As the price of cloud & online storage creeps up, there are plenty of good reasons to use the best external hard drive to keep all your files safe & secure.
Our best buy hard drives are reliable, portable & affordable. Backing up to a hard disk gives you the peace of mind of knowing exactly where your files are stored. Plus, you have full 24/7 access to all your stuff – even when the wifi isn’t working.
Backing up your files may not sound exciting, but bad things do happen. If your computer fails, you get hit with ransomware or your laptop is stolen, you could lose everything. Photos, videos, work, dissertation – everything.
Back up your files now, and you can sleep easily. Even if the worst happens, you can still recover all those precious photos and must-have files.
Best External Hard Drive
We consider seven key aspects (storage size, physical size, connectivity, portability, speed, robust design & value) to help you choose the right hard drive for you.
For storage size, bigger is better. It’s hard to have too much storage space. In terms of compatibility, most drives work with most devices – assuming they’re formatted correctly. What’s important is that your device has a free USB connector (scroll down to see the image). USB 2.0 is the minimum, and USB-C is the best/fastest option.
SSD or HDD – Which Technology to Choose?
SSD technology significantly outperforms HDD. Solid State Drives (SSD) are much faster, more reliable, smaller and lighter. The only negative is that they’re more expensive (more on this later).
Want more storage or need to back up your files & photos? Here are the best external hard drives you can buy, right now…
Budget External Hard Drive
Toshiba Canvio Basics
Whatever your storage needs, the Toshiba Canvio is a great budget option. Perfect to partner with your PC, laptop or Chromebook.
Connectivity is fast, via USB 3.0 (blue), which is backwards compatible with USB 2.0, should your PC not have the latest ports. It’s super easy to use, with plug-and-play compatibility, straight out of the box.
Power is supplied via the USB cable, so there’s no need for an external power supply and extra wires. This hard drive weighs only 150grams. It’s lighter than most of its compatriots and physically compact.
There are 2TB, 3TB & 4TB options should you want more storage and can stretch the budget.
The Toshiba Canvio Basics 1TB hard drive offers enough storage for over 250,000 pictures and is a great value, too.
SPECIFICATION | HDD | SIZE 1TB | DIMENSIONS 78x109x14 | WEIGHT 149g | USB 3.0 | SPEED Fast | WARRANTY 2 Years
Toshiba Canvio
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Best External Hard Drive for Mac
LaCie Mobile Drive
The sleek aluminium design & USB-C connectivity make this the ideal storage companion for your Mac.
Rather than just another black plastic box, the aluminium casing and laser-cut design give this hard disk a premium and robust feel.
Connectivity is via USB-C, providing plug-and-play for the latest Macs, and a second cable is included for legacy models, PCs & laptops. As you’d expect, there’s no need for an additional power cable.
The Lacie hard drive weighs only a few grams more than an iPhone. It has a slim design and feels robust. Plus, there are 2TB, 4TB & 5TB models (use the same link below) if you need to store lots of large files.
There are cheaper hard disks available, but the stylish aluminium chassis and USB-C port make the LaCie Mobile Drive a great choice for all your Mac storage needs.
SPECIFICATION | HDD | SIZE 1TB | DIMENSIONS 88x122x10 | WEIGHT 200g | USB 3.0 & USB C | SPEED Very Fast | WARRANTY 2 Years
LaCie 1TB
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Best Portable HDD [BEST BUY]
WD Elements
The WD Elements hard disk is super compact. In fact, for an HDD, it’s tiny.
The Western Digital Elements hard drive uses traditional HDD technology, but it’s small, lightweight and reasonably priced.
This storage and backup device has been around for a couple of years now, meaning there are loads in circulation, and by comparing owner data, it’s clearly robust & bears the test of time.
It’s available in a variety of capacities from 1TB to 5TB. If you’re put off buying an SSD drive by the price but need a small, light & reliable hard disk – choose the WD Elements drive.
SPECIFICATION | HDD | SIZE 1TB | DIMENSIONS 82x111x15 | WEIGHT 130g | USB 3.0 | SPEED Fast | WARRANTY 2 Years
WD 1TB
See All Sizes on Amazon
Best Portable SSD [ULTIMATE]
Samsung T7
The Samsung T7 is the best portable storage you can buy.
This Solid-State Drive (SSD) has no moving parts. It’s far more robust than traditional HDD drives. It won’t wear out and is less susceptible to damage when dropped.
Importantly, this drive is supplied with two cables. The first is a USB-C to USB-C cable that delivers ultra-fast transfer speeds between the SSD and any device with a USB-C port (PC & Mac). Plus, there’s a USB-C-to-USB-2/3 cable for connecting older devices.
The Samsung T7 is designed for the future, but it is also backwards compatible – it will work with your device.
Ultra-Fast External SSD Storage
Incredible performance comes as standard. This SSD has a maximum read/write speed of 1000 MB/s, which is approaching 10x quicker than the HDD (120 M/bs) equivalent.
Smaller & Lighter Than Your Phone
The Samsung T7 SSD is the size of a credit card, although slightly thicker. And at only 58 grams, it weighs less than your phone. It’s a truly amazing piece of kit.
SPECIFICATION | SSD | SIZE 1TB | DIMENSIONS 57x85x8 | WEIGHT 58g | USB 3.0 & USB C | SPEED Ultra Fast | WARRANTY 3 Years | Black, Blue & Red
Samsung 1TB SSD
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What Else Do I Need to Know?
What’s the difference between HDD & SSD?
Hard Disk Drives (HDDs) and Solid State Drives (SSDs) use different technologies to store and retrieve data. HDD disks rely on moving parts. They’re much cheaper than an equivalent SSD but physically larger & heavier.
An SSD is tiny, ultra-fast and uses less battery power. Plus, as they have no moving parts, there’s less to go wrong. They don’t wear out & can handle being dropped (within reason!)
How to identify your USB connector
The image below shows three USB ports suitable for connecting an external hard disk to your computer or console. Check your device (s) to see which port (s) you have available.
USB-C is the best option as it delivers ultra-fast speeds. The LaCie & Samsung T7 drives both have this port.
All Verum recommended hard disks come complete with cable/s.
UK VERDICT
Choose any of the Verum hard disks detailed above, and you will get excellent, reliable storage for the right price. Go as big as your budget will allow – nobody complains of having too much space!
As a guide, 1 TB will be enough to store around 250,000 photos. Click on any of the links above to see different size options for each drive.
There’s every reason to choose the Samsung T7 SSD, even though it costs a few quid more. Transfer speeds are lightning-fast & it’s physically smaller than a phone; it’s truly portable. However, the main reason to choose the T7 is the superior SSD technology. With no moving parts, it’s less likely to fail than an HDD drive. Over time, it will save you money & hassle.
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