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[rating:5/5]
It’s a fact that everyone uses storage differently. Some people use Firewire 800, while others use USB 2 or 3. Some people want their storage to be shared with their entire family, while others want to keep their data safely tucked away on a nice little USB 2 dock. Seagate’s GoFlex system lets you do all these things without buying more than one hard drive.
The Good
Has many different connectivity options available for purchase, very light and small, comes in several different colors, doesn’t get hot even under heavy usage, comes in sizes up to 1TB, doesn’t scratch up very easily, 3 year warranty.
The Bad
Only comes with USB 2.0 connectivity in the box, wouldn’t do so well if it took a fall.
Overall
The Seagate GoFlex Ultra-Portable hard drive is a great hard drive for anyone for wants lots of connectivity options for their hard drive. It can be connected to all of Seagate’s GoFlex compatible products which range from HD video players to the Seagate Net which turns your hard drive into network storage. Whether you want a hard drive for backing up your files, or a high speed solution for storing your video, the GoFlex Ultra-Portable hard drive will work with whatever your need is. If your in the market for a new hard drive, the GoFlex drive would be a highly recommended choice.
Specs
| Capacity | 320GB – 1TB |
| Hard Drive Type | External |
| Hard Drive Size | 2.5″ |
| Interface | Firewire, USB 2-3, E-Sata |
| Price | $69.99 – $129.99 |
Full Review
The main feature of the Seagate GoFlex hard drive is that it’s extremely flexible. Upgrade cables can be bought which let you use many different kinds of connections with the hard drive. To change out the current cable, the bottom end of the drive is removed and then the replacement cable is attached. You can also completely remove the bottom of the GoFlex and use it with the GoFlex Net and GoFlex TV. The great thing about having switchable parts on a hard drive is that when using it with another accessary, there is no added bulk. The GoFlex system is an innovative solution from Seagate and I hope more companies learn from it.
The Seagate GoFlex Ultra-Portable is a very small hard drive considering it packs so many features. The drive itself weighs as much as an iPhone and easily fits into your pocket. The plastic case is extremely scratch resistant which is useful when carrying it around. The only part of the drive with moving parts is the end which is going to extend the lifetime of the drive. If you compare the GoFlex to the 2.5 inch hard drive you would find inside, there is almost no difference. Even with the USB 2 adaptor, the GoFlex Ultra-Portable hard drive is still incredibly small. I didn’t actually drop the GoFlex but if it were to take a drop, it probably would do that well because of the plastic case and it doesn’t have any type or rubber guards or protection.
The GoFlex USB 3 adaptor is extremely useful if you need high data speeds for video editing. It costs $79.99 and has everything to get you started with USB 3 on your laptop. It comes with the GoFlex USB 3 adaptor, PC card laptop adapter and USB power connector. It has backwards compatibility with USB 2 which helps when using your drive with a non-USB 3 device. The drivers for the laptop adaptor come on the drive itself and are easy to install on either a Mac or PC. Again, Seagate is thinking outside the box by not including any unnecessary disks. The speeds are just incredible with USB 3, I get up to 10x faster speeds than USB 2. If you’re a first time USB 3 user, your mind will be blown. For $79.99 I think it’s worth getting the Seagate FreeAgent GoFlex Upgrade Cable Kit if you need the speeds of USB 3.0.
The GoFlex drive we reviewed was 500GB and is available for $90 on Amazon. You can also get a pro version of this hard drive which comes with a USB 2 dock and premium backup software and is available on Amazon for $110. If you go on Amazon, you’ll also see a verity of color options which include black, red, silver and blue.This ultra-upgradeable, ultra portable hard drive is one of the best drives I’ve ever tested and is definitely worth a look if your in the market for a new, portable hard drive.
[rating:5/5]