Seagate GoFlex Satellite Wireless Hard Drive. Seagate FreeAgent GoFlex: Modular External Drives

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We store content smartly! Seagate FreeAgent GoFlex TV media player review

Our readers are already familiar with media players that allow the installation of a hard drive in the bowels of their case. Seagate FreeAgent GoFlex TV stands out from its brothers in that it is part of the FreeAgent GoFlex ecosystem, which makes it easy to supply video and audio to the player both over the network and directly by connecting a drive to it.

The presence of a hard drive greatly simplifies the work with the video player: modern media collections are very large, you cannot save them on a flash card. But playing content from a home network is also not always convenient: you need to keep your computer on all the time, unless, of course, you have a NAS server. And not everyone wants to mess around with setting up the network, especially if you plan to enjoy movies or music not at home, but, say, in the country. In such a situation, a capacious drive connected directly to the media player is simply irreplaceable.

A hard drive is a useful addition to a modern media player.

But there is one "hint", and it is caused, oddly enough, by the progress of the players achieved so far. They are very small and cheap. By placing a hard drive inside the case, even a 2.5-inch one, we will noticeably increase the size of the device, and the price will increase one and a half, or even two times. If you use a 1.8-inch form factor drive, then the dimensions can be kept miniature, but the cost will increase even more.

Therefore, the possibility of optionally adding a hard drive looks quite logical. The buyer, having familiarized himself with his media player, decides which drive suits him best, and whether he needs it at all. Most often, the hard drive is made as a separate device connected using a USB or eSATA cable. This approach gives us a very wide choice (among other options, two-three terabyte disks are available), but it also has its drawbacks. External hard drives are quite bulky, they can even be larger than the player itself. They obviously will not decorate a modern TV table, besides, there are extra wires to the media player and to the outlet.

Another option is to install a hard drive inside the player. However, in this case, the "hard" form factor is rigidly fixed (the installation of a smaller drive is not considered due to impracticality), and most importantly, the device itself has to be disassembled. This is not difficult at all, in most cases it is enough to unscrew only a few self-tapping screws, however, even such “technical work” clearly runs counter to the now dominant concept of the ultimate simplification of the user's life. Ideally, they seek to rid him of all the worries associated with maintenance.

Seagate FreeAgent GoFlex TV offers us something in between. The hard drive is installed inside the case, but you do not need to disassemble anything: just open the plastic door that hides the compartment specially designed for the drive. True, while it is busy, it will not work to close the door, since the drive is longer than the media player. The decision is peculiar - especially if you consider that the "unremoved" part of the hard drive is located exactly in the front of the player. However, Seagate engineers did not have much choice - the back wall is occupied by connectors, and the width of the device is even smaller than the length. In addition, a hard drive protruding from the side would seriously shift the center of gravity, which obviously will not add stability to the media player.

But there are also advantages to this method of installation. First of all, connecting and disconnecting "hard" is simplified to the limit - the main thing is not to forget to turn off the player before pulling out the drive. It may seem that connecting an external hard drive to a USB or eSATA connector is just as easy, but in most cases it is not. Large-sized "hard" will require the use of an additional power supply (that is, you will have to connect another wire and look for a free outlet). Its younger brother is theoretically capable of being powered by USB, but in practice the available power may not be enough, which leads to the appearance of data cables with two plugs (information and energy are transmitted through one of them, only energy through the other).

Even in the most favorable case, you will have to get the media player from the shelf of the TV table - and at least a couple of wires are already connected to it. Of course, this is not difficult when it comes to connecting a hard drive for a long time. However, you can be sure that you will not have the desire to constantly turn off the hard drive, and then turn it back on. This can be useful for transferring "heavy" media files from a computer. Seagate engineers tried to simplify this procedure.

However, it is far from always convenient to connect some physical storage media, so the media player is only part of the FreeAgent GoFlex Family. This family, in addition to the latter, also includes several models of hard drives, "binding" to them, as well as special software that simplifies archiving and encryption of files. You may have already read the review dedicated to these devices, so I will not repeat their technical specifications. But we will talk in more detail about the possibilities directly related to the transfer of various content within the home network (including to the player).

