Shop for external hard drives

• 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: Seagate Backup Plus carries the flexibility of the GoFlex portable drive while adding performance and style to portable storage. The new drive makes an excellent buy. Read review

Specs: 500 GB, External hard drive

• CNET Editor rating:
  4.0 stars Excellent

  Overall score: 8.3 (4.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 4.0 stars out of 2 reviews

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:
  3.5 stars Very good

  Overall score: 7.3 (3.5 stars)
• Average user rating: 0 stars No reviews, write one!

The Bottom Line: The Pegasus J4 is currently the only good choice on the market if you're looking for a compact four-bay Thunderbolt storage device. Read review

• 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: 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: 500 GB, External hard drive, 5400 rpm

• CNET Editor rating:
  3.5 stars Very good

  Overall score: 7.6 (3.5 stars)
• Average user rating: 0 stars No reviews, write one!

The Bottom Line: Thanks to its compact physical size and bundled software, the WD My Passport Edge is a very good companion for mobile users. Read review

Specs: 500 GB, External hard drive

• CNET Editor rating:
  4.0 stars Excellent

  Overall score: 8.2 (4.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 1.0 stars out of 1 review

The Bottom Line: Versatile, good-looking, and fast enough for most applications, the Buffalo MiniStation Thunderbolt HD-PATU3 makes an excellent buy for those looking for a portable Thunderbolt storage device. Read review

Specs: 500 GB, External hard drive

• CNET Editor rating:
  4.0 stars Excellent

  Overall score: 8.8 (4.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 2.0 stars out of 24 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: 0 stars No reviews, write one!

The Bottom Line: Seagate Backup Plus carries the flexibility of the GoFlex portable drive while adding performance and style to portable storage. The new drive makes an excellent buy. Read review

Specs: 500 GB, 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: Seagate Backup Plus carries the flexibility of the GoFlex portable drive while adding performance and style to portable storage. The new drive makes an excellent buy. Read review

Specs: 500 GB, External hard drive

• CNET Editor rating:
  3.5 stars Very good

  Overall score: 7.3 (3.5 stars)
• Average user rating: 1.5 stars out of 3 reviews

The Bottom Line: LaCie's Rikiki mobile USB hard drive is an elegant storage solution that comes in three sizes up to 640GB. Its simple design exudes timeless style in a very affordable package. As long as you're not a stickler for fast transfer speeds, the LaCie Rikiki will make a worthwhile addition to your mobile arsenal. Read review

Specs: 500 GB, External hard drive, Hi-Speed USB

• 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: 500 GB, External hard drive, SuperSpeed USB 3.0, 2.5"

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

The Bottom Line: Fast and affordable, the shockproof Silicon Power Armor A15 is an excellent buy for mobile users, especially those working in rough environments. Read review

Specs: 500 GB, External hard drive, 2.5"

• CNET Editor rating:
  4.0 stars Excellent

  Overall score: 8.0 (4.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 3.0 stars out of 3 reviews

The Bottom Line: While other external hard drives offer built-in backup software, automatic data encryption, or rugged casing protection, the Transcend StoreJet 25F only promises, and delivers, the fastest data transfers at the lowest price. The missing FireWire prevents us from giving this Transcend an Editors' Choice award, but we still highly recommend this drive to storage hounds who don't mind USB 2.0. Read review

Specs: 500 GB, External hard drive, Hi-Speed USB, 2.5"

• CNET Editor rating:
  0.0 stars

  Overall score: 0.0 (0.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 0 stars No reviews, write one!

Specs: 500 GB, External hard drive, Hi-Speed USB, 7200 rpm

• CNET Editor rating:
  4.0 stars Excellent

  Overall score: 8.0 (4.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 1.5 stars out of 4 reviews

The Bottom Line: With its embossed cover and rainbow of colorful designs, the Samsung G2 Portable hard drive is a consumer-focused external hard drive that offers the most basic plug-and-play storage functionality. You don't get many extras, but impressive benchmark scores, a competitive cost-per-gigabyte, and a generous three-year warranty demonstrate its core competency and earn this drive our CNET recommendation. Read review

Specs: 500 GB, External hard drive, USB, 2.5 in

• CNET Editor rating:
  0.0 stars

  Overall score: 0.0 (0.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 5.0 stars out of 16 reviews

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

• CNET Editor rating:
  0.0 stars

  Overall score: 0.0 (0.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 4.5 stars out of 1 review

Specs: 500 GB, External hard drive, SuperSpeed USB 3.0, 2.5", 8 MB, 5400 rpm

• 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: Seagate Backup Plus carries the flexibility of the GoFlex portable drive while adding performance and style to portable storage. The new drive makes an excellent buy. Read review

Specs: 500 GB, External hard drive

• CNET Editor rating:
  4.0 stars Excellent

  Overall score: 8.3 (4.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 1.0 stars out of 2 reviews

The Bottom Line: The G-Tech G-Drive Mobile's Mac-friendly formatting, triple interface design, and snappy throughput performance make it a worthwhile storage solution for Apple users. Read review

Specs: 500 GB, External hard drive, 8 MB, 5400 rpm

• CNET Editor rating:
  3.5 stars Very good

  Overall score: 7.8 (3.5 stars)
• Average user rating: 0.5 stars out of 1 review

The Bottom Line: Although we dinged its predecessor because of its inflated price tag, the Samsung S2 Portable hard drive earns high marks and our recommendation for being reasonably priced, having fast file-transfer speed, and for having a generous three-year warranty. Read review

Specs: 640 GB, External hard drive, Hi-Speed USB, 2.5"

• CNET Editor rating:
  0.0 stars

  Overall score: 0.0 (0.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 0 stars No reviews, write one!

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

• CNET Editor rating:
  3.5 stars Very good

  Overall score: 7.8 (3.5 stars)
• Average user rating: 0 stars No reviews, write one!

The Bottom Line: If you're eager to try out Pogoplug PC, the Toshiba Canvio Connect is a good buy, especially if your computer supports USB 3.0. Otherwise, keep looking for better deals. Read review

Specs: 500 GB, External hard drive, 8 MB, 12 ms, 5400 rpm

• CNET Editor rating:
  0.0 stars

  Overall score: 0.0 (0.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 2.0 stars out of 67 reviews

The Bottom Line: The Western Digital MyBook Essential Edition external hard drive is a slightly pared-down version of the MyBook Premium Edition. It's a good option if you need additional storage without backup software. Read review

Specs: 500 GB, External hard drive, Hi-Speed USB, 16 MB, 8.9 ms, 7200 rpm

• CNET Editor rating:
  0.0 stars

  Overall score: 0.0 (0.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 0 stars No reviews, write one!

Specs: 500 GB, External hard drive, Hi-Speed USB