Best Ext. HD?

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hey guys,

im gonna get a nice big ext hd soon. any advice on which brand to get? i've heard some bad things about Western Digital. anyway, thanks in advance.
 
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I'm a huge fan of Western Digital's MyBook series.
 
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MacBook 2.1GHz Core 2 Duo | 1GB RAM | OS X 10.6.3 | 250GB External HD | 8GB iPod Touch 1st Gen 3.1.3
I have a Verbatim 250GB portable HD. It works well. Yeah, I head WD HDs last on average 2 months =P

Don't know if that's accurate, but it came up more than once. I think this was from Apple's website, too. I would recommend the one I have. It really is portable, I bring it with me when I travel.
 
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mcjacksonnelson,

I backed up my Macbook hard drive using SuperDuper (free version makes a bootable copy) then removed the original hard drive from the Macbook, replaced it with a new Western Digital Scorpion 320GB 5400RPM hard drive. Then I used SuperDuper to put my OS and all the data back on the new internal drive. I'm now using the original Macbook hard drive as an external for backups... I just bought a Bytecc USB enclosure for the drive (about $20) and Voila! I'm back in business with a new external and a larger internal drive. I use this external for Time Machine.

I also bought a 160GB Western Digital Passport for a second external drive and I use that with SuperDuper for a second backup, just in case :) BTW, I love the Passport - small, quiet and runs off the USB cable that came with it. The Bytecc enclosure also runs off the USB cable - no external power required...

Noel
 
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I bought an Iomega 360GB 7200 RPM Desktop Hard Drive from RadioShack a few weeks ago. I bought it for $90 on sale, but the sale has unfortunately ended. I believe the price is currently $115. It's not a portable hard drive, but for at-home desktop storage and backup it's an A+. It does require and external power source but it is fast. Downside: it attracts fingerprints and you can't get them off because of its textured case.

Here it is and the sale was extended (out of stock online but you can check your local store): http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3003032&cp=
 
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mcjacksonnelson
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thanks guys.

i'm either gonna go with an iomega or LaCie. heard good things about both.
 
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I'm a huge fan of Western Digital's MyBook series.

Seconded... I love those things, I have the new Essential 500GB on my desk right now. And at the office, I have a World Edition II 2TB on the network... I have friends/family who are in the digital photography business and after they started using the My Book HDD's, they've never stopped to this day. They've had two Maxtors go dead though, lol.
 
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ok...i just bought the Maxtor yesterday and maybe I had temporary amnesia or something, but I searched reviews for over an hour before heading to staples and somehow decided the Maxtor was better than the MyBook's...UGH! Now I have a 500GB Maxtor and am scared to use it!

So--IF it does die, are your files totally lost, or can you retrieve them and move them to a new drive?
 
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I have an older WD MyBook, can't complain its always worked fine. However I found it ab it loud and vibrated a fair amount - maybe the newer ones are better in that aspect. I still have it, hooked up to my AirPort. However I opted to buy a Macally G-S350SUA and add my own HD, currently a 250GB but will be upgrading it to a 1TB shortly. I like the new setup since I can turn off the drive completely as the OS likes to spin the drive up frequently.
g_s350su_ico.jpg
 

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