The most functional in the line are the most massive, 3.5-inch drives. More precisely, not the drives themselves, but their docking stations - they are equipped with Ethernet and USB 2.0 connectors. The latter makes it possible to increase the total capacity of the device (1 or 2 terabytes, depending on the model) by connecting an additional USB drive. If this is not required, you can connect a printer, which will thus become networked, that is, accessible from all your computers and laptops.

An Ethernet connection allows you to connect a hard drive to a network router, after which a real file server will appear on your network: all the information stored on it will be available to every device connected to the same network. Including, of course, for the Seagate FreeAgent GoFlex TV player, which can play your media files. Moreover, both the router and the hard drive connected to it may well be turned on all the time, and this is a big plus in comparison with a computer or laptop. In addition, the use of a drive of a working machine does not increase its speed, especially if it is made on the basis of classic rotating plates; so external storage of information is more than useful.

However, before you can access information on a network hard drive, you must add it there. The most obvious way involves using the web interface: just type the IP address of the drive in the browser and you will be taken to a page that allows you to perform basic operations with files.

In addition to filling and deleting, you can configure their “visibility”, there are four folders specifically for this: Public, Personal, Backup, External Storage. The first of them is intended for public data - in particular, media content for the FreeAgent GoFlex TV player must be added there. The second (Personal) is for non-public information; however, I cannot recommend any network device for storing really critical data. The third folder is needed for automatically created backups of the operating system (suitable for Windows and OS X). Well, the fourth directory is virtual - it seems to contain all the files stored on an external hard drive connected to the Seagate docking station via USB.

The web interface is familiar, but many operations are more convenient to perform using specialized software that is installed directly on the computer. In our case, we are talking about the GoFlex Home utility - you will find the installer on the CD that comes with the hard drive.

A little surprising are the restrictions deliberately added to the "home" version of the program. So, no more than five user accounts are available in it, and there is no possibility of using secure FTP. In addition, you will not be able to access the player from your smartphone, you will not be able to manage RSS feeds, and you will lose integration with Facebook and Flickr services. All these "goodies" are available in GoFlex Pro, or rather, in its thirty-day trial version. If you like it, you'll have to shell out another twenty dollars for a perpetual license.

Selling such software in addition to an already not free hard drive is not the most straightforward move, to put it bluntly. This approach has been seen before, but it was usually about much more labor-intensive programs to develop, like a decent photo processor or RAW converter. On the other hand, most of the restrictions are not so significant: five accounts will often be more, and secure FTP is not required because it is not worth storing truly confidential information on such hard drives. Well, before uploading photos to the network, it is often worthwhile to conduct a certain selection of the best shots, and not throw out all the footage.

So, with the capabilities of 3.5-inch hard drives from the FreeAgent GoFlex family, we figured it out. But their 2.5-inch counterparts are no less interesting, and we can insert such a disc directly into the media player.

The package bundle for small drives is much more modest, they come with only a regular docking station that connects to a computer via a USB 2.0 connector. Achievable in this case, the data transfer rate is too small for comfortable work with multimedia. However, as already mentioned, it is possible to purchase adapters for USB 3.0, eSATA or FireWire.

It was with a 2.5-inch hard drive that the media player came to us, although, of course, the drive is not included in the usual package. Everything is standard here: the control panel, batteries, power supply, component and AV cables (and using standard wires to replace regular ones will not work, to save space on the media player case, the connectors are made smaller). HDMI output, fortunately, is quite common - this is especially important because the appropriate cable is not included. But they put an adapter to SCART, which is not very popular these days.

After extracting the media player, you can finally familiarize yourself with it. The reader already knows about the main feature of the Seagate FreeAgent GoFlex TV - the front part of its case is occupied by a door, behind which there is a compartment for the GoFlex hard drive. Otherwise, the design does not look too revolutionary, although it is "softer" than many other players. The corners are rounded, there are many ventilation holes (both from the sides and from the bottom). They were probably added in order to provide the hard drive with more comfortable working conditions - as you know, drives based on magnetic platters do not like high temperatures. Such hyperventilation is hardly necessary for the electronic filling, since the player does not heat up more than its colleagues.

