Sophisticated, responsive, robust and intuitive Web interface; practical, useful, and original features such as Photo and Surveillance stations; supports Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 as media adapters; great expandability.
THE BAD
The surveillance feature supports only one camera out of the box; eSATA port located on the front; Download Station doesn't support Web sites that require authentication. No RAID.
THE BOTTOM LINE
The Synology DS107+ is the most sophisticated NAS device we've tested to date. Its more advanced features require some networking know-how, but the included software and Web interface go a long way in helping you tackle the various offerings. You can't beat all the features you get for the price.
Decent performance; bus-powered; capacity gauge works as port cover; Mac OS X-ready; cool and quiet during operation; five-year warranty; low cost per gigabyte.
THE BAD
No option for external power; no FireWire 800.
THE BOTTOM LINE
Whether you use a Mac or a PC, the 320GB Western Digital My Passport Studio is the perfect compact external drive with a low cost per GB, a compact design, decent performance, and a surprisingly lengthy warranty.
Decent performance; bus-powered; capacity gauge works as port cover; Mac OS X-ready; cool and quiet during operation; five-year warranty; low cost per gigabyte.
THE BAD
No option for external power; no FireWire 800.
THE BOTTOM LINE
Whether you use a Mac or a PC, the 320GB Western Digital My Passport Studio is the perfect compact external drive with a low cost per GB, a compact design, decent performance, and a surprisingly lengthy warranty.
Decent performance; bus-powered; capacity gauge works as port cover; Mac OS X-ready; cool and quiet during operation; five-year warranty; low cost per gigabyte.
THE BAD
No option for external power; no FireWire 800.
THE BOTTOM LINE
Whether you use a Mac or a PC, the 320GB Western Digital My Passport Studio is the perfect compact external drive with a low cost per GB, a compact design, decent performance, and a surprisingly lengthy warranty.
Large capacity for a travel drive; very compact and light; bus powered; good bundled backup software; cool and quiet in operation; three-year warranty; two free gigabytes of online storage.
THE BAD
No FireWire; doesn't ship with power cord.
THE BOTTOM LINE
The SimpleTech Signature Mini Black Cherry is a compact, USB-only external hard drive that will tempt you with its sleek design, and then win you over with its capacity, performance, and price.
Large capacity for a travel drive; very compact and light; bus powered; good bundled backup software; cool and quiet in operation; three-year warranty; two free gigabytes of online storage.
THE BAD
No FireWire; doesn't ship with power cord.
THE BOTTOM LINE
The SimpleTech Signature Mini Black Cherry is a compact, USB-only external hard drive that will tempt you with its sleek design, and then win you over with its capacity, performance, and price.
Large capacity for a travel drive; very compact and light; bus powered; good bundled backup software; cool and quiet in operation; three-year warranty; two free gigabytes of online storage.
THE BAD
No FireWire; doesn't ship with power cord.
THE BOTTOM LINE
The SimpleTech Signature Mini Black Cherry is a compact, USB-only external hard drive that will tempt you with its sleek design, and then win you over with its capacity, performance, and price.
Large capacity for a travel drive; very compact and light; bus powered; good bundled backup software; cool and quiet in operation; three-year warranty; two free gigabytes of online storage.
THE BAD
No FireWire; doesn't ship with power cord.
THE BOTTOM LINE
The SimpleTech Signature Mini Black Cherry is a compact, USB-only external hard drive that will tempt you with its sleek design, and then win you over with its capacity, performance, and price.
Large capacity for a travel drive; very compact and light; bus powered; good bundled backup software; cool and quiet in operation; three-year warranty; two free gigabytes of online storage.
THE BAD
No FireWire; doesn't ship with power cord.
THE BOTTOM LINE
The SimpleTech Signature Mini Black Cherry is a compact, USB-only external hard drive that will tempt you with its sleek design, and then win you over with its capacity, performance, and price.
Large capacity for a travel drive; very compact and light; bus powered; good bundled backup software; cool and quiet in operation; three-year warranty; two free gigabytes of online storage.
THE BAD
No FireWire; doesn't ship with power cord.
THE BOTTOM LINE
The SimpleTech Signature Mini Black Cherry is a compact, USB-only external hard drive that will tempt you with its sleek design, and then win you over with its capacity, performance, and price.
Large capacity for a travel drive; very compact and light; bus powered; good bundled backup software; cool and quiet in operation; three-year warranty; two free gigabytes of online storage.
THE BAD
No FireWire; doesn't ship with power cord.
THE BOTTOM LINE
The SimpleTech Signature Mini Black Cherry is a compact, USB-only external hard drive that will tempt you with its sleek design, and then win you over with its capacity, performance, and price.
Durable, ruggedized exterior can take a five foot drop; fast transfer speeds; large capacity for affordable price.
THE BAD
Lacks FireWire port, power cord not included.
THE BOTTOM LINE
The eGo Camo portable hard drive is Iomega's first attempt at a "ruggedized" drive--it can withstand a beating thanks to its Power Grip band. Despite it lacking a few accessories, you'll be satisfied with its competitive price and quick transfer speeds.
High quality; fashionable leather exterior; survived four-feet drop test; auxiliary power options, excellent cost-per-gigabyte value.
