Portable External Hard Drive suggestions please (Page 3): Those work... no preference. I'm not aware of any SSDs that are sensitive to shock like HDDs are. I think they are all pretty...

Dikdik Loc: Winnipeg, Canada

Those work... no preference. I'm not aware of any SSDs that are sensitive to shock like HDDs are. I think they are all pretty robust.

BobHartung Loc: Bettendorf, IA

Aims wrote:

Hi All!
I am looking for advice on the best portable External Hard Drive for a Mac (the M1, Big Sur combo). I have used WD Passports, Ultra Passports and Lacie's and have had issues with corruption on all over the years. I am debating on getting another HDD or going SSD in the hopes that no moving parts would be beneficial. Thoughts please? I would like to get at least a 2 TB since my files from my Sony A7RIV are so large. I understand that with SSD it will be more expensive .

When traveling I use a pair of SanDisk 2TB SSDs (one as back up). They are now available as a 4 TB version also. They are small and light weight so they take up less room than the cables required to connect them. This link will take you too B&H's page listing the SanDisk offerings. Mine work flawlessly and are nearly 3 years old.

P.S I tried the Samsung SSDs but they are a dark grey in color and are very small. I kept misplacing them. The SanDisk has a bit of bright color and makes it easier to spot on a messy desk.

peter.zimmerman

All of this reminds me that the first HD I bought for my lab’s computer cost $10,000 for 5 MB of storage. The removable HD in its cartridge weighed around 10 pounds. So $120 for 1TB sounds pretty good… 😇😜

The first HD I got for my personal PC cost about $300 for 10MB and fit in a card slot for an IBM PC.

speedmaster Loc: Kendall, FL

I would go with 1Tb SSD, preferable an NVME in an external case (small, light, fast, and easy to carry) as well as, for more lengthy storage with a 4Tb Western Digital Passport Ultra USB 3 (small and secure - hardware encrypted). There is a Plus model without the hardware encryption if you don't need or want it. The WD Passport series has the advantage of not needing a power brick using power from the computer USB port. Of course drives sizes here are only the most common ones as you can have SSD's of 120, 240, 512, 1Tb, etc... it is up to you to decide what size you need.
Cheers

photoman43

Bridges wrote:

I would go SSD if money is no problem. A 2tb SSD is quite expensive. Check out WD Black series, they get excellent reviews and so far I've had no problems with them.

If your new Mac supports USB3.1, get an external SSD that is USB3.1. The speed difference between USB3 and USB3.1, other things the same, is really amazing. I see the difference on my windows 10 desktop that has both USB 3 and 3.1 ports.

On my windows computers, before I remove an external hard drive, I always click on the drive icon on the lower task bar to get "Safe to Remove" to appear. I do not know if Macs have the same functionality. The last thing you want to do is to remove an external hard drives that is not ready to remove. I have done that before and paid the price of lost data.

DICK32

I use 1TB SSD's to store pics and video from my D850 now. I have an old 1TB spinning disc drive. The SSD's are faster to down load and up load. I use Samsung T5's and San Disk EXTREME SSD's. They are smaller than spinning disc drives. The San Disk is the smallest.

I do product photography and travel a lot. These are so small and lite weight that they are easy to transport. the drives are temporary storage. Until I down load to my backup drive. Never a problem with them. Some of the files are 2o3 years old.

gessman Loc: Colorado

DICK32 wrote:

I use 1TB SSD's to store pics and video from my D8... (show quote)

I've been waiting on someone to say they "store" long-term on SSDs. I read that SSDs aren't a good long-term solution because they will lose their charge and start to "leak" data. Seems like someone in a previous conversation, user "Trix" maybe, or not, said the leaking would begin in about two years. Might be a consideration. I use SSDs as one of multiple devices for backup for the relative speed and then, on another computer, transfer longer term storage to HHDs and use EZ-Dock for ease of access from there on. I don't think, at 84, that I need to worry about HHDs going bad in my lifetime, but SSDs - well, perhaps...

