Nov 16, 2020 • Filed to: Answer Hard Drive Problems • Proven solutions
- This especially durable external hard drive is the best option for Mac users who prioritize fast transfer speeds. Pros Available in 250 and 500GB, and 1 and 2TB sizes.
- The 10TB G-DRIVE Desktop External Hard Drive will give you enough volume and lightning speed for a traditional drive, and comes pre-formatted for Mac. If you need instant cross-platform compatibility, and an array of color choices, you'll be covered with the Seagate Backup Plus Slim 2TB.
- If you want a reliable external hard drive that has a decent amount of storage, is super easy to carry around and has a very affordable price tag, the Seagate Backup Plus Slim is the best option for most people.
In the case of an external hard drive, the drive itself is stored inside an enclosure that includes the proper ports for connecting it to your Mac. Most external hard drives connect to a Mac either through the USB port, or through the Mac's Thunderbolt port, and thus will likely come with the appropriate cable.
External Hard drives are a convenient and easy way to store large data such as .jpg files and important official documents. These also help to organize and share digital information like media files and other important files. Hard disk drives were introduced in the year 1956, for data storage and real-time transaction processing computers. Using hard drive devices, one can easily store official and personal data for future use. Various performance characteristics are there that you must know before making a final purchase like storage capacity, seek time, data transfer rate, latency, power consumption, shock resistance, audible noise, and price. The top 10 cheap external hard drives that offer great utility, excellent design, and additional storage for your personal and official data are:
Part 1. Picking from the Best and Cheap External Hard Drives
1. Seagate Expansion
Company: Seagate
External Hard drives are a convenient and easy way to store large data such as .jpg files and important official documents. These also help to organize and share digital information like media files and other important files. Hard disk drives were introduced in the year 1956, for data storage and real-time transaction processing computers. Using hard drive devices, one can easily store official and personal data for future use. Various performance characteristics are there that you must know before making a final purchase like storage capacity, seek time, data transfer rate, latency, power consumption, shock resistance, audible noise, and price. The top 10 cheap external hard drives that offer great utility, excellent design, and additional storage for your personal and official data are:
Part 1. Picking from the Best and Cheap External Hard Drives
1. Seagate Expansion
Company: Seagate
Specs: Seagate Expansion hard drive is one of the best-suited data storage programs. The portable device comes with a wide range of data storage capacity that varies from 1 TB to 4 TB. The staid designed portable hard drive has sheer space to store data and it is highly compatible with USB 2.0. Seagate Expansion devices come with 3 years of guarantee and easily compatible with the Windows Operating system and are a favorite for the ones looking for a large hard drive.
Reviews: Fast and Easy Access, portable device, additional data storage, and quickly copies files from the internal drive.
Media Site which recommends it: PCMag
Price: $54.98 for 1 TB and $83.33 for 2 TB as listed on Amazon.
2. Samsung M3
Company: Samsung
Specs: Samsung M3 comes with advanced intuitive software that offers easy plug and plays operation with Windows. It is one of the best USB powered drives in the portable segment. Opting this device, one can easily manage the drive security as it features secured password protection. Generally, 1 TB and 2 TB Samsung M3 are available that deliver handy portable storage for important files and documents. It is compatible with USB 3.0 and can be easily connected to a laptop or tablet, making it a useful large external hard drive.
Reviews: Fast data transfer, excellent performance, additional data storage, personal backup solution, and safety key protection.
Media Site which recommends it: CNET
Price: $62.99 for 1 TB as listed on Amazon.
3. Toshiba Canvio Basics
Company: Toshiba
Specs: Toshiba Canvio Basics drive features an internal shock sensor and 5400 RPM speed. The portable device is highly compatible with Windows, DOS, and Linux. The device has 5 gigabits/second data transfer rate and a 12ms average seek time.
Reviews: Cheap and best external hard drive, additional data storage capacity, USB 3.0 interface, complete data protection, lightweight and small in size.
Media Site which recommends it: CNET
Price: $49.99 for 1 TB and $77.99 for 2 TB as listed on Amazon.
4. WD My Passport Ultra
Company: Western Digital Company
Specs: WD My Passport Ultra features an auto backup software and hardware encryption for the best storage value. The device is durable, reliable, shock tolerant and comes with high capacity compact data storage capacity. WD My passport ultra device is compatible with USB 2.0 and USB 3.0 port and it secures your files from unauthorized access with password protection.
Reviews: Ultra-fast backup storage, Password Protection, double safe drive, and additional storage capacity.
