High-quality external hard drive 1 TB. Best Cute and Unusual Model

Demand for external media information became especially obvious in recent years. The reason for this was not only the constantly increasing weight of multimedia content, but also the daily growing activity virus attacks and the risk of data loss.

In the huge variety of HDDs and SSDs, it is difficult to determine which one to choose - the most productive or the cheapest. The purpose of this article is to give an objective idea of all aspects of choosing this device.

Why do you need a hard drive?

A portable hard drive is a portable storage device.

Its main functional features:

high capacity. The device allows you to store and transfer huge amounts of information - from hundreds of gigabytes to several terabytes. It can be used as a second hard drive, as an operating system bootloader;
mobility. Can be connected to multiple computers via standard interface USB, transfer from place to place;
safety. You can duplicate and store information outside of your PC or laptop and limit access to it by third parties.

The reliability of data storage is higher and the necessary files are always at hand.

Selection options

Among the selection criteria external hard USB drive You can note capacity, throughput, warranty period, low power consumption.

making it easier to work with the disk;
convenient copy saving mode;
improved energy saving;
encryption of information;
synchronization with the system;
the ability to restore files, etc.;

appearance. Pocket options are available in a wide range. Creative people will appreciate devices in a bright, eye-catching case. Models in stylish aluminum housing will complement the image of a respectable businessman. Stationary hard drives are less varied, but they can be selected to suit any interior;
guarantee. Depending on the manufacturer, from 1 to 5 years.

Format factor: pocket and desktop

The format factor is one of the key indicators of a hard drive.

Photo: Seagate Slim Portable Drive 2.5 inches

SSD and HDD hard drives 2.5 inches are the most popular. Their dimensions do not exceed the size of a smartphone - they easily fit into a pocket or handbag. These devices are characterized by low power consumption and can operate from standard USB connector on a computer or laptop. Their volume does not exceed 2 TB.

Photo: Samsung STORY™ Station 3.5 inches

3.5-inch drives are stationary options. Compared to pocket models, they weigh more significantly (up to 1.5 kg) and have maximum capacity– up to 4 TB. They may require separate power to operate. Some manufacturers produce sets of several hard drives. The volume of such a kit can reach 20 TB.

Photo: Toshiba-STOR E-STEEL 1.8 inches

Ultra-mobile options – 1.8-inch SSD drives.

Type: SSD or HDD?

Based on media type, hard drives are divided into SSD and HDD.

Photo: magnetic (HDD) hard drive A-Data

HDD is an electronic-mechanical device made of aluminum or glass plates coated with a ferrimagnetic layer. During operation, the plates rotate, and the magnetic heads hover above the surface at a height of 10-12 nm and do not touch the surface of the plates.

Solid state drives are chip-based storage devices.

The write/read speed of an SSD is approximately 5 times higher than that of a HDD, but its capabilities are limited by low-speed interfaces.

SSDs are absolutely silent, resistant to mechanical damage. Their disadvantages are the high price at minimum volumes and a limited number of rewrite cycles. Some enthusiasts have long predicted victory solid state SSD over HDD, but the price of such an alternative is too high.

Connection interface

The speed of the portable drive depends on the connection interface.

The most common is USB 2.0 with a transfer speed of 480 Mbps. This is not a high figure.

Today almost everything modern laptops are equipped with a USB 3.0 interface with speeds up to 4.8 Gbps.

Additionally you can use:

FireWire – high-speed interface 400 – 800 Mbit/s;
eSATA – standard with bandwidth up to 3 Gbit/s;
Ethernet is an interface that turns an external drive into a network drive.

Ethernet and FireWire only support 3.5-inch hard drives.

Video: selecting an external drive

Which brand is better to choose an external drive?

Which company's external media are the best? Fierce competition in this market segment has long driven out the weak. The remaining “old” manufacturers are Seagate, Western Digital and Toshiba.

Seagate Technology is the largest American company, founded in 1979. Produces SSD, HDD and hybrid models. She owns trademarks Barracuda, Cheetah, Savvio, Constellation, Pulsar, DiamondMax, Momentus. Bought out the Samsung hard drive production segment.

Seagate hard drives are the fastest.

Western Digital is an American computer electronics manufacturer. The only company that provides a service warranty for the return of a faulty product. In 2012, it acquired the Hitachi Global Storage Technologies division. Hitachi storage media is considered one of the most reliable.

Toshiba is a large international concern specializing in various areas of electronic technology.

