Greatest exterior laborious drives for Mac 2023

The unique Seagate Extremely Contact was a pocket-size laborious drive with an attractively slim and light-weight design. It was a reasonably outdated design although, restricted to both 1TB or 2TB of storage, and it was nonetheless utilizing an outdated USB 3.0 interface that required an adaptor in an effort to work with extra trendy Macs and PCs with USB-C.

This up to date model of the Extremely Contact updates most points of the drive’s design. It’s barely bigger and heavier, however now begins with a minimal of 2TB storage, with 4TB or 5TB fashions additionally accessible should you want further storage. This new mannequin now has a USB-C interface too, with a prolonged (50cm) USB-C cable included as effectively.

The 2TB mannequin – which is completed in cloud white – remains to be pretty slim, measuring simply 13.2mm thick, 80mm extensive and 115mm lengthy, and weighing a modest 168g, so it’s choice should you simply want a light-weight, transportable drive which you can slip into your pocket or a bag. The 4TB and 5TB fashions are completed in a darker pebble gray and are barely bigger and heavier, measuring 23mm thick and weighing 267g.

You’ll be able to’t purchase the Extremely Contact straight from Seagate, so that you’ll have to buy round on-line, and costs do appear to fluctuate rather a lot. The typical costs that we got here throughout throughout testing had been round $79.99/£99.99 for the 2TB mannequin that we examined, whereas the 4TB and 5TB fashions are round $124.99/£139.99 and $207.99/£164.99 respectively.

Efficiency is much like that of the unique Extremely Contact, at 130MB/s for each learn and write speeds, which is round common for a transportable drive resembling this. The Extremely Contact contains some further options too, resembling the flexibility to create mirror folders in your Mac and the Extremely Contact drive which can be mechanically synced and up to date everytime you make any modifications to these folders. The Toolkit app additionally supplies 256-bit encryption and password safety for further safety, making the Extremely Contact choice for individuals who have to preserve vital recordsdata safe after they’re working away from the workplace. Clients within the US may also use Seagate’s Knowledge Restoration service to rescue recordsdata within the occasion that the drive is broken (though this service isn’t accessible in all areas).–Cliff Joseph

LaCie’s Cellular Drive was already on our listing of one of the best laborious drives for Mac customers, and it has only in the near past launched a brand new model of the drive for 2022. The earlier model remains to be accessible from a couple of on-line shops, however you may acknowledge it by its sharp, angular design. In distinction, the brand new 2022 Cellular Drive adopts Apple’s present design fetish, with a slimline, rectangular design that has easy rounded corners. The LaCie brand is correct within the heart, slightly than off on one aspect as was beforehand the case.

Costs begin at a aggressive £79.99 for a drive with 1TB storage, however there are additionally fashions with 2TB, 4TB, and 5TB accessible too. The 1TB and 2TB fashions measure simply 10.4mm thick, 85mm extensive, and 118mm lengthy, and weigh 200g, in order that they’re simple to choose up and carry round along with your laptop computer. The 4TB and 5TB fashions are a bit thicker – at 20.4mm – and weigh 300g, however that’s nonetheless measurement for transportable laborious drives that present such excessive capability. They’re all constructed out of recycled aluminum, and durable sufficient to deal with life on the street.

You should use them to your Time Machine backups, however LaCie’s ToolKit app – for macOS 10.14 or later – additionally lets you create a Mirror folder that’s mechanically up to date everytime you make any modifications to the recordsdata or knowledge inside that folder.

The drive has a USB-C interface, with a USB-C cable included within the field, and recorded write and skim speeds of 126MB/s and 130MB/s respectively when operating the BlackMagic Disk Pace Check. There are quicker laborious drives accessible, however that’s nonetheless a decent pace for a compact laborious drive resembling this, and the Cellular Drive 2022 stays , inexpensive backup drive for MacBook homeowners – and even homeowners of desktop Macs who might have the bigger 4TB or 5TB fashions. —Cliff Joseph

Seagate has up to date its vary of Firecuda drives with various particular version fashions which have designs taken from Marvel and Star Wars movies. There are drives with Spiderman, Boba Fett and the Mandolorian, however our favourite is the ‘small and highly effective’ Child Yoda drive (sure, we all know his identify is Grogu, however he’ll at all times be Child Yoda to us). And, when hooked up to your Mac, the drive is even displayed in your desktop with a Child Yoda icon as effectively.

