the Western Digital drive was faster than the Samsung S2 in copying the larger files, Samsung has the upper hand when it comes to copying the smaller files. Said that, the speeds are comparatively slower when compared to most of the other external hard drives in the market, which is mainly due to the fact that both the drives are limited by their USB 2.0 interface. The CPU utilisation while copying from the drive to the system was about 30%, by when the process is done vice-versa, the CPU utilization reduces to about 20%. During the process of data transferring, there was very little vibration transmitted from the drive to the external casing.

Software Bundle:

As we had mentioned in the installation section, the software bundle of the Samsung S2 drive has a backup and an encryption software. Make sure that you have the backup of these software before the drive is formatted, however, you have nothing to worry if you have lost it as you can always get a copy of the same from Samsung’s site.

Samsung Auto Backup software:

If you have installed the Samsung Auto Backup software, the Auto Backup starts up immediately on plugging in the S2 portable drive. The application provides both manual and scheduled backup features. It has a very neat interface and is quite easy to use. The software has a file filter dialog box that allows you select various types of files that you want a back-up of. The backup software is preset to backup the documents, but not the multimedia files such as photos, videos or music; they have to be selected manually. The backups can be password protected and the utility includes versioning, scheduling and compression.

As we had mentioned above, there are two ways to backup data: Manual Backup and Quick Backup. And the backup options have to be configured before using the Samsung Auto Backup.

Manual Backup:

The Manual Backup process includes designating the path to the backup device, configuring of the various backup options, selecting the files that need a backup and choose the kind of backup required (Manual or Automatic). Once you have successfully configured the auto backup software, a new icon appears on your system tray.

Quick Backup:

In order to do a quick backup, select files and folders that you wish to backup, right click on your selection and then select the “Quick Backup” from the context menu. The Quick Backup will only function with the backup device configured properly. The files and folders that have been backed up with Quick Backup are automatically stored as backups of the originals.

Backup Restore:

The backup data can also be restored with the Samsung Auto Backup. To do this, you will have to launch the restore wizard. There are three ways by which this can be done: Right click on the selected files and click over “Restore”, Select “Restore” from “Task” menu and the third way is to Click on “Restore” from the toolbar. In the first screen that prompts you to select the restore backup destination, you can either choose to backup the files to their original folder or designate a new destination folder to restore the backup files to. Restore wizard will then present restore time and duplicate file restoring options. You will be able to choose to restore backup files from the most recent backup or from the closest backup to a specified date and time. As for duplicate backup files, you have the option to restore backup files that are different from their originals only or to restore all the files. Restore file filter wizard lets you designate the types of files you wish to restore.

Samsung SecretZone:

The Samsung SecretZone is an information privacy software application operating in the Windows environment. It enables you to save and protect important and private data from others with ease.
With the SecretZone Software you basically create virtual drives to store information that you wish to be encrypted. The encrypted containers can be mapped into windows as individual drives. The virtual drives can be of the file formats, FAT16, FAT32 or of the NTFS file format. The data or the size of the virtual drive that you create will be stored as an image file. The software also supports converting container files into executable ones which can be decrypted on the fly without the need for the SecurityZone utility. This file is password protected and can only be opened by the SecretZone software. Though this tool is not as powerful as the TrueCrypt, it is somewhat easier to handle.

Partitioning and changing the File System Type:

It is possible to partition your S2 Portable External Hard Disk Drive and change the file system type: FAT32, NTFS and Macintosh. Use Samsung USB Format Utility to format your S2 Portable External Hard Disk Drive to FAT32.

NTFS Reformat:

To reformat to NTFS, right-click “My Computer” and then select “Manage”, then from the “Computer Management” tool, select “Disk Management”. Right-click the drive you wish to format and then select “Delete Partition” and once drive partition has been deleted, right-click the drive you wish to format and then select “New Partition”. From Create Partition Wizard, select “Primary Partition” and then enter the desired size of the partition. Finally, from the “File System” menu, select “NTFS” and format.