Communication connectors are located in the back of the case, there are no surprises here. There are HDMI, component, composite and optical outputs, as well as Ethernet and USB. The second USB input is located on the front of the case, next to the hard drive bay cover. It is convenient for connecting a flash drive with content, while the back one can be occupied by a WiFi adapter or an external hard drive, if one is suddenly needed.

Of the external display elements, there is only a not too bright LED. This is good, especially if the Seagate FreeAgent GoFlex TV is installed in the bedroom - the bright light of the screen or light bulb can interfere a lot.

You won’t be able to control the media player without a remote control: there is only a deeply recessed Reset button on the case. The remote control is somewhat non-standard (for example, the front part is wider than the back), but it is compact, and therefore convenient. There are few buttons, but this does not make it difficult to use the media player, rather the opposite. It's no secret that most people use only the most obvious features, while exotic features are rarely needed, and therefore access through the menu (and not from the buttons) will not make life difficult.

The menu structure is familiar to anyone who has already dealt with media players. So, there are sections "Cinema", "Photo", "Music", "Internet" and "Overview". But the design is quite unusual - for example, not the entire screen area is involved. However, this does not interfere with comfortable work, the icons are quite large.

But Russification is not perfect; I hope it will be improved in future firmware. At the time of testing, no more recent firmware versions were available for the Seagate FreeAgent GoFlex TV.

The list of web services is designed primarily for a Western user; it has not been adapted for Russia. But many of the sites we offer are already well known, and not least thanks to the technology “sharpened” for working with them. Therefore, access to YouTube, Picasa and Flickr will come in handy.

It should be noted that the restrictions on working with these sites, which I wrote about above, apply only to the functionality of the Seagate GoFlex Net docking station, and they do not apply to the media player. Other available services, such as MediaFly and vTunner, are unlikely to be widely used in our country. But, perhaps, after a while they will become recognizable too?

The media player allows you to access both the weather forecast and financial information. Despite the fact that information relevant to Russians is present in these sections, the calculation for the English-speaking audience is obvious here too.

And to update the firmware, and to access web services, and, most importantly, to obtain information from a FreeAgent GoFlex network drive, the player needs to be connected to a home network. The easiest way to organize it is with a wired connection. Serious adjustment of the settings in most cases is not required, the IP address will be given to your media player by a DHCP server, usually running on the router. But if necessary, everything can be configured manually.

If it is inconvenient to stretch the network cable, you will have to organize a wireless connection via WiFi. There is only one difficulty here: not every “whistle” is suitable. Before buying, it is highly advisable to conduct a direct check. And, of course, preference should be given to adapters that support the 802.11 standard. N, and not G, and certainly not B. A high-definition video stream has a considerable bit rate, and the bandwidth of the wireless channel is significantly weakened by various obstacles, especially such as reinforced concrete walls. So the more available speed, the better.

But even when you don’t want to connect the media player to the network for some reason, it’s still not difficult to access the content. Relatively small files can be written to a flash card, and, say, a video shot on vacation by oneself, to a hard drive. No settings are required here, it is enough to connect one or another drive, and all the information on it will become available for viewing.

As for the formats supported by the player, there are no surprises here. The main codec is, as usual, MPEG-4 in various incarnations (Xvid, Xvid HD, DivX, DivX HD+, AVC HD, H.264). MPEG-2 (VOB/ISO), MPEG-1, TS/TP/M2T, RMVB Real Media, VC-1, M2TS, WMV9, MKV, MOV and AVI are also supported. Audio formats are WMA Pro, WMA, Dolby Digital, ADPCM, FLAC, AAC, ASF, DTS, LPCM, OGG, WAV, and of course MP3. As you can see, only DTS HD and Dolby True HD are missing, but this can hardly be considered a disadvantage for a player of this price level.

The media player can display JPEGs with a resolution of up to twenty megapixels (which, given the latest trends in the photographic equipment market, does not look excessive), as well as MJPEGs, BMPs, TIFFs, PNGs and GIFs. Subtitle files are also supported (SAMI, SRT and SUB).

You can't find fault with the picture displayed on the FreeAgent GoFlex TV screen - however, this statement is true in relation to most models of modern playback devices. The technologies are well-established, the processor power is already enough to implement algorithms that are optimal in terms of results, not speed. And the image is reproduced usually of high quality, which does not require "heavy" processing. So in most cases, the picture depends more on the selected settings and, most importantly, on the TV used.