Media Site which recommends it: TechRadar
Price: $59 for 1 TB and $87.60 for 2 TB as listed on Amazon.
5. WD My Passport for Mac
Company: Western Digital Company
Specs: WD My Passport for Mac offers up to 2 TB data storage and a USB 3.0 interface for the ultra-fast data transfer. For the MacBook users, the drive is an ideal companion as it offers fast and easy access to the users and saves files in blazing speed.
Reviews: Sleek and compact design, additional storage for videos, images and files, WD security, and massive data storage capacity.
Media Site which recommends it: CNET
Price: $59.99 for 1 TB and $97.99 for 2 TB as listed on Amazon.
6. Transcend 1TB Military-Grade Shock Resistance
Company: Transcend
Specs: Transcend 1 TB Military-Grade Shock Resistance drive has additional features like Shock resistance and one-touch backup feature. It is specifically designed with a Silicon shell on the outer surface, standard casing, and damper tech to meet drop test standards.
Reviews: Easy plug and play operation, anti-shock rubber case, and maximum data transfer speed.
Media Site which recommends it: TechRadar
Price: $54 for 1 TB as listed on Amazon.
7. Seagate Expansion Portable
Company: Seagate
Specs: Seagate Expansion Portable hard drive offers maximum data storage capacity for digital data like photos, videos, DVD films, and music. The drive features 5000mbps data transfer speed, which is pretty fast when compared to other cheap external hard drives.
Reviews: Sleek Design, Excellent performance, no need for external supply, durable, competitive price, and easy to access.
Media Site which recommends it: PCMag
Price: $67 for 1 TB and $83.33 for 2 TB as listed on Amazon.
8. Seagate Wireless Plus
Company: Seagate
Specs: Seagate Wireless Plus is one of the best hard drive programs as it offers fast access to Windows and Mac users. It provides a start guide to first-time users. Opting the advanced storage program, you can easily transfer the files without wires or the internet. It adds 1 TB storage space to multiple devices.
Reviews: Portable hard drive, wireless network, impressive performance, compatible with multiple devices like Android, iOS, and Windows.
Media Site which recommends it: PCMag
Price: $139.99 for 1 TB and $199.99 for 2TB as listed on Amazon.
9. Samsung D3 Station External Desktop Hard Drive
Company: Samsung
Specs: For those who want to expand data storage space, Samsung D3 Station External Desktop hard drive is one of the brilliant options as it comes with a wide range of storage capacity that varies from 2 TB to 6 TB, thus making it a favorite among those seeking cheap external hard drives.
Reviews: Streamline shape, massive data storage capacity, USB 3.0 Interface, and portable version.
Media Site which recommends it: GeekDaily
Price: $65.98 for 2 TB, $118.88 for 4 BT and $136 for 5 TB as listed on Amazon.
10. Western Digital My Passport Wireless
Company: Western Digital Company
Specs: Western Digital My Passport Wireless is an excellent data storage solution for laptops and desktop computers. The drive is equipped with a rechargeable battery that can last up to six hours and comes in handy while choosing from many cheap external hard drives.
Reviews: Wireless connection with mobile devices and USB 3.0 port for fast data transfer.
Media Site which recommends it: TechRadar
Price: $ 153.90 for WD 1 TB and $195.81 for WD 2 TB as listed on Amazon.
Part 2. What is an External Hard Drive?
External Hard Drive is a device that allows easy and fast access to store important data like documents, media files, photos, and other files for future use. External hard drives are the best alternatives for data backup and come in a wide range of data storage capacities and sizes. Certain facts that you must know external USB devices are performance, design, and storage capacity. Performance determines the overall operations of the hard drives including data transfer speed and storage capacity. When the files are transferred from a computer internal drive to an external drive, then the data transfer rate is measured in terms of megabits per second or gigabits per second. Look for the devices that quickly transfer data without any loss, additional storage capacity, and provide easy access.
With numerous options to choose from in the market, the technology that drives cheap external hard drives is consistently progressing, thus leaving the user happy. For the ones looking to expand their digital library, this list offers more than just a few names, as it complies with the cheap external hard drives that are ruling the world market currently.
Part 3. External Hard Drive Data Recovery
If you lost data on your external hard drive, unfortunately, don't worry! You still have the chance to get lost data back. To recover files from external hard drives, you can have try the following tool.
Your Safe & Reliable Hard Drive Data Recovery Software
- Recover lost or deleted files, photos, audio, music, emails from any storage device effectively, safely and completely.
- Supports data recovery from recycle bin, hard drive, memory card, flash drive, digital camera, and camcorders.
