In need of a Recommendation

techtitan100

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I don't normally post stuff here in the General Discussion Website, but I need some opinions about a new external hard drive, I want to ask is what is cheap, but yet has at least 1 TB of space on it, I had bought a brand new one off amazon about a few years back and about a month ago when I was transferring files off of it onto my computer I accidentally dropped it and broke it, luckily all of my data was on the cloud, the one that broke was a Toshiba Canvio with 500 GB of space, any recommendations would be helpful thanks
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 7 Pro 64bitIntel(R) Core(TM) i3-2350M CPU @ 2.30 GHZ4.00 GBIntel HD Graphiics
Computer type
Laptop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Toshiba Satellite C655-S5547
OS
Windows 7 Pro 64bit
CPU
Intel(R) Core(TM) i3-2350M CPU @ 2.30 GHZ
Memory
4.00 GB
Graphics Card(s)
Intel HD Graphiics
Sound Card
Conexant HD Audio
Monitor(s) Displays
Generic PnP Monitor
Screen Resolution
1366 x 768 x 32 bits (4294967296 colors) @ 60 Hz
Hard Drives
TI106321W0B(C:) 450GB
Keyboard
Standard PS/2 Keyboard
Mouse
Synaptics Pointing Device
Internet Speed
51.68 mb/s download and 12.08 mb/s upload as of 6/24/15
Antivirus
Webroot Secure Anywhere
Browser
IE11, Mozilla Firefox 41.1.01, and Google Chrome if I must
Must it be a standard, fully enclosed, external drive?

I use a drive dock that is connected to a USB 3.0 port on the PC, rather than an "external drive" per se.

Advantage is that you can buy any drive you want and insert it into the dock when and as needed. Most docks will accommodate any drive up to 3 TB and sometimes larger. You aren't restricted to the slow 5400 rpm drives of unknown pedigree that you might find in a typical external.

Is this just a backup drive?

Do you intend to keep it on your desk, in a running state, constantly? Or to keep it in a closet and break it out for some purpose weekly or monthly? Or?

There's a strong commodity flavor to all of them. At gunpoint, I'd probably choose Western Digital if I insisted on a traditional external drive.
 

My Computer My Computer

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Windows 7 Home Premium SP1, 64-bitIntel Skylake i5-6600K, not overclocked8 GB HyperX DDR4-2666 (2 x 4 GB)none; graphics are integrated on CPU
Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Ignatz Special; 4 speed manual gearbox; factory air conditioning; one of one
OS
Windows 7 Home Premium SP1, 64-bit
CPU
Intel Skylake i5-6600K, not overclocked
Motherboard
AsRock Z170M Extreme 4, micro ATX
Memory
8 GB HyperX DDR4-2666 (2 x 4 GB)
Graphics Card(s)
none; graphics are integrated on CPU
Sound Card
onboard: Realtek ALC1150; external: USB Behringer UF0-202
Monitor(s) Displays
Dell S2340M 23 inch IPS
Screen Resolution
1600 x 900
Hard Drives
System: Crucial MX100 series SSD, 128 GB;
Data: Samsung Spinpoint 103SJ, 1 TB;
Backup: WD Caviar Green WD30EZRX-00D8PB0, 3 TB
PSU
Rosewill SilentNight 500 watt fanless, semi-modular
Case
Antec Solo II
Cooling
Noctua NH-U12S; Noctua F12 intake, Noctua S12A exhaust
Keyboard
Microsoft 200 6JH-00001 USB
Mouse
Dell or Microsoft optical wired; USB
Antivirus
Microsoft Security Essentials and Malwarebytes Premium
Browser
Pale Moon
Other Info
All fans PWM; speeds at idle: CPU circa 500 rpm; intake circa 600 rpm; exhaust circa 600 rpm; CPU temps 27 idle and 47 C load in a warm room (27 C/81 F) when running Intel Extreme Tuning Utility stress test.

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 10 Pro x64Intel Core i7 6700KGSkill TridentZ RGB 16GB 3600 16-16-16-36EVGA GTX 980 Ti SC x2
Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Skylake Special #666
OS
Windows 10 Pro x64
CPU
Intel Core i7 6700K
Motherboard
Asus Sabertooth Z170 Mark 1
Memory
GSkill TridentZ RGB 16GB 3600 16-16-16-36
Graphics Card(s)
EVGA GTX 980 Ti SC x2
Sound Card
Realtek High Definition
Monitor(s) Displays
AOC G2460PG
Screen Resolution
1920 x 1080 144Hz
Hard Drives
Samsung 860 Pro 256GB, Seagate Barracuda 4TB x2
PSU
EVGA 1000 P2, EVGA White Custom Braided Cables
Case
Corsair Vengeance C70 Gunmetal Black
Cooling
Corsair H100i v2, Corsair ML120 x2, Thermal Grizzly Kryonaut
Keyboard
Logitech G910 Orion Spectrum
Mouse
Logitech G700s
Internet Speed
Verizon Fios Quantum Gateway 75/75
Antivirus
Windows Defender, Malwarebytes Free 3.8.3
Browser
Chrome
Other Info
Corsair SP120 x4, LG Blu-ray Drive, Durabrand HT-395 100 Watt Dolby Digital Amp, Corsair H2100 Wireless 7.1 Headset
I bought a Toshiba Canvio 1TB external USB 3.0 for $59 about a year ago. I think they are still selling around that price. I've used it a lot, never a problem.
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 10 Pro X64Intel Quad Core i7-4770 @ 3.4Ghz16.0GB PC3-12800 DDR3 SDRAM 1600 MHzIntel Integrated HD Graphics
Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Lenovo IdeaCenter 450
OS
Windows 10 Pro X64
CPU
Intel Quad Core i7-4770 @ 3.4Ghz
Memory
16.0GB PC3-12800 DDR3 SDRAM 1600 MHz
Graphics Card(s)
Intel Integrated HD Graphics
Sound Card
Realtek HD Audio
Monitor(s) Displays
HP 22" LCD
Screen Resolution
1680 x 1050
Hard Drives
250GB Samsung EVO SATA-3 SSD
2TB Seagate ST2000DM001 SATA-2
1.5TB Seagate ST3150041AS SATA
Keyboard
Dell USB
Mouse
Lenovo USB
Internet Speed
Cable via Road Runner 3MB Upload, 30MB Download
Antivirus
Windows Defender, MBAM Pro, MBAE
Browser
Seamonkey
Other Info
UEFI/GPT
PLDS DVD-RW DH16AERSH
Ignatz has the right idea. Get a USB3 dock and then use cheaper internal disks. That's what I do and use all the HDDs that I recovered from my 5 laptops when I installed the SSDs.
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Vista, Windows7, Mint Mate, Zorin, Windows 8from 1.6GHz Duo to i7
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
HP, Dell, Gateway, Toshiba - 4 laptops and 2 desktops
OS
Vista, Windows7, Mint Mate, Zorin, Windows 8
CPU
from 1.6GHz Duo to i7
Monitor(s) Displays
2x HP w2207
Hard Drives
5x HDD, 7x SSD, 12x Externals
Keyboard
with trackball - no mices
Mouse
Trackball mice
Internet Speed
DSL 6000
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