So, is the Seagate FreeAgent GoFlex TV media player interesting for the buyer? Undoubtedly. Especially in conjunction with a drive from the FreeAgent GoFlex line, if you are going to build a home network that provides centralized storage of media content, or you just want to be able to connect a hard drive with files to the player as easily as possible. And the price of GoFlex TV is more than reasonable - from four thousand rubles, according to Price.ru.

Are you an advanced user who needs to drag data from multiple devices with different interfaces? Then Seagate FreeAgent GoFlex Ultra-Portable Drive exactly the hard drive that will do the job well. Using additional adapters it can be connected to USB 2.0/3.0, FireWire 800 or eSATA interfaces. The drive can also be "taught" to automatically create backups. Optional adapters make the FreeAgent GoFlex one of the most versatile drives on the market, and the innovative GoFlex connector makes the drive one of the most innovative. If you are a demanding user, then all signs indicate that this disc will come in handy.

# technical summary

Device type: External portable storage

Volume: 500 GB

Interface:USB 2.0

HDD: 1pc, 2.5"

Housing material: Plastic

Nutrition:USB

Dimensions: 83x114x111mm

Weight: 150g

# Design and features

At 83 x 114 x 111 mm, the FreeAgent GoFlex looks like a normal portable drive. It is offered in 4 colors: silver, black, red and blue. The HDD comes with a USB2.0 adapter initially, but as soon as you disconnect the drive, we will see the GoFlex connector that

USB 3.0, FireWire 800, and eSATA adapters can also be connected. If you look frankly, GoFlex is a regular Sata interface, the same as the HDD inside the case, however, it is not recommended to connect this drive directly to the motherboard, the connector depth is slightly larger than that of a regular Sata

Initially Seagate FreeAgent GoFlex comes with a USB2.0 adapter, each additional adapter is purchased separately at a price of 450 to 800 rubles. the least expensive adapter is eSata, while FireWire costs more than the others. This difference is most likely due to the presence of additional chips in the adapter required to convert the Sata interface to FireWire. there is also a USB3.0 ExpressCard kit for laptops not equipped with a USB3.0 interface along with a USB3.0 cable, but the USB3.0 to HDD adapter itself is sold separately from it. If a USB3.0 interface is available, then Seagate can offer a USB3.0 adapter along with complete software that will allow automatic backup to disk, which may be useful for novice users. All adapters are black, despite the fact that drives are available in 4 colors. Black color is universal, but if such a multi-colored gamut does not suit someone, then it is better to purchase a black disc. The drive can also be installed in an additional slot, a docking station from Seagate. There is a USB 2.0 / 3.0 adapter that comes with the FreeAgent GoFlex Pro version of the drive, which is designed to be installed on a sled inside the Seagate - GoFlex TV HD media center. This option makes the FreeAgent GoFlex more flexible.

FreeAgent GoFlex comes with software from Seagate and Memeo that you can install on your first connection. Can the hard drive be used for backup through a Windows utility? through Apple's Time Machine on Macs (but then you need to format the drive to the HFS + file system) or use the Memeo utility to create an instant backup of your system drive

Initially, the drive is formatted in NTFS, but it also comes with a utility that allows you to work with data on Macs without formatting. The installer will also help you sync FreeAgent GoFlex with various utilities and set up data encryption and many other features that the Memeo Premium backup utility offers. The premium version gives more features, such as online backup. The premium version has a demo period for review, after which the program is offered to buy if you are interested in its capabilities. This trial program is one of the few that are generally available on the disk, it would not be bad if it was fully functional out of the box

# Performance

Performance was measured across three interfaces: USB2.0, USB3.0 and FireWire. There was no eSata adapter at the time of the review. FreeAgent GoFlex performed well in PCMark05, scoring 2873 over USB2.0, 3967 over FireWire and 4794 over USB3.0. In a typical file transfer test, the device took 44 seconds to process 1.2Gb of test files over USB2.0, 29 seconds over FireWire, and just 21 seconds over USB3.0. FreeAgent GoFlex on the USB3.0 bus is slower than a 1Tb HP Portable External Hard Drive. The HP drive scored 5423 parrots in PCMark05 over USB3.0, and it took 19 seconds to write the same amount of data. HP is faster, but few people will notice the difference between 19 and 21 seconds

