Shop for hard drives

• CNET Editor rating:
  4.0 stars Excellent

  Overall score: 8.3 (4.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 0.5 stars out of 1 review

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:
  4.5 stars Spectacular

  Overall score: 9.1 (4.5 stars)
• Average user rating: 0 stars No reviews, write one!

The Bottom Line: The Buffalo DriveStation DDR is by far the fastest single-volume external drive on the market and makes USB 3.0 a true alternative storage connection to Thunderbolt. Read review

• CNET Editor rating:
  4.0 stars Excellent

  Overall score: 8.0 (4.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 0 stars No reviews, write one!

The Bottom Line: The Samsung 840 Pro lives up to its name: it's a top-notch solid-state drive for professionals with a price to match. Read review

Specs: 128 GB, Internal hard drive, 2.5" Ultra Slim Line

• 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: The Toshiba Canvio Desk is a frills-free, solid performer for desktop users looking for a backup drive or to expand their storage space. Read review

Specs: 3 TB, External hard drive, 32 MB, 14 ms, 5700 rpm

• CNET Editor rating:
  0.0 stars

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

Specs: 3 TB, External hard drive, Hi-Speed USB

• 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 Patriot Aero is a fast and competent mobile drive that unfortunately doesn't have enough new features to make it stand out. Read review

• 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:
  3.5 stars Very good

  Overall score: 7.7 (3.5 stars)
• Average user rating: 0 stars No reviews, write one!

The Bottom Line: Those with a notebook computer, especially a MacBook Air, will find the G-Drive Slim a very good companion. Read review

Specs: 500 GB

• CNET Editor rating:
  4.0 stars Excellent

  Overall score: 8.0 (4.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 2.0 stars out of 46 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:
  3.5 stars Very good

  Overall score: 7.5 (3.5 stars)
• Average user rating: 4.0 stars out of 7 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:
  4.0 stars Excellent

  Overall score: 8.4 (4.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 0 stars No reviews, write one!

The Bottom Line: The OCZ Vector Series SSD would make a great investment for those moving on from using a hard drive as the main drive of their system. Read review

Specs: 128 GB, Internal hard drive, 2.5" Ultra Slim Line

• 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 Seagate 600 is an impressive first SSD outing from Seagate that offers basically all you want in a solid-state drive. Read review

Specs: 120 GB, Internal hard drive, 2.5" SFF

• CNET Editor rating:
  4.0 stars Excellent

  Overall score: 8.0 (4.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 2.0 stars out of 3 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: 3 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: 3.5 stars out of 20 reviews

The Bottom Line: The Momentus XT is an excellent replacement for traditional laptop hard drives. It offers large capacities and SSD-like performance at a fraction of the cost. Read review

Specs: 500 GB, Internal hard drive, Serial ATA-300, 2.5" x 1/8H, 32 MB, 11 ms, 7200 rpm

• 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: With very good performance and even better pricing, the SanDisk Extreme makes a great replacement drive for a standard laptop or desktop computer. Read review

Specs: 120 GB, Internal hard drive, Serial ATA-600, 2.5" x 1/8H

• 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 SanDisk Extreme II is a speedy replacement for any hard drive, and it won't dig a big hole in your wallet. Read review

Specs: 120 GB, 2.5 in

• CNET Editor rating:
  0.0 stars

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

Specs: 1 TB, Internal hard drive, 2.5" x 1/8H, 64 MB, 12 ms, 5400 rpm

• CNET Editor rating:
  4.0 stars Excellent

  Overall score: 8.6 (4.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 0 stars No reviews, write one!

The Bottom Line: If you're on a market for a high-end solid-state drive for your computer, be it a PC or a Mac, look no further than the Plextor M5 Pro Xtreme. Read review

Specs: 128 GB, Internal hard drive, 2.5"

• CNET Editor rating:
  0.0 stars

  Overall score: 0.0 (0.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 5.0 stars out of 10 reviews

Specs: 2 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 10 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:
  0.0 stars

  Overall score: 0.0 (0.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 4.0 stars out of 2 reviews

Specs: 3 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: 2.5 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, 2.5"

• 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: If priced a little lower, the Intel 520 Series SSD would be an ideal investment for those who want to greatly improve their computer's overall performance. For now, it's still an excellent drive. Read review

Specs: 120 GB, Internal hard drive, 2.5" x 1/8H

• CNET Editor rating:
  0.0 stars

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

The Bottom Line: A new solid-state drive from OCZ Technology, the Vertex 450, offers fast performance without digging a hole in your wallet. Read review

Specs: 128 GB, Internal hard drive, 2.5" Ultra Slim Line

• CNET Editor rating:
  0.0 stars

  Overall score: 0.0 (0.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 4.5 stars out of 4 reviews

Specs: 1 TB, Internal hard drive, Serial ATA-300, 3.5" x 1/3H, 32 MB, 7200 rpm