Macintosh Reformat:

To format in Macintosh, Launch Mac OS X’s “Disk Utility” tool and open the main drive folder from the desktop. Then, open the “Applications” folder and then the “Utilities” folder. Then select the “Disk Utility” file and the drive you wish to reformat. In the “Partition” menu and then, from the “Options” menu, the type of partition you wish to create and select the drive volume from the “Name” menu and the desired format from the “Format” menu. Once formatting is complete, the drive will appear on your desktop.

Eco-friendly:

A power saving intelligence program of the drive monitors the drive’s use and places the drive into a low power sleep mode, whenever the drive is left unused for more than five minutes.

Heat generated:

Talking about the heat, the drive gets warm on working for a while, but not very hot that makes it uncomfortable to touch.

Package:

The package of the Samsung S2 320GB hard drive includes just the External drive itself, the USB 2.0 cable and a quick start guide.

Warranty:
The Samsung S2 320GB 2.5-inch USB 2.0 hard drive comes with three years manufacturer’s warranty.

Verdict:

With a sleek and stylish design, the Samsung S2 320GB Compact size hard drive is a drive that you would love to show off to your friends. The entire package is very simple and not too overwhelming and great for someone looking for a drive with simple backup and security functionalities. The included software bundle with no complications is sufficient for an average user, which is the target consumer group of the S2. With the option of two smaller capacities and one larger capacity, you do have a wide range of choice. Samsung is hoping to tempt film fans into buying its new 500GB portable hard drive by including a copy of the Tom Hanks film Angels and Demons on it. Budget wise, the drive costs slightly higher than some of the other drives of same capacity, but is worth every penny you spend.


Samsung S2 320GB  External HDD - Technical Specification Table

Manufacturer	Samsung
Model Name	Samsung S2 320GB portable hard drive
Model number	HXMU032DA
Colours available	Piano Black, Snow White, Wine Red and Chocolate brown
Dimensions (W x H x D)	82 x 111 x 17mm
Weight	0.154Kg
Form factor	2.5 inch
Hard disk drive capacity	320GB
Other capacities available	160GB, 250GB and 500GB
Buffer size	8MB
Interface	USB2.0
Data transfer rate (max)	480 Mbit/s
Average seek time	12ms (Read) / 14ms (Write)
Compatible operating systems	Microsoft Windows Vista, Windows XP Home / Professional Edition, Windows 2000 Pro and Mac OS x 10.4.8 or later
Software	Samsung Auto Backup Samsung SecretZone
Additional features	Safety Key Less Power Consumption Password lock
Package contents	S2 Portable External Hard Drive USB Y-cable (85cm), USB Mini cable (10cm) Carrying Case, Quick Install Guide Bundle software preloaded on the hard drive Electronic User Documentation (PDF)
Warranty	Three years

Buffalo is a global manufacturer of innovative storage, multimedia and wireless networking products for use in home and small business. Buffalo has been recognised as the number one total PC peripheral manufacturer in Japan and was the worldwide consumer NAS market leader in 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008. They are especially well known for their external storage devices. In the following review we will be seeing about Buffalo’s Juststore 500GB USB 2.0 External Hard Drive.

Compact USB2.0 storage:

The Juststore drive looks compact and stylish in its matte black finishing. Having its dimensions as just (H x W x D) 175 x 45 x 156mm, the desktop drive is certainly bag friendly, if not pocket friendly. The compact design of the drive has been made possible with the drive’s unique fan-less design. The drive has only the USB2.0 interface.

Capacities and version:

The Buffalo Juststore USB 2.0 Desktop External Hard Drive is available in 500GB and 1TB capacities. The drive is available in two versions with UK power supply and Europe Power supply.

Operating Systems compatibility:

The Juststore external drive is compatible with both Windows and Mac Operating Systems. To be very specific, the drive is compatible with Win 2000, XP, Vista™, Server 2003, Mac OS 10.2.7 or later.