# Output

For the price, FreeAgent GoFlex is a profitable portable drive, the cost of one gigabyte is just over 6 rubles, but the drive from HP is even more profitable - just over 5 rubles per gigabyte. Although HP is a little more profitable, it is not as flexible and versatile in use as a drive from Seagate. If you currently have a USB 3.0 interface, FireWire eSATA on your PC or plan to upgrade in the future, then buy FreeAgent GoFlex, and a rich list of adapters will keep the drive from becoming obsolete for quite some time. For advanced users who understand in which cases which interfaces are best to use, it is also recommended to purchase a drive from Seagate

Review from pcmag.com magazine translated and supplemented by RabinoVich. Possible minor inaccuracies

Our preliminary acquaintance with the Seagate FreeAgent GoFlex series of external hard drives took place last summer - right after their official announcement. The main points were reflected in the corresponding article, but concerned only the theoretical part. Now it's time to start practicing, namely: studying the portable GoFlex and "related accessories", in which lies the main highlight of the collection - the use of different interfaces for connecting to a computer.

FreeAgent GoFlex

We have already written about the appearance of drives. Logically, the ruler is divided into two parts in terms of dimensions: it includes VZhD with dimensions of 125 × 83 × 15 mm and a mass of 150 grams and 135 × 89 × 22 mm and a mass of 280 grams (the manufacturer indicates a 15 mm shorter length, but this is true only for " main module, to which, in order to connect to a computer, you still have to dock an interface one). This difference is due to the fact that in compact models, hard drives with a capacity of 320 or 500 GB are installed, and in larger ones - 750 GB and 1 TB, which are slightly larger in themselves. Accordingly, as the recording density grows and hard drives decrease, it can be expected that the first will become more due to the development of large volumes, and the second - less. As has become a good tradition, all options are available in one of four colors: black, red, blue and silver. What's bad is that all this wealth will be in demand only if you use a drive with a "regular" interface - and additional interface modules are only black. The rest of the device makes a good impression: compact and stylish. True, glossy plastic will inevitably collect prints, and even scratches. Therefore, a case that was available for previous series as an additional accessory, but now disappeared, would not hurt.

Out of the box, most devices (theoretically, you can find an option without an interface at all, which is relevant, for example, for the FreeAgent GoFlex Net extension or for using a “carrier module” in a GoFlex TV player) are similar to other VZhDs: the transition between modules is hardly noticeable, and the "regular" one is equipped with a regular USB connector (in our case, traditional for USB 2.0 mini-B). Accordingly, the kit also includes a cable. Short - only about 40 cm, since laptops are now widely used, and there long cables will only interfere. Well, together with a desktop computer, it still makes sense to use an extension cord so as not to climb to its back wall.

FreeAgent GoFlex Upgrade Cables

Although these accessories are called “cables”, in fact, in addition to the cable, there is also a wider part that docks to the body of the VHD, to which the cable itself with a connector for connecting to a computer, 50 cm long, is rigidly attached. A completely standard pair of SATA- connectors - interface and power supply. But! Don't expect full compatibility. It will not be possible to connect such a module to a conventional internal hard drive due to the protrusions that secure the connection to the VZD. And it will be difficult to connect the external hard drive itself as an internal one, since the connectors are hidden deep enough in it, so not all cables will work (especially for power). However, we managed to find a suitable one, with the help of which everything worked, although there were rumors that the contacts in the connector were rearranged in order to completely kill the hopes of the Kulibins. However, there is still no practical sense in such experiments. Of course, the idea of ​​using "cables" for other purposes is attractive, but for this they will have to be finalized with a file. And why, if there are external modules with any interfaces on sale that will also provide mechanical protection for the drive?