THE BAD
Average read and write speeds; lacks FireWire port; flasklike design might not appeal to some.
THE BOTTOM LINE
The Iomega eGo Brown leather portable hard drive is a fashionable alternative to other boring HDs, and it gives you a healthy amount of space for a low price, but don't expect lightning fast transfer speeds.
Large capacity, USB 2.0, FireWire 400, and FireWire 800 support; bus powered; valuable bundled backup software; all data cables included.
THE BAD
A bit bulkier and heavier than competing compact external hard drives. Power switch is hard to reach.
THE BOTTOM LINE
It's big, and it's fast. The OWC Mercury On-The-Go offers fast throughput via USB 2.0, FireWire 400, and FireWire 800, and it's the biggest compact hard drive, at 500GB, you can get right now.
HP Media Vault Mv2120 - Network drive, 500 GB, PC, 4 pin USB Type A, RJ-45, Removable, Ethernet, Fast Ethernet, Gigabit Ethernet
THE GOOD
Very easy to set up with an intuitive Web interface and convenient desktop application; ships with 500GB hard drive and a free bay for the addition of a second drive; USB ports for additional storage; supports RAID 1; includes an iTunes server and Web access for photos.
THE BAD
Does not support writing to external drives formatted in NTFS; installs programs that start automatically and doesn't provide a method to disable them; rigid RAID setup; no print-serving capability; flimsy drive tray.
THE BOTTOM LINE
The HP Media Vault MV2120 is a two-bay NAS drive that novice networkers will find simple to set up and use. While it offers flexible expansion options with a free internal drive bay and two USB ports, the intrusive Media Vault software and lack of a print server dampen our enthusiasm a bit.
Buffalo LinkStation Mini LS-WS500GL/R1 - NAS server, 500 GB, PC, Mac, RJ-45, 4 pin USB Type A, Standard, Ethernet, Fast Ethernet, Gigabit Ethernet
THE GOOD
Small footprint and near silent operation; dual drives offer data redundancy; USB port allows for easy expansion or print sharing; DLNA support for streaming media files over your network.
THE BAD
Pricey per gigabyte; remote access feature took some work to enable.
THE BOTTOM LINE
The tiniest of NAS drives, the Buffalo LinkStation Mini keeps up with its full-size competition in terms of both features and performance. However, you'll pay a premium price for this small, silent networked drive.
Buffalo LinkStation Mini LS-WS1.0TGL/R1 - NAS server, 1 TB, PC, Mac, RJ-45, 4 pin USB Type A, Standard, Ethernet, Fast Ethernet, Gigabit Ethernet
THE GOOD
Small footprint and near silent operation; dual drives offer data redundancy; USB port allows for easy expansion or print sharing; DLNA support for streaming media files over your network.
THE BAD
Pricey per gigabyte; remote access feature took some work to enable.
THE BOTTOM LINE
The tiniest of NAS drives, the Buffalo LinkStation Mini keeps up with its full-size competition in terms of both features and performance. However, you'll pay a premium price for this small, silent networked drive.
LaCie Ethernet Disk Mini - Home Edition - NAS server, 500 GB, PC, Mac, 4 pin USB Type A, RJ-45, Standard, Ethernet, Fast Ethernet, Gigabit Ethernet
THE GOOD
Network-attached drive with 500GB of storage; can serve up media to iTunes and uPNP-capable devices; easy to share files with friends and family; rugged design.
THE BAD
Remote access is slow and unreliable; drive can be noisy during use; browser-based interface has its quirks.
THE BOTTOM LINE
The LaCie Ethernet Disk Mini - Home Edition is a solid mediacentric network-attached storage drive with an easy-to-use Web interface, but don't expect glitch-free access outside your home network.
Large capacity for a travel drive; very compact and light; USB 2.0 powered; ships with backup software; cool and quiet.
THE BAD
No FireWire; very slow write speeds.
THE BOTTOM LINE
The Toshiba USB 2.0 Portable Hard Drive is an attractive, lightweight drive with a decent price point for a drive of this capacity. Its size makes it great for travel, but the write speeds aren't up to par with other drives we've seen. We can't recommend it due to its lack of performance.
Hardware encrypted storage protection, convenient host and traveler modes.
THE BAD
Expensive; sluggish transfer speeds; lacks FireWire; boring design.
THE BOTTOM LINE
The impenetrable Maxtor Black Armor is the Fort Knox of external hard drives, but the added security comes at a hefty price tag. This device might appeal to those who need the most protection possible, but the competition offers more space for less money.
VOX BlackBox Hard drive array, PC, Mac, Unix, 4 pin USB Type B, RJ-45, Hot-swap
THE GOOD
It has 1TB of storage; it is affordable; easily accessible hard-drive bays; USB ports for additional storage; supports RAID 0 and RAID 1; includes iTunes server; sturdy build.
THE BAD
Noisy; confusing setup software and Web interface; does not support writing on external drives formatted in NTFS; rigid and rudimentary user account and file-sharing management; no print-serving capability; high latency.
THE BOTTOM LINE
The Vox BlackBox is a 1TB NAS drive that serves up a lot of storage but not many features for a good price. Though you may be tempted by its low cost per gigabyte, be warned it's noisy and plagued by brutally bad software.
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