Easy to use drive:

The Buffalo Juststore 3.5″ 500GB desktop drive is an extremely easy to use device, with no complicated set up processes. The files and folders can be backed up as soon as the device is connected to the system. The auto installation is great for keeping the files safe without any fuss. The drive comes pre-formatted and does not need any additional drivers. It is extremely easy to store, access and transfer the files, images, documents and backups. The drive has the auto power-on facility that allows the drive to automatically power up or down in association with the system. Just plug the drive in your PC or Mac, you are ready to go straight away.

Performance:

Under the enclosure is a 500GB SATA Hard Drive with a spindle speed of 4200rpm. With just the USB2.0 interface, the read and write speeds of the drive are average. It is neither too slow nor as fast as the drives with the eSATA interface. The drive has its maximum data transfer speed to be 480Mbps.

A silent drive:

With the fanless design, the drive is definitely quiet, but with long hours of usage, the drive gets slightly hot.

Power Saving Mode:

Who is not cared about saving power in this era? Buffalo knows it too, and that is why it has equipped the Juststore external hard drive with a power saving mode. The average power consumption of the drive is just 12W.

Warranty:

The Buffalo Juststore 500GB comes with two years manufacturer’s warranty. We feel that this warranty period is quite less as its rivals are available with three year’s warranty, however, it is better than the one year warranty that is offered for some drives.

Verdict:

The Buffalo Juststore 500GB USB 2.0 Desktop External Hard Drive is a decent looking high capacity and easy to use storage device at a budget price. This is the ideal drive for the consumers who need to store, back-up and transport the digital files without the need of any additional gimmicks available with the other external hard drives in the market.

Check other Buffalo External Hard drives, Verbatim External Hard Drive Reviews in this website.

Buffalo Juststore 500GB Hard Drive - Technical Specifications, Features

Manufacturer	Buffalo
Model Name	Juststore 500GB USB 2.0 External Hard Drive
Model number	UK version: HD-E500U2-UK EU version: HD-E500U2-EU
Device type	3.5″ Desktop External hard drive
Dimensions (W x H x D)	45 x 175 x 156mm
Weight	1Kg
Hard disk drive capacity	500GB
Plug and Play	Yes
Hard disk interface	Serial ATA
Controller Interface Type	Serial ATA-300
Hard disk rotational speed	4200 rpm
Data transfer rate (max)	480Mbps: USB 2.0 Mode
Standard Compliance	USB 2.0
Network Port	None
Hot Swap	No
SSD	No
Memory Card Reader	No
Connector Types	1 x USB 2.0 Type B
Number of Ports	One
OS Support	Win 2000/XP/Vista™/Server 2003, Mac OS 10.2.7 or later
Cables Included	1 x USB cable
Software bundle included	None
DLNA certified	No
Power Consumption (Watts)	12W
Operating Environment	5-35º C, 20-80% (non-condensing)
Power Supply	External AC 100-240V 50/60Hz
Warranty	2 years

Offer:

Here is an offer that you simply cannot afford to miss. CBA Digital is providing you with a massive 20GB extra free storage on selected units. For instance, if you choose to order a 40GB portable hard drive, you will be sent a 60GB drive, or if you opt for 80GB drive, you will be given a 100GB drive. But you must really hurry to enjoy this offer as it is only as long as the stock lasts and the offer is strictly limited to a maximum of two units per customer.

Review:

CBA Digital has an experience of over twenty years in the market place of digital storage that assemble, support and supply their range of storage products. Only one of that kind in UK! All the portable hard drives of CBA Digital are custom built in UK and along with this; they are also covered by their total support warranty. Hence, the CBA Digital products assure you with the best quality products, with UK based service and support.

In this era where the manufacturers of the storage media are spitting out hard drives in capacities of tera bytes, everybody seem to have forgotten about the needs of those people who want only a little more of storage capacity for their domestic needs. But CBA Digital does think about them too and has its 80GB portable external hard drive to offer.