- Supports to recover data for sudden deletion, formatting, hard drive corruption, virus attack, system crash under different situations.
Top 5 Best Free Hard Drive Data Recovery Software in 2020
Specs: Seagate Expansion hard drive is one of the best-suited data storage programs. The portable device comes with a wide range of data storage capacity that varies from 1 TB to 4 TB. The staid designed portable hard drive has sheer space to store data and it is highly compatible with USB 2.0. Seagate Expansion devices come with 3 years of guarantee and easily compatible with the Windows Operating system and are a favorite for the ones looking for a large hard drive.
Reviews: Fast and Easy Access, portable device, additional data storage, and quickly copies files from the internal drive.
Media Site which recommends it: PCMag
Price: $54.98 for 1 TB and $83.33 for 2 TB as listed on Amazon.
2. Samsung M3
Company: Samsung
Specs: Samsung M3 comes with advanced intuitive software that offers easy plug and plays operation with Windows. It is one of the best USB powered drives in the portable segment. Opting this device, one can easily manage the drive security as it features secured password protection. Generally, 1 TB and 2 TB Samsung M3 are available that deliver handy portable storage for important files and documents. It is compatible with USB 3.0 and can be easily connected to a laptop or tablet, making it a useful large external hard drive.
Reviews: Fast data transfer, excellent performance, additional data storage, personal backup solution, and safety key protection.
Media Site which recommends it: CNET
Price: $62.99 for 1 TB as listed on Amazon.
3. Toshiba Canvio Basics
Company: Toshiba
Specs: Toshiba Canvio Basics drive features an internal shock sensor and 5400 RPM speed. The portable device is highly compatible with Windows, DOS, and Linux. The device has 5 gigabits/second data transfer rate and a 12ms average seek time.
Reviews: Cheap and best external hard drive, additional data storage capacity, USB 3.0 interface, complete data protection, lightweight and small in size.
Media Site which recommends it: CNET Android program for mac.
Price: $49.99 for 1 TB and $77.99 for 2 TB as listed on Amazon.
4. WD My Passport Ultra
Company: Western Digital Company
Specs: WD My Passport Ultra features an auto backup software and hardware encryption for the best storage value. The device is durable, reliable, shock tolerant and comes with high capacity compact data storage capacity. WD My passport ultra device is compatible with USB 2.0 and USB 3.0 port and it secures your files from unauthorized access with password protection.
Reviews: Ultra-fast backup storage, Password Protection, double safe drive, and additional storage capacity.
Media Site which recommends it: TechRadar
Price: $59 for 1 TB and $87.60 for 2 TB as listed on Amazon.
5. WD My Passport for Mac
Company: Western Digital Company
Specs: WD My Passport for Mac offers up to 2 TB data storage and a USB 3.0 interface for the ultra-fast data transfer. For the MacBook users, the drive is an ideal companion as it offers fast and easy access to the users and saves files in blazing speed.
Reviews: Sleek and compact design, additional storage for videos, images and files, WD security, and massive data storage capacity.
Media Site which recommends it: CNET
Price: $59.99 for 1 TB and $97.99 for 2 TB as listed on Amazon.
6. Transcend 1TB Military-Grade Shock Resistance
Wolf 1 35 1 – build responsive web sites. Company: Transcend
Specs: Transcend 1 TB Military-Grade Shock Resistance drive has additional features like Shock resistance and one-touch backup feature. It is specifically designed with a Silicon shell on the outer surface, standard casing, and damper tech to meet drop test standards.
Reviews: Easy plug and play operation, anti-shock rubber case, and maximum data transfer speed.
Media Site which recommends it: TechRadar
Price: $54 for 1 TB as listed on Amazon.
7. Seagate Expansion Portable
Company: Seagate
Specs: Seagate Expansion Portable hard drive offers maximum data storage capacity for digital data like photos, videos, DVD films, and music. The drive features 5000mbps data transfer speed, which is pretty fast when compared to other cheap external hard drives.
Reviews: Sleek Design, Excellent performance, no need for external supply, durable, competitive price, and easy to access.
Media Site which recommends it: PCMag
Price: $67 for 1 TB and $83.33 for 2 TB as listed on Amazon.
8. Seagate Wireless Plus
Company: Seagate
Specs: Seagate Wireless Plus is one of the best hard drive programs as it offers fast access to Windows and Mac users. It provides a start guide to first-time users. Opting the advanced storage program, you can easily transfer the files without wires or the internet. It adds 1 TB storage space to multiple devices.
Reviews: Portable hard drive, wireless network, impressive performance, compatible with multiple devices like Android, iOS, and Windows.
