Good Economy Priced External Hard Drive
This is a very good economy priced drive and I've had no problems with it. I've had hard drives that have lasted over 25 years. Most people don't seem to understand how to take care of these hard drives, so let me give you some pointers, from someone who hasn't had one fail in over 25 years. I have two WD 40GB external drives, from 1990, three 4TB drives, two 6TB drives, and now this 8TB drive. All of them still work great and they are all silent. Sure, I've got a bad one, and I've sent it back immediately, but not this manufacturer. The thing is that you can't let them run 24 hours a day. The platters will continually spin and wear them out. The first sign of impending failure is when they start to get noisy. The power supply also generates constant intense heat from the 120volt power going into it, and going through the power restrictors to supply the 12volts needed for the hard drive. They will get hot. The quality of your electrical power might also cause problems, if you live in an area where the power isn't well conditioned, and you get a lot of fluctuations in your power source that could cause the drive arm to bang on the platters. So, if you want them to last, turn them off when you are not using them. The pretty blue light, might look nice, but if you leave it on, 24 hours a day, you will ruin the drive and the power supply. It is the same as a computer, if you leave it on 24 hours a day. A gaming console is basically a computer. Even if the power is off to the hard drive, power is still going thru the power supply. What I use is a surge protector power strip. I turn the power switch off on the strip, so no power goes to the power supply. I've had power supplies wear out and my drive would stop functioning, and I thought the problem was the drive. But, I noticed that the power supply was real hot. When I replaced the power supply, the drive worked fine. This is what gave me the clue that have made my hard drives last for over 25 years. Now, I use a power strip/surge protector on all my electronic devices and equipment. To make it even easier for me, I got a wireless power outlet with remote, for $15. I have everything programmed to my entertainment remote, a White Logitech Harmony Elite. Now, those things are expensive, but I can turn everything off, with one button. It might take a couple minutes for everything to boot up, but this is worth it to me to save all my priceless data and equipment. And, when I'm done, I shut everything down, and I turn off the power strip. Not, only does this save my platters on my drives, it also saves my power supply, and provides protection from power surges during storms that could also destroy my electronic equipment. One final thing, that I've noticed that people complain about. These drives are not going to work directly with PS5 or XBox Series X. Those drives require SSD speed equipment to work directly with those game consoles. They will work with them, but you must transfer the games to the SSD before you can play them. They will work directly with PS4 and Xbox One S. I actually use mine for my gaming laptop and to store movies. I've had this one for six months and it is completely silent, probably because of the way that I take care of it. It isn't the quality of the drive that it is the issue most of the time when they fail. All my drives, from 25 years ago, are still running silent. But, if you leave them on constantly, because of the heat these electronic devices generate, and the electrical technology, you will ruin them in short time. Imagine if you leave your car running 24 hours a day, even if it is parked and not moving. You will overheat your car and fry your engine. You will short the electrical components too, over time. It is the same with all heat generating components. But, if you take care of them, they can last you over 25 years. I hope this helps. Peace. Read more
