Iomega 500GB External Hard Drive - Review
If you are running short of hard drive space, one of the best options is to purchase an external hard drive. That is what I did when I saw the Iomega 500GB external hard drive go on sale.
It is a 500GB drive that is available from a lot of different retailers. I purchased mine for CA$119 during Dell's Days of Deals.
Why I Purchased The Iomega 500GB Hard Drive
500 GB Size
I want a decent size drive to store pictures and video on. 500GB is a big shot in the arm for my storage capacity.
Price
I paid CA$119, which is the same as the US dollar right now. That is less than 24 cents per GB.
USB Connection
Any computer built in the last 7 or 8 years will have these connectors on them. I can hook my external drive up to anyone's computer. Firewire or eSata are faster, but not everyone has them.
Fanless
This was the big one. This hard drive is very, very quiet. Unless the hard drive is really working, you do not even hear a noise.
Physical Size
It is quite compact and my is comes with a stand so you can stand it up on its side. You could sit it on a shelf like a book if you wanted so it takes up very little desk space if you want it there.
What I Don't Like About the Iomega 500 GB External Hard Drive
Blue LED Light
There is a blue led light on the front that is a little too bright and can be distracting. I usually point my hard drive the other direction or place something in front of the light so that is doesn't glare off of a wall.
No Network Connection
The next hard drive I buy will have an network connection. This lets you plug it into your router and the hard drive is viewable by all the computers in the network without doing any special configuration. It also saves on space as the drive can be placed in a closet or the basement away from everything else.
Other Connections
You can get drives that have firewire as well as USB. This just gives you more options for connecting if you have them.
How the Iomega External Drive Works
If you have not owned an external drive before, here is how it works. The hard drive is approximately the size of an old VHS video tape (the drive would be a bit smaller). It has its own power cord and connects to your computer via a USB cable. When you plug it in and turn it on, the computer will recognize it as a mass storage device and it will show up as another drive on your computer.
The data transfer speed depends on your USB ports on the computer. USB 2.0 is very fast. I have USB 1.1 and you will notice it takes a bit of time to copy a large file across. That being said, I can watch a high definition video file across a USB 1.1 connected hard drive. If you're computer was purchased within the last 3 years I would say you have USB 2.0.
Features
- USB 2.0
- Fanless (doesn't make much noise)
- 500 GB drive
- One Year Warranty
- Pre-formatted with FAT32 (should work out of the box with most computers)
- 7200RPM (this is fast, but you will be limited by the USB connection anyways)
- 8MB Cache
- SATA hard drive
Check out the Iomega 500 GB External Drive product page.
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