These particular version drives are solely accessible with 2TB storage, and so they’re all priced at £114.95/$139.99 on Seagate’s web site. That’s a bit expensive for a 2TB drive, so that you’re paying a bit further for the Star Wars vibe, however we’ve got seen them at decrease costs elsewhere on-line, and there are different fashions within the Firecuda vary that present totally different capacities too.

It’s a bit bigger than some transportable drives, measuring 14.5mm thick, 80mm extensive, and 122mm lengthy. It’s sturdily constructed, although, and solely weighs 167g, so it’s nonetheless gentle sufficient to only decide it up and slip it onto a bag along with your laptop computer once you’re touring. The one minor oddity with the design is that it makes use of a USB 3.2 interface with a USB-A cable – to offer compatibility with Xbox consoles, apparently – so that you’ll want a USB-C adaptor in case your Mac solely has USB-C.

The Firecuda drive is formatted within the ExFat format for Home windows PCs, however you may reformat it for Macs utilizing Disk Utility, and Seagate’s ToolKit app will run on any Mac with macOS 10.14 or later. The drive will work with Time Machine in your Mac, however the ToolKit app additionally lets you create a particular Mirror folder in your Mac that’s at all times stored in sync with an identical Mirror folder on the Firecuda drive. The app even allows you to customise the coloured lighting results for the standing gentle on the entrance of the drive too.

Seagate doesn’t quote a pace for the drive, however we recorded learn and write speeds of 130MB/s in our checks. Skilled customers may want a quicker laborious drive or SSD, however that’s a decent pace for a transportable laborious drive resembling this, and the Firecuda is a extremely good – to not point out severely cute – choice for day-to-day backups in your Mac. –Cliff Joseph

The ArmorATD is an enclosure with a 2.5-inch laborious drive inside that’s shock-mounted, and the rugged aluminum case is surrounded by a silicon sock for further safety. It is going to face up to minor abuse, extra when off than on and the disks are spinning, however your greatest guess with any laborious drive is to not deal with it like a hockey puck. The connection is USB-C with a pace score of 5Gbps (USB 3.1/Gen 1)–loads quick sufficient for any laborious drive. The drive guarantee is for 3 years.

You’ll get round 120MBps writing and 127MBps studying most (with giant recordsdata) from the ArmorATD in your Mac. Good things. The Armor ATD arrives formatted to exFAT so that you’re good to exit of the field underneath each Home windows and macOS. Nonetheless, exFAT will extract a 5 % max penalty, so Mac customers will need to reformat the drive. –Jon L. Jacobi

The WD Black P10 supplies a extra transportable various to the WD Black D10, which is geared for desktop use. It’s not as quick because the D10, however it may well draw energy from a USB port, so you may merely plug it into any Mac, PC, or video games console when you could again up your recordsdata. It’s comparatively giant for a transportable drive, measuring a chunky 20mm thick, 88mm extensive, and 118mm lengthy, however its strengthened casing is sturdy sufficient to deal with being bumped round in a backpack once you’re touring.

The drive is rated at a comparatively modest 140MB/s for each learn and write efficiency, though our checks really recorded speeds of 120MB/s and 110MB/s for learn and write efficiency respectively. That’s not going to interrupt any data, however it’s fantastic for the occasional Time Machine backup or for storing a number of video games, photographs, movies, and different multimedia recordsdata. The P10 can also be competitively priced, beginning at simply $89.99/£80.99 for a wholesome 2TB of storage. There are 4TB and 5TB fashions accessible too, so the P10 is an efficient choice for Mac customers who’ve actually giant collections of photographs and movies that they will’t match onto their Mac’s inside drive.