Decent looking drive:

Though the CBA Digital 80GB 2.5″ portable hard drive ONE80 is not one of the stylish ones in the market, they look very decent. They come in a rubberised black surrounding that offers the extra protection for the drive against accidental drops. The central facia of the drive has a glossy black finishing so that the drive has some personality and not completely dumb. The drive is also available in white finishing. The drive is amazingly compact with its dimensions being (H x W x D) 13 x 8 x 1.5cm. The small size of the unit makes them very pocket friendly and you can also use the carry case offered in the package to carry around the drive. The enclosure not only looks decent, it is extremely durable too.

Interface:

CBA Digital custom made portable hard drives can be connected to your PC or Mac via the USB interface. Irrespective of the fact if the system is a desktop or laptop, the drive is recognised in just seconds and takes power directly from the USB port and so, there no need for any additional power supply. With this plug and play system, the device can be used in any system and allows you to transfer, back up and copy data instantly. The unit is compatible with both USB 1.1 and USB2.0.

Capacities available:

The capacity of the drive that we are testing now is 80GB, the same drive is available in a range of other capacities too, from the low storage need options like 40GB and 160GB to high storage needs like 250GB, 320GB and 500GB.

Compatibility:

Though the CBA Digital 80GB Portable Hard Drive One Touch Storage is compatible with both PC and Mac systems, Mac users have to reformat the drive before usage, as the drive comes preformatted for use with PC. Only the drive is compatible with both the operating systems, but the free One Touch Software that comes with the drive is not compatible with the Mac systems. This is very disappointing.

The One Touch Capability:

The 2.5″ 80GB CBA Digital Hard Drive it uses is housed in the cool enclosure. The CBA Digital 80GB drive has its One Touch Capability built-in, which is the single biggest selling point of the drive. In other words, you can select the file or folder that you have to make a copy of, and just press the button in the front of the drive. On doing so, the particular file or folder will have a back up. However, using this feature and software or not using it is entirely your wish. You can also have a backup of the filed by just drag and copy.

Performance:

The data transfer speed of the drive is fast as this CBA portable drive has employed the latest SATA technology 2.5” Hard drive. As in the case of most of the portable drives, the larger the size of the data you transfer, the better is the speed of the drive. The drive is quiet and is cool even after long hours of usage.

Package:

Since the drives are assembled in UK and fully tested prior to dispatch, they are all ready to go just out of the box. The package of the CBA Digital portable hard drive includes the 80GB drive, a USB Cable, Software and a Carry case.

Warranty:

CBA Digital external hard drive comes with one year limited warranty.

Verdict:

The CBA Digital 80GB Portable 2.5 Inch External Hard Drive has most of the features that we will be looking for, in an external hard drive like decent looks, portability, durability and reliability. The drive makes use of all the latest technologies and is hence having acceptable read and write speeds. The One Touch Software makes the entire process of back-up very easy, but it is extremely disappointing that the s/w is incompatible with Mac. Since the price tag is also very moderate, we recommend CBA external hard drive for your small storage needs. But we would not recommend it if you intend to use the drive in a Mac system as the main feature of the drive itself is incompatible with Mac.

Check other CBA Digital External Hard Drives in this website.

CBA Digital Portable Hard Drive One Touch Storage 80GB - Technical Specification Table

Manufacturer	CBA Digital
Model Name	CBA Digital 80GB Portable 2.5 Inch External Hard Drive
Model number	ONE80
Device type	Portable hard drive
Form factor	2.5 Inch
Enclosure colours available	Black and White
Hard disk drive capacity	80GB
Other capacities available	40GB, 160GB, 250GB, 320GB and 500GB
Buffer Size	16MB
Hard disk interface	Serial ATA
Hard disk rotational speed	5400 rpm
Data Transfer Rate	480 mbps
Standard Compliance	USB 2.0 and USB 1.1
Connector Types	1 x USB 2.0
Software	One Touch Software
Number of Ports	One
OS Support	Windows Vista , Windows XP/2000 & MAC OS X
Package Contents	CBA Digital 80GB Portable Hard drive, a USB Cable, Software and a Carry case
Warranty	1 year