Which External hard drive do you use?

[MLM]

I want to get an external hard drive. But there are so many choices out there. I also have heard that many external hard drives break down easily.

Please share what type of external hard drive you have and why or why not you like it?

[Footski]

I use an Icybox 250 gig external and have used it without problem for about 3 years now. I could do with a larger one, now my photography is beginning to take off, but other than that it is great.

[Quo Fan]

All hard drives will fail. Not if, but when.

That said, Western Digital makes good drives. I use a lot of their internal drives, and the external ones are the same drives in an enclosure.

[Gado]

I use Western Digital alot. 160gb external, 200gb internal drive in an external case, 2 1tb in a server. All Western Digital. Oh and the server runs off of a 160gb WD hard drive

I use a laptop exclusively and the 160gb external hard drive works without the need to plug into the wall.

[Aegea]

I'm using an 80gb drive that I pulled out of a dead pc and put in an external enclosure, no idea what brand. It's a bit small, and I'm not sure how long it will last, but the price was right.

[PnwGuy]

I like Western Digital and Seagate drives. I use them and I've sold a ton to clients. Sure, a few have failed but not at the rate the cheapie drives have that I used to use. But, all drives fail, some sooner than others. Always have a second copy of important data.

[dakwegmo]

Originally Posted by Quo Fan

All hard drives will fail. Not if, but when.

This is especially true of external hard drives. They generally have a shorter lifespan than internal drives because the small enclosures make the drive run hotter, and excessive heat is a serious problem for hard drives.

[cheap]

Originally Posted by Quo Fan

All hard drives will fail. Not if, but when.

That said, Western Digital makes good drives. I use a lot of their internal drives, and the external ones are the same drives in an enclosure.

Use DIY external enclosure with 24/7 enterprise hard drive.

example
Western digital 500 GB
enterprise WD5002ABYS
Caviar Black WD5001AALS

[sk66]

I use a WD Passport 500GB Firewire for portable, and a Lacie 1TB for networked (backups)

[Aegea]

@dakwegmo - I never thought of that, but I only turn my external drive on once a week or so, when I want to do a backup - maybe that's why it's lasted longer than I would have expected.