Lil' Gadgets on the Go!

<3 Externally Yours <3

Welcome back, so hopefully you gave some thought by now to what you want out of life when it comes to portable memory for your work. As a college student you are always on the go, and always have something due. That’s totally understandable and I commend you.

Reason to Back Up and Move On
So, I gave it some thought. There are some neurotics out there, like myself, who do not like to have small things around, because they get lost too easily. Totally understandable, and it happens quite often. People leave their car keys, sunglasses and hats in the strangest of places. I for one as explained two Blogs back- experienced such loss with my USB flash drive, and I had important work information on there. I was one of the lucky few who got my precious Flash Drive back.

External Hard Drives also known as USB Hard Drives bring extra storage at a small cost and give you a big bang for your buck.

As a college student, you probably have a lot of stuff on your computer aside from the usual (i.e.: term papers, reports, projects), such as music, family and friends in precious photo’s you haven’t exactly gotten around to printing out and putting in to that photo album you have sitting on a shelf gathering dust.

I don’t think I can stress the term back up, back up, back up enough without starting to sound like a rapper wannabe. My reason being, we’ve hit a stone wall in the computer world when it comes to hackers, viruses and worms. Unless you know all there is to know about firewalls, open ports, pinging, and shutting out Trojans- chances are someone at one point had the ability to take a gander at what your computer has to offer.

Viruses and Wendy’s
Yes, there are a few really great anti-virus programs out there that you can pay for, but they are not going to protect you from the Geek who used you as a guinea pig with his new virus while he sits in his dark room eating some chocolate chip ice cream as his Wendy’s digests- but I digress.

These anti-virus programs protect you from known threats that have affected many people, not Geek Boy with the ice cream mustache. You’ve got to admit, almost everyone I know has done it at one point or another, opened an email attachment they know they shouldn’t have, but nothing happened- at least not right away.

All the precious documents, music, pictures, and even information on what to do when their computer wouldn’t start - Gone, wiped out, obliterated in to computer no man's land. This is why USB Hard Drives are SUPER DUPER IMPORTANT.

Back up Denial
So a few of you might be thinking or even saying out loud, “Come on I backed up everything on CD.”

“Great! Then why are we here?” Because, how often do you update those discs, or lose them, or make new ones or even check to see what you have on them? Ah Hah!

I know a lot of people who are guilty of this. “I know because, my name is Jaime and I am a chronic CD backer upper.”

I don’t think people realize when they save something to their computer, how easy it is to have it just disappear. People take their computers for granted and that’s the problem. We are a “fast food” society. We want what we want, then move on and can’t even remember what we were looking for in the first place.

3 Drives for Under $200
Iomagic Gigabank
2.2 GB/$149, 4GB/$179

This device does not require an outside power source. It is powered directly from your computer and comes with a flip out USB head. In the event your USB port is placed in a precarious position an extension cable comes with. Also included in the package is a carrying case.

Seagate USB 2.0 Hard
5GB/$199

This really small portable device packs a lot for its size, and really impressed me with its reliability. The company touts it's about the size of a hockey puck, which it is and is also much lighter. The cable is stored internally and does not require AC power. One really great feature for Windows users, it is password protected.

Last but not Least
Iomega
20GB Mini Hard Drive/$199

This is probably the best product with the most amount of product for the cost. It only weighs 3.5 oz and is small enough to fit in a pocket. However, it comes with a leather carrying case. This device also runs directly off of the computer as its source of power, and something cool - is that it has an on/off switch. Something not all external drives possess. This device also comes with a USB extension cable.

All in all - I would say for practical purposes the Iomega Mini Hard Drive is the best value of the three, but the other two choices are not bad at all. I'd be happy with any, but I've fallen in to the trap- Bigger is definitely better!

Specs and What to Look For
USB Hard Drives come in 3 sizes: 1-inch (2GB-4GB), 2.5-inch (20-100GB), and 3.5-inch (20-200 GB). The larger the drive space usually means the device will be larger, but it also means the device will operate faster, as well as weigh a little bit more.

As a student you are probably on a budget and are not looking to buy a whole new computer, so optimally anything under $200, is a deal. Remember just because you find it from the manufacturer for the prices above, shop around. You never know where you could find a better price or Rebate. I would suggest checking with: Ebay, Best Buy, Office Depot or Staples.

Remember these drives operate similarly to the Flash Drives. You must stop their operation before removal, or you face disk failure.

posted by Jaime @ 10:38 PM