Shop for external hard drives

• CNET Editor rating:
  4.0 stars Excellent

  Overall score: 8.4 (4.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 2.0 stars out of 12 reviews

The Bottom Line: Even with the slightly low USB 3.0 performance, the GoFlex Ultra still makes an excellent portable external hard drive for people who need to expand their computer's storage. Read review

Specs: 1.5 TB, External hard drive, SuperSpeed USB 3.0

• CNET Editor rating:
  4.0 stars Excellent

  Overall score: 8.3 (4.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 0 stars No reviews, write one!

The Bottom Line: The WD My Passport Portable makes an excellent portable drive for use with both desktop and laptop computers, at home or while on the road. Read review

Specs: 2 TB, External hard drive, SuperSpeed USB 3.0

• CNET Editor rating:
  3.5 stars Very good

  Overall score: 7.6 (3.5 stars)
• Average user rating: 3.0 stars out of 1 review

The Bottom Line: Mac users who need a fast portable hard drive will find it in the new My Passport Studio. Windows users should look elsewhere for a better deal. Read review

Specs: 1 TB, External hard drive, IEEE 1394b (FireWire 800) / Hi-Speed USB

• CNET Editor rating:
  4.0 stars Excellent

  Overall score: 8.0 (4.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 1.0 stars out of 3 reviews

The Bottom Line: Like the previous version, the Seagate 4TB GoFlex Desk offers top capacity and comes in a superflexible design. Supporting USB 3.0, it also offers great performance. Read review

Specs: 4 TB, External hard drive, SuperSpeed USB 3.0

• CNET Editor rating:
  4.0 stars Excellent

  Overall score: 8.3 (4.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 0 stars No reviews, write one!

The Bottom Line: The WD My Passport Portable makes an excellent portable drive for use with both desktop and laptop computers, at home or while on the road. Read review

Specs: 1 TB, External hard drive, SuperSpeed USB 3.0

• CNET Editor rating:
  4.0 stars Excellent

  Overall score: 8.0 (4.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 2.0 stars out of 43 reviews

The Bottom Line: The Seagate FreeAgent GoFlex Desk is the largest single-volume external hard drive on the market and has arguably the best combination of design, performance, and storage capacity. Read review

Specs: 2 TB, External hard drive, Hi-Speed USB, 3.5"

• CNET Editor rating:
  4.0 stars Excellent

  Overall score: 8.8 (4.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 2.0 stars out of 23 reviews

The Bottom Line: Though other external hard drives offer a preset menu of ports, the Seagate FreeAgent GoFlex cuts costs by letting you pick from a buffet of "personality cables" so that you buy only the connections that suit your system profile. We applaud Seagate for making data backups easier than ever, and recommend the FreeAgent GoFlex external hard drive for extra data storage now and easy upgrades in the future. Read review

Specs: 500 GB, External hard drive, USB 2.0, 3.5", 7200 rpm

• CNET Editor rating:
  4.0 stars Excellent

  Overall score: 8.1 (4.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 1.0 stars out of 1 review

The Bottom Line: The Silicon Power Armor A80 makes an excellent portable drive for travelers and home offices alike. Read review

Specs: 1 TB, External hard drive, SuperSpeed USB 3.0, 2.5"

• CNET Editor rating:
  4.0 stars Excellent

  Overall score: 8.1 (4.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 3.0 stars out of 2 reviews

The Bottom Line: With an ultrathin, sturdy design and fast performance, the Seagate GoFlex Slim external hard drive makes a great companion for a laptop that has built-in support for USB 3.0. Read review

Specs: 320 GB, External hard drive, SuperSpeed USB 3.0, 2.5", 7200 rpm

• CNET Editor rating:
  4.0 stars Excellent

  Overall score: 8.3 (4.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 0 stars No reviews, write one!

The Bottom Line: The WD My Passport Portable makes an excellent portable drive for use with both desktop and laptop computers, at home or while on the road. Read review

Specs: 500 GB, External hard drive, SuperSpeed USB 3.0

• CNET Editor rating:
  4.0 stars Excellent

  Overall score: 8.0 (4.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 2.5 stars out of 9 reviews

The Bottom Line: The Seagate FreeAgent GoFlex Desk is the largest single-volume external hard drive on the market and has arguably the best combination of design, performance, and storage capacity. Read review

Specs: 1 TB, External hard drive, Hi-Speed USB, 3.5"

• CNET Editor rating:
  3.5 stars Very good

  Overall score: 7.0 (3.5 stars)
• Average user rating: 0 stars No reviews, write one!

