The firm provides this model in four colors which makes separating projects by color-coded drives a breeze, believe me, you don't want labels in an outdoor environment. Seagate also sweetens the deal with Mylio Create photo-management software and a four-month membership of the Adobe Creative Cloud Photography plan. And also keep in mind that DIY external drives usually aren't sealed, so they're not as likely to stand up to dust and dampness as well as external SSDs and portable hard drives that are designed to do so. As a rule, portable drives get their power from the computer to which you connect them, through the interface cable, so there's no need for a wall outlet or a power cord/brick.

The G-Technology0G05678 is another fantastic external hard drive with a massive 10TB of storage space. With a rubber bumper and internal shock mounts, the ArmorATD is rated to survive up to 1,000 pounds of pressure or a drop from 3. interface and with its 4TB capacity it’ll suit the needs (and then some) of the average mobile worker on the go.We test external drives on a laptop and a desktop PC, running the CrystalDiskMark and AS SSD benchmarks to evaluate performance on a range of connections, including USB 3.

The best external hard drives will also be quick because they use the latest connectivity technology, such as USB-C.It has both Thunderbolt 3 and USB modes, so it will work on a wide range of devices, although you may need a Type-C to Type-A adapter or cable. If you lose your password there is no way to access the drive, and if the internal drive is removed and inserted into another PC its contents are unreadable as the data is encrypted before being sent to the drive for storage. For those looking to spend a little less on an portable hard drive, who also don't need 5TB of storage, should also consider Seagate's Backup Plus Ultra, which features a good software suite AES 256-bit encryption, and USB-A and USB-C support via an adapter. The metal and rubberized casing is another bonus as it keeps the drive cool while also protecting it against most environmental hazards. Right now, the fastest connection type in wide use on hard drives is Thunderbolt 3, which is handy assuming you have a newer laptop or desktop with a Thunderbolt 3 port.