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

Aims wrote:

I am looking at either the Samsung T7 Touch, Sandisk Extreme V2 or the WD My Passport SSD...looking for 2TB...Not interested in building my own. Any thoughts on the ones listed above? I have been reading reviews. I think most important is to get one that can withstand being carried around. I don't need one that is splashproof! lol

I would choose either the Samsung (my preference) or the SanDisk. I don’t know who is making SSDs for WD, but WD is a spinning disk company that has only been selling SSDs for a couple of years after being forced to by the consumer move away from spinning disk to SSDs. Regarding SanDisk, they are my go-to standard for memory cards, and SSDs use the same NAND Flash technology, but they have not been manufacturing/selling SSDs as long as Samsung, who along with Intel, has become the defacto standard for SSDs. Btw, I started using Intel SSDs about 8 years ago because they had the lowest failure rate of any of the manufacturers, and those that I bought then are still in service, and of the 8 I have in service, I have never had an Intel fail or seen one fail at the storage companies I worked for. I just started using some Samsungs including T5s I gave as gifts to my children several years ago and have seen no failures with them either.

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

peter.zimmerman wrote:

All of this reminds me that the first HD I bought for my lab’s computer cost $10,000 for 5 MB of storage. The removable HD in its cartridge weighed around 10 pounds. So $120 for 1TB sounds pretty good… 😇😜

The first HD I got for my personal PC cost about $300 for 10MB and fit in a card slot for an IBM PC.

I remember them well (both the IBM disk packs and the 10MB drive I bought for my 286 based PC-XT in the early 80s). Do you recall the manufacturer? Was it Western Digital?

RWeisz

I use a 4TB and a 5TB portable G-Drive. Not SSD, but I really haven't had a speed issue. Here is a link.

https://www.amazon.com/G-Technology-ArmorATD-All-Terrain-Portable-External/dp/B07QNRH3NY/ref=sxts_sxwds-bia-wc-rsf-lq2a1_0?cv_ct_cx=portable+G+drive&dchild=1&keywords=portable+G+drive&pd_rd_i=B07QNRH3NY&pd_rd_r=bd7ee8e2-7294-4b37-a8f3-2c37d5c932eb&pd_rd_w=HYiPt&pd_rd_wg=Qf4fH&pf_rd_p=f603bfc7-14f1-4b61-ad10-9034d5369806&pf_rd_r=WGPGS7YPW2E0X011F1WD&psc=1&qid=1626293016&sr=1-1-18e0f783-7b71-42f0-a291-5a15b3cb969e

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

gessman wrote:

I've been waiting on someone to say they "sto... (show quote)

Don’t know if it was me, and I’d need to refresh my information as to the latest series of MLC SSDs, but in general, unlike an HD, you don’t want to leave SSDs unpowered for extended periods of time. That was a big worry initially, but technology has moved forward in the last decade since SSDs have become popular, so not sure what the current specs are for unpowered retention without checking.

rlynes Loc: Wisconsin

SanDisk has a 1TB USB 3.2 flash drive on Amazon (SanDisk Store) for about $170. Don't have one, but I was looking at it last week.

Smaller than the T5, but not quite as fast transfer (420 Megabytes Per Second) and you would have to have the fast USB port for that speed.

gessman Loc: Colorado

rlynes wrote:

SanDisk has a 1TB USB 3.2 flash drive on Amazon (SanDisk Store) for about $170. Don't have one, but I was looking at it last week.

Smaller than the T5, but not quite as fast transfer (420 Megabytes Per Second) and you would have to have the fast USB port for that speed.

Not sure why I would consider that when the faster Samsung T5 can currently be bought from Amazon for $119.

SuperflyTNT Loc: Manassas VA

gessman wrote:

I've been waiting on someone to say they "sto... (show quote)

Modern SSD’s can go 5-10 years without being connected to a power source.

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

SuperflyTNT wrote:

Modern SSD’s can go 5-10 years without being connected to a power source.

Interesting. Do you have a source for the information that you can share? Haven’t researched it in years since mine are rarely unpowered for more than a week or two.