Let's better understand what the presence of several options for interface modules gives us when used for its intended purpose. And it gives a lot - a VZD with a USB 2.0 interface can be easily converted into a device with USB 3.0, FireWire 800 (especially important for users of Apple products) or Power eSATA. The latter is generally very interesting, since the choice among USB drives (of any kind) is large and is increasing all the time, with eSATA it is rather big and does not plan to decrease, but the vast majority of available options require the use of two cables. And here is what eSATA users have long dreamed of - just one. In general, a good idea.

But its implementation has two notable drawbacks. The first one has already been mentioned above - there are no colored "cables": only black ones. So if you want to use them, you will have to buy a black drive - otherwise it looks ugly. The second drawback is the connection itself. You should not rely, for example, on such a use case: one cable (say, USB 2.0) is constantly connected at the office, the second (say, Power eSATA) is at home, and we only carry the drive itself, connecting it to one, then to another. The connection is secured by spring-loaded metal plates, so the interface module must be pulled with great force to disconnect it. Then, with effort, connect a new one. If this is done a couple of times a day, then, obviously, the structure will loosen over time. Thus, the most correct way would be to immediately buy what you need, “assemble” the drive and not touch anything else. This is a pity, since a better interface-switched solution could be more flexible and therefore interesting to potential buyers.

Functionality

The company's approach to equipping its devices with software (which is traditionally written directly on the VZhD) changes from generation to generation. In this, they returned to the Memeo software, as before, but with a significant change. You can only use Memeo Instant Backup for free, which differs from the version we described in that backup can only be performed to disks (there is no network support) and only for files located on the “C” drive, and there can be only one copy plan. The full version, where there are no restrictions, as well as the Sync utilities (previously included with the first version of Seagate FreeAgent Go), Share and Send are also on the disk, but only as a trial with a free period of use of only 30 days - if you like, for their further use you have to pay Memeo. A standard thing for world practice, but in Russia this approach will definitely not add popularity. However, in our country, the majority of users do not consider bundled software worthy of attention at all (sometimes quite rightly, sometimes - in vain), so in general, everyone remains "with their own".

Hardware base

The line includes four modifications, differing in the capacity of the installed hard drive - from 320 GB to 1 TB. We tested a 500 GB modification that found a Seagate hard drive (it would be strange to see something different :)) Momentus 5400.6 ST9500325AS. By default, HDD is formatted as NTFS. The controllers used (different depending on the selected interface) do not interfere with the reading of SMART attributes using specialized utilities.

Test Methodology

The technique is described in detail in a separate article. There you can get acquainted with the configuration of the test stand, and with the software used. To test peripherals with a USB 3.0 interface, we only added an ASUS U3S6 host adapter to the test computer.

Competitors

This time we decided not to take other external hard drives for comparison, but to actually test the interfaces - with the same mobile drive, but connected via USB 2.0, USB 3.0, eSATA and FireWire 800.

Lavalys Everest 5.0

But here the picture is fundamentally different, since it is the performance of the interface that we measure (albeit a little rough in some cases). The obvious outsider is USB 2.0 - in theory it lags far behind other contestants, and in practice, as we see, too. FireWire 800 was once considered as a way to ensure maximum performance, but that was a long time ago :) However, the results suggest that this will be quite enough for portable drives. The leaders, of course, are eSATA and USB 3.0. Let their specific implementations be far from theoretical maximums, but this is quite enough.

IOMeter

And again, there is no dependence on the bandwidth of the interface - the speed of performing truly random operations is too low for "classic" hard drives.

Intel NAS Performance Toolkit

It's very likely that the company used a not-so-successful USB 3.0 bridge, which made this interface slower than it could be in the fastest mode (reading data in one stream). However, for competition (more precisely, its absence) with the previous version of the standard, this is more than enough. Yes, and from the theoretical abilities of the hard drive is not so far away.

But USB 3.0 "wins back" on data recording. However, it makes little sense to rank three high-speed interfaces - the main thing that is observed is the gap between any of them and USB 2.0.

The performance of hard drives on these templates is below the theoretical maximum throughput of all interfaces, which makes the picture quite interesting. In particular, USB 2.0 is still a bottleneck, but the transition "from USB to USB" has a much smaller effect than using more advanced interfaces from a technical point of view. Naturally, SATA looks best of all (albeit in an “external” modification), since it was originally designed for universal loads, and not just for simple copying of information back and forth, but FireWire is not bad either.