Media Site which recommends it: PCMag
Price: $139.99 for 1 TB and $199.99 for 2TB as listed on Amazon.
9. Samsung D3 Station External Desktop Hard Drive
Company: Samsung
Specs: For those who want to expand data storage space, Samsung D3 Station External Desktop hard drive is one of the brilliant options as it comes with a wide range of storage capacity that varies from 2 TB to 6 TB, thus making it a favorite among those seeking cheap external hard drives.
Reviews: Streamline shape, massive data storage capacity, USB 3.0 Interface, and portable version.
Media Site which recommends it: GeekDaily
Price: $65.98 for 2 TB, $118.88 for 4 BT and $136 for 5 TB as listed on Amazon.
10. Western Digital My Passport Wireless
Company: Western Digital Company
Specs: Western Digital My Passport Wireless is an excellent data storage solution for laptops and desktop computers. The drive is equipped with a rechargeable battery that can last up to six hours and comes in handy while choosing from many cheap external hard drives.
Reviews: Wireless connection with mobile devices and USB 3.0 port for fast data transfer.
Media Site which recommends it: TechRadar
Price: $ 153.90 for WD 1 TB and $195.81 for WD 2 TB as listed on Amazon.
Part 2. What is an External Hard Drive?
External Hard Drive Mac To Windows
External Hard Drive is a device that allows easy and fast access to store important data like documents, media files, photos, and other files for future use. External hard drives are the best alternatives for data backup and come in a wide range of data storage capacities and sizes. Certain facts that you must know external USB devices are performance, design, and storage capacity. Performance determines the overall operations of the hard drives including data transfer speed and storage capacity. When the files are transferred from a computer internal drive to an external drive, then the data transfer rate is measured in terms of megabits per second or gigabits per second. Look for the devices that quickly transfer data without any loss, additional storage capacity, and provide easy access.
With numerous options to choose from in the market, the technology that drives cheap external hard drives is consistently progressing, thus leaving the user happy. For the ones looking to expand their digital library, this list offers more than just a few names, as it complies with the cheap external hard drives that are ruling the world market currently.
Part 3. External Hard Drive Data Recovery
If you lost data on your external hard drive, unfortunately, don't worry! You still have the chance to get lost data back. To recover files from external hard drives, you can have try the following tool.
Your Safe & Reliable Hard Drive Data Recovery Software
- Recover lost or deleted files, photos, audio, music, emails from any storage device effectively, safely and completely.
- Supports data recovery from recycle bin, hard drive, memory card, flash drive, digital camera, and camcorders.
- Supports to recover data for sudden deletion, formatting, hard drive corruption, virus attack, system crash under different situations.
Top 5 Best Free Hard Drive Data Recovery Software in 2020
Does this sound similar to you?
You thought you had enough disk space when you originally bought your MacBook Pro, but soon you realized that storage is being filled up quicker than you can clear old files.
Or maybe you already had an external drive to help extend your MacBook's storage, but now it's either outdated, too slow, or experiencing issues.
Cheap External Hard Drive Enclosure
We may be in the age of cloud computing and remotely stored files, but it's always helpful to have a portable hard drive you can count on both for file backups and to work off as needed.
In this buying guide, we'll help you pick the best external drive for your MacBook Pro so you can access all your files without sacrificing speed or performance.
Quick Summary
Here's a brief overview of our recommendations depending on your specific needs and preferences:
- The 10TB G-DRIVE Desktop External Hard Drive will give you enough volume and lightning speed for a traditional drive, and comes pre-formatted for Mac.
- If you need instant cross-platform compatibility, and an array of color choices, you'll be covered with the Seagate Backup Plus Slim 2TB.
- Known for being rough on your electronics? The Silicon Power 1TB Drive is rugged and durable, with water resistance in addition to quick read and write speeds.
- If you prefer a modern speedy solid-state drive, the Glyph Atom RAID 1TB SSD is sure to meet expectations in terms of speed and durability.
Do I Need An External Drive for My Mac?
External drives are a worthwhile investment for more than just power users, but it can be hard to determine if you need one or not. Consider this:
- Do you regularly work with large files such as videos and edited images, or run other creative files such as video games?
- Is your MacBook Pro running slower due to being overburdened with files?
- Have you ever wanted to backup your Mac just in case of any data disaster?
- Are you using a cloud storage or online backup service but fear of security and reliability issues from the provider?
- Are old files being stored on your computer because you occasionally reference them but can't completely delete them?
Answering yes to any of the above scenario questions is a fairly good indicator that an external hard drive would benefit you.
