SimpleTech SimpleDrive 250 GB External USB 2.0 Hard Drive

From SimpleTech
	Price: $69.99
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Features - USB 2.0 port; also backward compatible with USB 1.0 and 1.1 devices - Speeds as high as 480 Mbps; provides plenty of bandwidth for your most data-hungry applications - Operates seamlessly with both Microsoft Windows and Apple Macintosh operating systems - Diagnostic LEDs provide port status for each port - Easily integrates with your existing network at home or in the office Product Description The SimpleDrive USB 2.0 External Hard Drive is the easiest way to add more lightning fast storage to any desktop or laptop computer. With a USB 2.0 connection, setup is a snap and data transfer rates are fast and reliable. These Mass Storage Compliant External Hard Drives are 100% compatible with any system that has a USB port. Engineered for performance and reliability, SimpleTech's high speed, high capacity drives are Ideal for any storage need, including digital music, movies and photographs. Every SimpleTech External Hard Drive comes with a FREE fully functioning copy of StorageSync Automatic Backup Software so full or incremental backups are fast and easy every time. Features: USB 2.0 Interface: • USB 2.0 and 1.1 compliant • One external "B" 4-pin USB (High Speed USB) receptacle • Serial bus data transfer rates of up to 480 Mb/sec Ultra Fast Performance: • SimpleTech 7200 RPM HDD Technology • USB 2.0 Provides up to 480 Mb/sec Data Transfer Rate Easy & Expandable Storage: • Connect Up to 127 USB 2.0 Devices with USB Hubs • Plug n• Play, One-Step Installation • Stores All File Types, Data, and Software • Automatic Backups with StorageSync • Hot Swappable • No tool required Versatile Design: • Compact design: 5.51" (H) x 8.86" (L) x 1.35" (D) • Stands vertically or sits horizontally Includes FREE StorageSync Backup Software Included (Windows Only) Reliable: • Unlimited Toll Free Technical Support • 3 Year Warranty System Requirements: MACINTOSH • Available USB 1.1 port • Mac OS v9.x or later; built for Mac OS X WINDOWS • Available USB 2.0 or 1.1 port • Windows 98SE/Me/2000/XP Customer Reviews A++ For Back-up! Date: 2006-04-22 | Rating: 5 ***** Not any discernible noise, unless you live in a Convent, perhaps. Just a gentle whir, when it's actually working. Doesn't get "hot", etc. I live in the real world, not whatever dream-scape some of these reviewers do, I guess. No it doesn't make coffee. No, I haven't timed the data transfers and am having a hissy-fit because it falls five nanoseconds off. This is my second one, earlier, smaller one has run for well over a year, never turned off, no problems. THREE YEAR WARRANTY! Enough said. Most give you only one year, two max. Shows they have confidence in their product. The included software for backing up your computers main drives is VERY EASY to operate, and favorably reviewed at many sites. I bought this unit for work with my new Windows Live OneCare. It will automatically back up your computer to an external hard drive, has anti-virus, fire wall and anti-spam. Yearly price ($19) is far cheaper than Norton or the others, and allows you to use it on up to three computers! I have seen this priced at other places besides Amazon, for a few bucks cheaper, BUT didn't include the shipping, like Amazon. Amazon is the clear winner again! Good one !!!! Date: 2005-04-09 | Rating: 5 I have used many simpletech products. Good company with good products & decent customer service. This one is the best price i can find & well built, no problems in installation. A decent one. Buy from Simpledirect through amazon to get best deal. Buy this, connect to your computer & move all your files to this drive. Turn this drive off. This is the best way to stay away from spyware & hackers. When you turn this drive on, turn the internet off. Safest way to keep your files. No Norton/Mcafee is as foolproof as this idea. Like An Internal Hard Drive...On the Outside Date: 2005-06-10 | Rating: 5 I've always been mildly amused at the pace and scope of storage in personal computers. Back in the dark days of college, when I had a Mac (and this is not meant as a slight to Mac users!), I think my hard drive tipped the scales at a muscular 500MB, or .5GBs in today's accepted measurement. And man, did that 500 do the trick - research papers don't take up too much digital room. I moved on years later to a Dell PC with a whopping 27GB hard drive. 