Prices

For the first six months, representatives of the new FreeAgent line could be purchased in Russia only in M-Video stores - it was with it that the manufacturer entered into an exclusive agreement. However, its term expired on January 1, 2011, so now buyers have more choice. Therefore, as usual, the table below shows the average retail prices of all modifications of the device and accessories in Moscow, relevant at the time you read this article:

Total

As for the direct comparison of connection interfaces made under the same (as far as possible) conditions, everything is simple here: USB 2.0 is outdated for a long time, but all the rest are quite relevant for portable VZhD. As expected :) However, it is obvious that FireWire 800 is already working at the limit of its capabilities, but "on" does not mean "for". Thus, the answer to the question of which interface is better is very simple - the one that your computer supports!

It would seem that such a statement of the question should inevitably lead GoFlex to the market leaders - after all, it supports everything. However, the idea is good, but its implementation is somewhat let down. First, changing an interface module is not that easy; secondly, they are not cheap (at the level of external boxes for hard drives); thirdly, they support only one interface at a time. The combination of these factors will inevitably lead to the following: if anything changes, it's USB 2.0 to USB 3.0, on which the user will calm down :) Well, there is still some chance that a person who constantly lives in the world of Macs will choose FireWire 800, but this chance is very small - USB is a more universal solution. And eSATA, and even in the Power eSATA modification, is far from being everywhere. Now, if this interface module included a cable already familiar to us for creating such a port from one “normal” and one USB, it would be more interesting. It would be even more useful to provide both this module and the FW800 with an additional USB component, which would make them universal. And it would hardly have greatly affected the price - it is already high. In the current version, the ability to change the interface looks good in advertising, but in practice it is not very interesting. It may very well be that Seagate took this into account - it's not for nothing that hard drives are of different colors, and modules are only black (that is, their mass sales are not really planned - they just showed that they exist).

However, be that as it may, the idea is interesting (albeit not entirely original - ViPower's Smart Family appeared more than five years ago), so it deserves an award. Its practical implementation is lame, as has been said more than once above. On the other hand, as part of the new Seagate concept, when an external drive is not necessarily a self-sufficient solution, but can also be used simply as a data drive in a digital player or NAS, separating the interface into a separate module was inevitable, so the idea to offer the user at least some the possibility of changing it was clearly in the air. Even if, as it seems to us, it will not be so often in demand in the current performance. Well, if we consider GoFlex simply as an external hard drive, then it is no better and no worse than its competitors - just another solution from a wide range on the market, with its own advantages and disadvantages.

Review of novelties. With a unique modular design, the GoFlex series drives easily change connection interfaces and applications.

The new Seagate FreeAgent GoFlex drive series is now available. All new Seagate external hard drive models feature a unique modular design that allows you to quickly and easily change the drive interface to your computer systems. At the same time, the scope of their application goes beyond the usual limits.

The idea behind the GoFlex series is quite simple and straightforward. It is well known that as the "stuffing" of external hard drives, which are steadily growing in popularity among users, exactly the same drives are used as in desktop systems or laptops. These are 3.5" or 2.5" SATA hard drives. If they are used as part of an external independent drive, a small controller board is attached to them, which ensures that the SATA interface is paired with USB, FireWire 800 and other ports for connecting computer peripherals. Seagate took a bold step - it proposed to make the controller easily removable, which was implemented in the new GoFlex series. That's why the Seagate FreeAgent GoFlex drives themselves and their many accessories deserve a closer look.

FreeAgent GoFlex Desk - a series based on 3.5-inch hard drives

A series of desktop external drives based on 3.5-inch hard drives is called FreeAgent GoFlex Desk and is represented by three models of 1 TB, 2 TB and a record capacity of 3 TB.

Users who want more data transfer speeds than USB 2.0 can offer are advised to take a look at two optional accessories for the series. GoFlex Desk. Outwardly, these are the same adapter stands, but they work with FireWire 800 and USB 3.0 interfaces.

The kit, in addition to the stand, also includes a USB 3.0 controller board installed inside a desktop computer in a PCI-Express x1 slot.

