An external hard drive is something that every computer owner should invest in.
External hard drives provide a back up in the event that your computer’s hard drive fails, and allow you plenty of extra space to store movies, photos, and music without taking up valuable space on your laptop or desktop. Buying an external hard drive is one of the best purchases you can make in terms of protecting and storing your digital life and there are a lot of things to consider when shopping for the perfect external hard drive.
When shopping for an external hard drive you need to consider a few things before making your decision. The biggest tip I can give you when it comes to buying an external hard drive is to consider all of the following before making your decision.
Capacity – Your external hard drive should be at least as large as your computer’s internal hard drive. If your computer’s hard drive is 250GB then you should look for an external hard drive that is at least that capacity. Many people choose to buy even larger capacity hard drives; this way they can back up all of their hard drive contents and still have space left over to store whatever extra files such as movies and photos that don’t fit on their hard drive.
Connection – Many external hard drives connect by USB or Firewire connections. Does your laptop or desktop have a USB or Firewire connection? USB is still more common then Firewire, but you’ll want to check your computer for these connections and then select an external hard drive that connects to one of these two options. Keep in mind that almost all USB compatible devices use USB 2.0 technology; if your computer is older it may have USB 1.0 technology. This means your external hard drive with USB connections may not work as fast or at all with your computer.
Software – Many external hard drives come with software that allow you to set up a back up schedule. Setting up a back up schedule is an excellent thing to do as it puts backing up your data on auto pilot. You’ll ensure that your backup copies are as recent as possible in the event of your computer failing. Some of the software that comes with external hard drives may only be trial software, you may have to pay for the full program.
However for most Windows users, you can use the built in scheduler to set and schedule data backups. You can also find freeware programs that do a decent job of syncing your external hard drive and keeping your data backups on a set schedule.
Check to see which programs are compatible with your potential external hard drive before making a purchase.
Reliability – An external hard drive is only good if it works. You’ll want to select an external hard drive that has a trusted reputation, has good connection speeds, has a lot of storage, and won’t die unexpectedly on you. Companies such as Lacie and Western Digital make some of the best external hard drives on the market today. Ask family and friends which external hard drive they own and their experiences with the external hard drive. Check review sites such as Cnet.com to see what experts and consumers alike are saying about the best external hard drives.
Style and Size – If you plan on traveling with your external hard drive, you can buy ones that fit in your pocket yet hold a huge amount of data. Even the bigger ‘desktop’ external hard drives are getting lightweight and small enough to put in a briefcase or backpack. Whether you’ll be moving your drive around a lot or it’ll just be sitting on your desk at home, you can find a sleek looking model that will look great on your desk.
Pricing – In today’s market you can get a large capacity and dependable external hard drive for a great price. Don’t overpay for yours. Check various prices online to find the best deals. I purchased a Western Digital MyBook 500GB external hard drive on sale for .99 in 2008. In early 2009, a friend was able to purchase a 1TB (1,000 GB) MyBook external hard drive for about the same price. As storage space needs continue to grow, technology is keeping up with more and more storage space for less money.
For most users, you can get an external hard drive for under 100 dollars that will suit your needs.
Written by MaxwellPayne