Top Things You Should Know Before Buying an External HDD
Even though you have bigger flash drives in the market, you will feel that you prefer a more solid and stronger data backup. This is where an external HDD can make your life a lot easier. Not only that, you can enjoy true peace of mind because you know that your precious information will be in safe hands. Yet, there are various factors that can affect the selection of your HDD. These are top things that you should take into account before buying an external HDD.
Size
In terms of portability, sizes do matter because it can be inconvenient to carry your external HDD around. However, it can get more expensive when you have to put huge storage capacity in a more compact body. This makes sense because a smaller and more portable form factor will involve a higher standard of manufacturing. For those that are a tight budget, you should consider other alternative methods of data backup.
If you think that portability is not your primary concern, there are tons of cheap external HDDs that you can find in the market. You can choose this option when you think that you do not need to carry your external HDD around. In fact, you can get a bulkier external HDDs that can provide bigger storage capacity at a more affordable rate. At the end of the day, the size of your external HDD depends on how you are going to use it.
Storage
It is obvious that the amount of storage that you need will affect your selection of external HDD. As we browse through catalogues, we tend to prefer the best combination of price and storage capacity. Most of the time, we know that we need larger storage capacity but we fail to consider how big we need in the long run.
The general rule of thumb that you can follow is to select an external HDD that has twice the capacity you currently need. This will help you to prepare for the future because upgrading your external storage will not be as easy as the one that you can do on your desktops. Besides, the best external HDD is the one that helps to save your money and time so that you do not have to replace or upgrade it frequently. In other words, it is about being consistent with your usage.
Durability
Since HDD is a traditional device that uses mechanical moving parts, it can be fragile when it is vulnerable to damage from drops. Needless to say, any amount of force that is applied on your external HDD is going to affect its efficiency since it involves delicate parts. If you do not have tight budget, you should consider getting a specialized external HDD that can withstand shock as well as resistant against dust and water.