FreeAgent GoFlex - a series based on 2.5-inch hard drives

A series of portable external drives based on 2.5" hard drives is simply called GoFlex and is represented by models from 320 GB to 1.5 TB. Colors are black, silver, red and blue.

This series also offers additional accessories that allow you to change the connection interface to FireWire 800, eSATA or USB 3.0.

And a whole set to equip a laptop with an ExpressCard slot with the new high-speed USB 3.0 interface.

The Seagate FreeAgent GoFlex Pro model deserves special mention.

At the heart of this drive is a 2.5” hard drive with an increased spindle speed of 7200 rpm. And in addition to the USB2.0 controller cable (similar to the GoFlex series), the kit also includes a convenient desktop docking station.

Devices for playing multimedia content

The use of any GoFlex series drives is not limited to their direct connection only to a computer or laptop. Seagate offers two additional devices designed specifically for the new series of external drives. With their help, GoFlex hard drives are easily integrated into a home network and can be used to play multimedia content.

GoFlex Net– a network sharing device. Allows you to make up to three external drives available from any computer connected to your home network. Two of them are 2.5” GoFlex drives that are installed in special slots. And the third can be perfect any drive with a USB interface. GoFlex Net supports hot-swapping connected drives.

Latest Device GoFlex TV is a modern media player for playing Full HD content on a large TV screen. It has all the functions of such devices, including LAN connection and work with USB drives. With the GoFlex series, it has in common the presence of a special bay in which you can directly place any 2.5 ”GoFlex hard drive.

All products mentioned in the review are in stock at the warehouse of MERLION and available for order.

According to a recent study by analyst firm Yankee Group, more than half of hard drive buyers consider interface as one of their key selection factors. Seagate Technology has come up with a new GoFlex solution that addresses this issue by allowing you to connect your drive to the most popular ports.

The FreeAgent GoFlex family of hard drives is the evolution of FreeAgent external drives. GoFlex solutions include portable and desktop storage models, as well as a range of conversion cables and adapters. Among the features of the new products, there is also the ability to work on both IBM PC-compatible computers running Microsoft Windows and Macintosh with the Mac OS X operating system. formatted for Windows.

The GoFlex cable system allows you to transform GoFlex and GoFlex Pro USB 2.0 drives into USB 3.0, External SATA, or FireWire 800 devices. In addition, special cables also allow you to expand the functionality of your hard drives. For example, the GoFlex Upgrade cable - Auto Backup turns the drive into a continuous backup system.

For the new drives, Seagate has introduced a purpose-built ecosystem designed to enhance your content experience. The GoFlex TV HD media player allows you to directly connect GoFlex drives, as well as other devices with USB ports. The player supports surround sound technologies, Full HD 1080p video, home network streaming and popular online services such as Netflix, YouTube, MediaFly, Picasa.

GoFlex Net media sharing transforms GoFlex hard drives, GoFlex Pro and any other USB-enabled equipment into a media sharing device that allows you to access digital content outside the home using a laptop, tablets like iPads, players and iPods Touch, iPhone, BlackBerry, Android and more.

GoFlex hard drives are available in 14.5mm and 22mm heights. Their prices are $100, $130, $170 and $200 for 320GB, 500GB, 750GB and 1TB models respectively. Models that come with a USB cable cost $10 more. High-performance 2.5-inch GoFlex Pro drives with a 7200 rpm spindle speed, advanced backup functionality, encryption, and a USB cable cost $140 and $190 for the 500 and 750 GB models, respectively. GoFlex Desk drives are available in capacities up to 2TB and are priced up to $200.

Separately, GoFlex USB 2.0 cable is $20, GoFlex USB 3.0 is $30, GoFlex Upgrade cable kit USB 3.0 (includes ExpressCard adapter) is $80, GoFlex FireWire 800 is $40, GoFlex eSATA is $20, GoFlex Auto Backup is $30, GoFlex Desk Desktop adapter USB 3.0 - $40, GoFlex Desk Desktop adapter kit USB 3.0 (includes ExpressCard adapter) - $80, GoFlex Desk Desktop adapter FireWire800/USB 2.0 - $50. The price of the GoFlex TV HD player is $130, and the GoFlex Net media sharing devices are $100.