


Best for Taking a Beating: G-Technology G-DRIVE R Runner-Up, Best on a Budget: Transcend StoreJet M3

Most come in other capacities, of course, so you can scale up or down to match your budget and storage needs. Note: We’ve linked to the 2TB version of each drive to make price comparisons easier. We’ve even included a drive that doesn’t need to be attached to a laptop, ideal for lightweight travel in truly rugged conditions.
#Best portable hd for mac full
These six portable drives span the full range of options, from budget-minded versions to high-end performers. SSDs are smaller, lighter, more robust, and much faster, but all those benefits come with a significant price tag. The main decision is whether to go for a drive with a traditional spinning disk (HDD) inside, or a more recent solid-state drive instead. Many are very small and light, fitting easily in your pocket (never mind your carry-on), and some are extremely fast, so you can back up even huge video files in under a minute. Some just have basic drop protection, while others can handle even dust storms and complete submersion with ease. There are a few, though, built with this lifestyle in mind. They’re designed to sit on a desk for most of their life, not deal with the knocks, drops, rain, dust, and everything else that makes up the average travel day. Of course, having a backup is useless if you can’t rely on it, which is why most cheap external hard drives aren’t much good on the road. When you’re generating hours of footage or hundreds of shots every day, it’s the only way to quickly and reliably back up those irreplaceable files. If you’re a traveling photographer or videographer, especially one who spends time in remote or rugged areas, having a good portable hard drive is vital.