Although Samsung and Hitachi exist only as brands, their products have a wide presence in the market.

Among younger companies we can note Transcend Information, ADATA Technology, Silicon Power.

For 500 GB

Pocket media with a capacity of 500 GB is the most compact, reliable and silent. Conventionally, they can be divided into 2 classes: high-speed devices with a rotation speed of 7200 rpm and economical ones with a rotation speed of 5400 rpm. Economical models are almost comparable in price to solid-state drives of the same capacity.

Media from Transcend and Western Digital are reliable and travel well. The devices are made in thin cases and come with software that implements a wide range of security functions.

Seagate Slim and Samsung G2 Portable are some of the most compact devices available today.

G2 Portable has average performance, but has several original innovations:

designed according to special USB technology on-board ( USB controller located directly on the hard drive board);
comes with software that allows you to encrypt data in real time and set an access password important information.

Transcend StoreJet 25M3 has the best shock protection, as it is mounted on special shock-absorbing suspensions. It also features fairly good throughput – 89 MB/s.

For 1 TB

1 TB is the most popular capacity.

For those for whom the miniature size of the device is fundamentally important, excellent choice will become WD My Passport Ultra. You won't find a more compact terabyte.

If information security is your first priority, then you should opt for the Transcend StoreJet 25M3, which works best with large files and has a super shockproof body.

The 3.5-inch Transcend StoreJet 35 Ultra combines high volume, high transmission speed and efficient energy consumption. The portable drive from the same series, StoreJet 35T, has a lower transfer speed, but a very attractive price.

For 2 TB

2TB devices are chosen by those who store large amounts of data.

Photo: WD My Passport Wireless WDBDAF0020BBK-EESN

The WD My Passport Wireless model WDBDAF0020BBK-EESN supports Wi-Fi networks and reads external SD cards. The device is made in a 2.5-inch form factor. It combines all the popular technologies, is independent of the power source and is very reliable.

Hard Hitachi wheels Unlike media using Advanced Format technology, they allow you to install the OS without partition alignment.

The STBV2000200 model leads the Seagate drive line in terms of performance.

Review of prices by manufacturer

Although the price of storage media is falling, 1 TB portable hard drives are still leaders in sales.

	500 GB	1 TB	2 TB
Seagate Expansion Portable	From 2935 rub.	from 3,550 rub.	from 4,800 rub.
Western Digital Elements Portable	From RUB 2,999	From RUB 3,799	From 6,999 rub.
Toshiba Stor.E Plus USB 3.0	from 2,860 rub.	from 3,820 rub.	from 5,890 rub.
Samsung HX	From 3,440 rub.	From RUB 4,169	From 6500 rub.
Hitachi Touro USB 3.0	From RUB 3,880	From 4,070 rub.	From 4,420 rub.

With the advent of the third version of the USB interface, external media can provide a significant increase in data exchange speed.

When choosing a portable hard drive, you need to decide on its tasks. If you need it at home to store media files, it is better to choose spacious, but not the fastest models. If you plan to use it for work, compact, shock-resistant units are suitable. In any case, it is desirable that the device is compatible with modern interfaces.

Don't save money when buying hard drives dubious brands. There is a high risk of losing not only money, but also important information. U famous brands There are also mistakes in the form of mass marriage. Therefore, before purchasing, it is better to go to the manufacturer’s website and read reviews about a specific model.

External storage devices, unlike compact FLASH memory, allow you not only to store large amounts of information, but also to backups operating systems and databases. Compatible with the vast majority of devices (PCs, laptops, game consoles, TV set-top boxes) make external drives universal. Equipping with high-speed interfaces allows you to load or copy data as quickly as possible, reducing the time spent working with the disk.

Many global manufacturers HDD drives rely not only on the visual appeal of their devices, but also on memory capacity, data protection and compact dimensions that allow you to hold necessary information always at hand.

We have compiled a list of the best external hard disks based on expert assessments specialists and reviews from real customers. Our recommendations will help you make a choice, optimal requirements and desires. There are many competitors in the global technology market, but we have selected the best manufacturers and recommend paying special attention to them:

Western Digital
Toshiba
ADATA
Seagate
Transcend

Volume: 500-1000 GB Volume: 2 TB Volume: over 2 TB Interface: USB 3.0 Form factor: 2.5 Form factor: 3.5

*Prices are correct at the time of publication and are subject to change without notice.