On the other hand, an external hard drive is probably not the best option for for those of you who only have a small volume of unimportant files to save, which might be better served by using a cloud storage program like Dropbox or Google Drive or by offloading their old files onto a large USB flash drive.
Best External Drive for MacBook: What to Look For in 2020?
Storage Capacity
If you're purchasing an external hard drive, it's because you need the space on your MacBook, so it doesn't make sense to cut corners on how much exterior space you purchase. However, it's still important to consider exactly how much space you need. Consider how quickly you create large files (such as photo imports) and if you plan on keeping them in a long or short term to decide your actual need.
Formatting
While many newer drives come formatted to work on both Mac and PC, it's best not to choose one that is single-system compatible as it will limit the drive's versatility (though you could manually format an external drive for both PC and Mac compatibility, it's an extra effort and requires you to be a bit geeky). For added convenience, you should look for drives that come pre-formatted for Mac, which means you don't have to install a special program and do it yourself.
HDD or SSD
There are several kinds of external drives based on the electronics that make them work. An HDD is the traditional spinning disk of data, whereas an SSD is newer technology that has no moving parts and store information inside the electronic components. An HHD, or Hybrid Hard Drive, uses a combination of these methods. Both have their own advantages and disadvantages when it comes to speed, durability, price, and information safety, so make sure you know which you prefer.
The Best External Drives for MacBook Pro in 2020: Our Picks
Kindly note that the products chosen below are mainly based on our personal preferences and the guidelines as shown above. They are by no means made in the order below.
1. G-Technology 10TB G-DRIVE USB-C Desktop External Hard Drive
This speedy HDD drive offers a huge chunk of storage at an uncommonly high RPM. It will stand up to daily use in editing and media programs and connects to your computer via USB-C so you can take full advantage of its specs.
Pros:
- If you have set up Apple Time Machine, this drive will be ready for easy file backup so you won't be waiting for your files to read or write. Also, it comes with a great amount of storage space.
Cons:
- The disk is pre-formatted for Mac, you won't be able to use your files on a secondary computer such as a Windows PC unless you reformat it to NTFS file system.
2. Seagate Backup Plus Slim 2TB
Available in four different sizes, this hard drive from trusted brand Seagate comes in several colors. Approximately the size of your phone, it packs a punch for its size and is very portable.
Pros:
- It can be used on both Mac and PC without reformatting. Also, it offers fast connection via USB and weighs about 5 ounces.
Cons:
- Largest TB size option is not compatible with Mac.
3. Silicon Power 1TB Rugged Armor A60
An extremely versatile and sturdy drive, this model is compatible with more than just your MacBook. It's water resistant, with read and write speeds at the standard 120 mbps.
Pros:
- It can be used with several gaming consoles and Apple Time Machine in addition to your Mac.
- It's also durable and available with the modern USB-C which is especially useful if you're using the newest MacBook Pro.
Cons:
- It appears somewhat unprofessional, also the drive is a bit on the heavy side as it weighs around 8 ounces.
4. Glyph Atom RAID 1TB External Solid State Drive
Available with USB and USB-C connections and pre-formatted for Mac, this SSD from well-known brand Glyph provides extremely fast speeds that will support your casual and power use. It looks clean and functions beautifully.
Pros:
- It comes pre-formatted for Mac with easy reformats for PC or cross-platform compatibility, significantly faster than comparable drives from Samsung and other brands, available in several colors and two connection types.
Cons:
- It's the heaviest drive on our list at 11 ounces, and a bit on the pricey side as well.
Useful Tips & Resources
Picking a hard drive can be difficult, especially if you aren't sure whether you need one. One way to help decide is to try a cloud storage platform such as Google Drive or Dropbox before you decide to buy an external drive. Both platforms are free to start with and they offer terabyte storage options for paying customers and using one may help you decide if you need more constant access to your files or simply a place to store them.
If you know you want an external drive but aren't sure what storage type you need (HDD or SSD), perhaps this guide from PCWorld will help you decide which best fits your requirements.
Also, It's worth noting that some external drives available on the market are formatted for PC only, but you can reformat it to Mac OS Extended, or for cross-platform compatibility (with NTFS) if you need to use your external drive for your MacBook Pro and a PC as well. This tutorial is definitely worth checking out:
Final Words
Best External Drive For Mac
Regardless of your final choice of external drive, having one will definitely improve your workflow and computer performance. You'll be able to use your files more effectively and improve your MacBook's performance. Which external drive have you used in the past or are considering purchasing? Let us know. 22 vs .223 sound.