The one oddity is that the P10 makes use of an growing older USB 3.2 interface. There’s a USB cable included, however it has a USB-A connector, so that you’ll want to offer an adaptor for Macs that solely have USB-C. —Cliff Joseph

Western Digital’s My Passport drive supplies loads of transportable storage at a aggressive worth. The My Passport begins at simply $79.99/£49.99 for 1TB storage, going as much as $189/£119.99 for 5TB, so it’s a extremely inexpensive backup choice should you’re on a decent funds.

The bodily measurement of the drive depends upon the quantity of storage you select. The 4TB drive we examined measured a chunky 4.2×3.0×0.8 inches (107x76x19 millimeters) however the 1TB and 2TB fashions are simply 0.43 inches) (11mm) thick. The 4TB drive remains to be sufficiently small to slide right into a jacket pocket with no bother in any respect. It’s very solidly constructed too, so we’d be completely satisfied to make use of it in outside areas with our MacBook.

Nonetheless, the drive is exhibiting its age a bit, utilizing ye olde USB 3.0 interface, so that you’ll want an adaptor in case your Mac solely has USB-C. Its learn and write speeds of 108MBps and 100MBps respectively aren’t going to win any awards both, however the My Passport will nonetheless be fantastic for the occasional Time Machine backup once you’re on the transfer along with your laptop computer.

There’s additionally a mannequin referred to as My Passport For Mac that features further cables for each USB 3.0 and USB-C, and is pre-formatted in Apple’s HFS+ format, however that’s barely dearer so it’s not important until you’ve bought a bit of additional money to spare. –Cliff Joseph

Because the identify suggests, LaCie’s 1big Dock is greater than only a simple laborious drive. It begins at $369/£349.99 for a drive with 4TB storage, going as much as $889/£869.99 for 18TB, and its 7,200rpm IronWolf Professional laborious drive supplies robust efficiency with learn and write speeds of 235MBps by way of its Thunderbolt 3 port. That makes it choice for anybody that wants a quick drive for giant video, photographs, and audio recordsdata.

The first Thunderbolt port additionally supplies energy for charging a MacBook laptop computer as effectively. You even have the choice of popping open the entrance panel to swap out the usual laborious drive and insert a brand new drive to offer an on the spot improve.

However the factor that actually makes the 1big Dock stand out from most of its laborious drive rivals is its built-in hub and connectivity options. There’s a second Thunderbolt port that can let you join further Thunderbolt and USB-C units, and a DisplayPort 1.4 interface for an exterior monitor.

The entrance of the drive additionally supplies a typical USB 3.0 port and slots for each SD and CompactFlash (CF) reminiscence playing cards, making it an amazing choice for inventive customers who have to import recordsdata from cameras and different units.

There’s additionally a model of the 1big Dock accessible that makes use of quicker solid-state storage too–in fact, it’s fairly a bit dearer. –Cliff Joseph

Western Digital’s WD Black drives are primarily geared toward players who desire a quick drive to spice up loading occasions for his or her video games, which explains why the menacing black design of this D10 desktop drive seems like a chunk of heavyweight munitions from the Name Of Obligation video games. However a quick drive may even enchantment to anybody that has loads of photographs, movies, and audio recordsdata that they need to retailer on their Mac, and the D10 has different options that may turn out to be useful too.

Some points of the design are a bit odd. There’s just one model accessible, with 8TB storage, though its $240/£199.99 price ticket on Amazon remains to be aggressive for a quick drive resembling this. It’s geared up with solely an outdated USB A interface (despite the fact that it’s USB 3.2) maybe to offer compatibility with older video games consoles, so that you’ll want an adapter in case your Mac solely has USB-C.

Its 7,200-rpm drive supplies superb efficiency, reaching learn and write speeds of 245MBps and 240MBps, respectively. The D10 requires an exterior energy provide, so it’s very a lot designed for desktop use, however it additionally has two further USB 3.2 ports on the again of the drive that may present energy to different units, resembling an iPhone or iPad. These ports are just for charging, although, so you may’t use the D10 as a dock for connecting peripherals resembling a printer or reminiscence stick. –Cliff Joseph