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Something to consider before buying This is a great product.I use mine via an e-sata cable and its more than sufficient storage however, every so often the drive goes into suspension once it is not being accessed and periodically it starts up again momentarily freezing my system for 3-5 secs then everything is back to normal.
I carry the 1TB MyBook around in my backpack and use it to back up PCs at work, home and for my family.About two weeks ago, while visiting my parents, I went back to their office to perform my usual incremental backup of their PC. For me, saving power is a bonus, but I can imagine for some that waiting 10 seconds or so for the drive to spin up might be a problem.As I recall, this MyBook came with software on it but I didn't install it. The drive spins down and goes into a low-power state when not used (15 minutes). In my haste to compete the cabling job, I bumped into one of the cables connected to the MyBook and sent it falling to the (carpeted) floor. This earns you 5 Amazon Stars from me.Even without this experience, this MyBook is still a fantastic package and value. I set the MyBook on the desk and ran the USB and power cords from the front of the desk to the computer and to an A/C socket.
Instead, I immediately formatted it with NTFS. I've written about other Western Digital externals, but didn't write about the one. Perhaps I'd come to expect convenience and reliability from my external drives. Way to go Western Digital.
I'm amazed any drive can fall from this distance while writing and survive. I have since fully scanned the file system of the MyBook with Windows Error-Checking and the drive surface with SpinRite and it checked out just fine. The drive is quiet and the rubber feet on the bottom ensure that what little mechanical noise is present isn't amplified by the surface it sits on. NTFS is less portable than FAT32 but is more robust and recognized by Windows 2000, XP, Vista and Windows 7.
The external power supply is small and the drive unit does not need fans to stay cool. Along with the thud, I heard the familiar Windows XP disconnect sound.The backup stopped and I figured the drive was dead. The finish is matte so finger prints don't show. This 1TB MyBook, which I purchased in December 2008, performs great; just like the 500GB Western Digital MyBook and 250GB Western Digital Dual Option externals I still use.
The 3 ports (eSATA, Firewire and USB) offer a lot of flexibility for those needing to connect the drive to different machines, and I've found all 3 ports are reliable. I erased the partial incremental backup file I had created and restarted the backup process again with no problems or complaints from Windows XP or Acronis. I started an incremental backup (with Acronis True Image - highly recommended) and then went under the desk to rearrange some network cables. But I power cycled the drive and it connected again as if nothing happened.
If I add another external backup, it will be one of these for sure. A hansome addition to your set up,and its out of the box, plug in and go. Have been very happy with it's performance as well as the design.
No mess, no fuss. Plug the power cable into a wall socket and the firewire cable into the computer and--voila.--instant space. Some external drives don't play nice with my Mac. This one does.
I will be looking for another one in the very near future. Love my new hard drive.
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