The Bottom Line: The WD My Book Thunderbolt Duo makes a very good external storage device for Thunderbolt-enabled Macs thanks to its comparative affordability, ease of use, and decent performance. Read review

• CNET Editor rating:
  3.5 stars Very good

  Overall score: 7.4 (3.5 stars)
• Average user rating: 4.5 stars out of 2 reviews

The Bottom Line: The LaCie 2big Thunderbolt Series strikes a balance between capacity, performance, and price and would be a good choice for owners of Thunderbolt-enabled computers. Read review

• CNET Editor rating:
  0.0 stars

  Overall score: 0.0 (0.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 2.0 stars out of 14 reviews

Specs: 1 TB, External hard drive, Hi-Speed USB, 3.5", 7200 rpm

• CNET Editor rating:
  4.0 stars Excellent

  Overall score: 8.4 (4.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 2.5 stars out of 2 reviews

The Bottom Line: Even with the slightly low USB 3.0 performance, the GoFlex Ultra still makes an excellent portable external hard drive for people who need to expand their computer's storage. Read review

Specs: 1 TB, External hard drive, SuperSpeed USB 3.0

• CNET Editor rating:
  3.5 stars Very good

  Overall score: 7.2 (3.5 stars)
• Average user rating: 1.5 stars out of 1 review

The Bottom Line: The Elgato Thunderbolt SSD offers speed and convenience for a very high premium. With limited storage and a very high price tag, the drive is only suitable for Thunderbolt-enabled Mac owners with deep pocket and a dire need for a high-speed storage device. Read review

Specs: 240 GB, External hard drive, Thunderbolt

• CNET Editor rating:
  4.0 stars Excellent

  Overall score: 8.0 (4.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 2.5 stars out of 5 reviews

The Bottom Line: The Clickfree C6 would make an excellent portable storage and backup drive for any Windows user. Read review

Specs: 1 TB, External hard drive, SuperSpeed USB 3.0, 2.5"

• CNET Editor rating:
  0.0 stars

  Overall score: 0.0 (0.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 3.0 stars out of 3 reviews

Specs: 2 TB, External hard drive, Hi-Speed USB

• CNET Editor rating:
  3.5 stars Very good

  Overall score: 7.2 (3.5 stars)
• Average user rating: 0 stars No reviews, write one!

The Bottom Line: The Hitachi Touro Mobile Pro portable drive is a fast and simple mobile storage option for those who want to carry around extra data. Read review

Specs: 750 GB, External hard drive, SuperSpeed USB 3.0, 2.5", 7200 rpm

• CNET Editor rating:
  3.5 stars Very good

  Overall score: 7.5 (3.5 stars)
• Average user rating: 5.0 stars out of 5 reviews

The Bottom Line: The LaCie Minimus is a good-looking and compact 3.5-inch external hard drive that would make a good addition to a desktop computer that already supports USB 3.0. Read review

Specs: 2 TB, External hard drive, SuperSpeed USB 3.0

• CNET Editor rating:
  3.5 stars Very good

  Overall score: 7.2 (3.5 stars)
• Average user rating: 0 stars No reviews, write one!

The Bottom Line: The My Book Studio Edition II makes a decent direct-attached storage solution for those who need to extend a computer's storage space or want a large backup drive. The drive's rather buggy firmware might turn many users away, however. Read review

• CNET Editor rating:
  4.0 stars Excellent

  Overall score: 8.3 (4.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 0 stars No reviews, write one!

The Bottom Line: The WD My Passport Portable makes an excellent portable drive for use with both desktop and laptop computers, at home or while on the road. Read review

Specs: 1 TB, External hard drive

• CNET Editor rating:
  4.0 stars Excellent

  Overall score: 8.1 (4.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 0 stars No reviews, write one!

The Bottom Line: The ioSafe Solo G3 makes an excellent backup solution for those who need to make sure their important data survives even the worst disasters. Read review

Specs: 2 TB, External hard drive

• CNET Editor rating:
  4.0 stars Excellent

  Overall score: 8.8 (4.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 2.5 stars out of 60 reviews

The Bottom Line: Drobo takes the pain and confusion out of data protection and lets you tailor and expand the drive according to your needs. This so-called storage robot works exactly as promised and is the most innovative storage device we've seen in a long time. We want one. Read review

• CNET Editor rating:
  3.5 stars Very good

  Overall score: 7.9 (3.5 stars)
• Average user rating: 0 stars No reviews, write one!

The Bottom Line: Similar to previous GoFlex portable drives, Seagate's GoFlex Turbo makes a great companion for any traveler with a laptop. Its added features, however, might not justify the higher estimated price. Read review

Specs: 500 GB, External hard drive, SuperSpeed USB 3.0, 7200 rpm