27GB! "How will I ever fill that up!?" I wondered naively. Mere months later, I discovered how MP3s and .avi files and all their storage-y ilk take up lots of space in no time, and went out and got my non-space having self a shiny new 80GB internal hard drive to get some storage breathing room. Installing it was far from perfect (it didn't dock correctly, plus there were some recognition issues) and was far more effort than it should have been. To this day, the poor thing hangs at a 45 degree angle inside the computer tower, precariously balanced between the motherboard and the first hard drive. Back in the present, my current Dell came with 240GB, a robust-sounding storage number. "Surely," I thought, "I will never fill that much space," About 25GB away from filling the whole thing up and perceiving my computer slowing down just to comprehend all the data, I needed an answer. And, through amazon.com, I was directed to the Simpletech 250GB external hard drive, and I have nothing (well, mostly nothing) but nice things to say about it. Another reviewer here appeared to have a bad experience with his 250GB, and I feel for them - no one can ever expect technology to work flawlessly across the endless configurations out there in ComputaLand. But, if you have a system with USB 2.0 and Windows XP, I can't imagine an easier or more pleasant hard-drive experience than I had with this product. The drive itself is not small or large, resembling a Steven King hardcover in size (but not in content - out in bookstores now! King's latest masterwork, "Hard Drive of Sorrow"! Only 800 pages!). Handy mounts are included for those wishing to place the drive on its side, a la Playstation 2, so space should not be an issue, even on a crowded desk. It can also do nicely as a paperweight in a pinch. The readout on the face of the drive is simple and functional. The HAL-like red LED lets you know it's on - the green LED let's you know it's doing stuff. Simple...tech. Yep, pretty cut and dry on the outside. Wire-wise, the drive comes with its external power source and USB cable, so it's ready out of the box to plug in. And here's the beauty of it, at least for XP users - the drive is truly plug and play. Although the package came with two CDs of drivers and whatnot (including a tiny, rectangular CD with some kind of "data sync" software I haven't used), Windows recognized the drive immediately, no questions asked. No drivers to install, no installation wizards, no nothing. Boom - ready to go and store huge amounts of data. I'm no tech expert, so I don't know if the stated transfer rate of 480 MBS is high or low as industry standards for external drives go, but for the casual user, I saw no problems with the drive's speed. It took me perhaps 20 minutes to move close to 60GB of info, but I didn't sit there the whole time watching the progress bar. It seems quick enough, unless time is of the essence. The final positive is the on/off switch in the rear. As another reviewer astutely noted, by turning the thing off you're pretty much ensuring the safety of the info stored on the drive, though to be 100% safe, I think you'd need to disconnect the USB entirely. It's a nice feature to have, regardless. The couple of negatives for the drive are minor to me, but might be important to others. The green LED is slightly recessed and a little harder to see in the face of the drive, but it's visible. The drive also tends to make a high-pitched, but soft, whining noise when idling for a while. Those not disposed to soft, high-pitched whining noises should be aware of this, but I found it easily solved by some music or...the off button. Brilliant use of existing options, I say. So, even though I'm unable to comment on Simpletech's customer service or the long-time life of the drive, it does what it says it will do - store lots and lots of data in a timely manner and allow you to retrieve it. And, at the price, you simply can't go wrong. Pun intended. Gets the job done! Date: 2006-03-04 | Rating: 5 Not sure what all the complaining is about for this drive...I was at first put off by all the reviews that mentioned failed drives, loud whining sounds and problems transferring large amounts of data, but I haven't had any of those problems at all. Out of the box, I simply plugged the drive into my WinXP system, it was recognized immediately, then I copied a 50 GB folder of MP3s to it. Transfer was fast and without incident, and the drive is quiet as a mouse. I am very happy with this purchase! Works great right out of box, backup software ... Date: 2005-05-22 | Rating: 5 ... is also easy to use. This Ext.HD looks great and the on/ off switch is nice to have. Although I've had it running continually for 1 month with no problems. I do a lot of video capture and editing and have had no problem with transfer speed. I read the review where the person had difficulty with drive assignment. While the Disk management will say the drive is healthy, new drives often need to be initialized in order to work properly. (Use help to get specific instructions it's really easy) Once initialization is complete the drive will function as if it were an internal drive. I like this drive so much I'm purchasing a second one. I've tried both enclosing an internal HD and several manufacturers of Ext HD, this one by far was the easiest to set up. All of them have the same performance. If you have trouble look to initialization or formatting to resolve your problem. Help will assist you identifying if you need to do either.