HP SimpleSave Portable USB 3.0 Hard Drive Review

The [amazon_link id=”B0044DEEV0″ target=”_blank” ]HP SimpleSave Portable USB 3.0 Hard drive[/amazon_link] with both USB 3.0 and USB 2.0 connectivity is a recent offering from HP that comes in numerous sixes up to 2TB. This hard drive caught our eye because it comes with one cable that can be used fo rbothe USB 3.0 and USB 2.0 making it a nice find for users who think about their next computer or for someone who plans to use it as a means of migrating from an old computer to a new one with USB 3.0.

HP sent us over a 1TB USB 3.0 model to test out and we gave it a go on several systems including an HP EliteBook with USB 3.0, a USB 2.0 equipped HP dv6 and the MacBook Air. In all tests the driver performed well and at $123 it represents a good buy, not the cheapest 1TB USB 3.0 drive we’ve seen, but certainly in the right price range at Amazon.

Speed: The HP SimpleSave USB 3.0 portable hard drive was pretty speedy in our tests clocking in at about about 12MB/s faster in sequential reads and about 24MB/S faster in sequential writes when compared to a USB 2.0 connection. The rest of the tests run with CrystalDiskMark 3.0 weren’t too shocking.

What we did learn was that transferring a large file over USB 3.0 was faster than USB 2.0 in real life and something we enjoyed as we tried to grab a 1.2GB file before jetting home from work at five o’clock on Friday.

Build and Design: One thing that caught our attention was the solid feel of the HP SimpleSave portable hard drive. Even though it is made of plastic it had a really solid feel to it makes you feel safe tossing it in a backpack for travel without a carton of bubblewrap around it. If you do plan to use it on the go you’ll appreciate that the same cable that works with USB 3.0 and USb 2.0 is also the power supply so you won’t need to lug around a bulky adapter.

Software: The HP SimpleSave USB 3.0 hard drive comes with SimpleSave backup software that will get the job done for automatic backups, but you can also use the back up built into Windows 7 or with a third party service like Mozy that allows you to backup tot the cloud and to a local hard drive.

Conclusion: The [amazon_link id=”B0044DEEUQ” target=”_blank” ]HP SimpleSave USB 3.0 hard drive[/amazon_link] is a top pick for users who want a solid feel and the speed of USB 3.0 but also need to connect to a USB 2.0 computer.

Amazon has the [amazon_link id=”B0044DEEUQ” target=”_blank” ]1TB HP USB 3.0 Portable hard drive[/amazon_link] for $123 and you can also get smaller capacity drives like the 750GB for $99.99 or the 500GB for $79.99 from [amazon_link id=”B0044DEEUQ” target=”_blank” ]Amazon[/amazon_link].

HP SimpleSave USB 3.0 Portable  Hard Drive Gallery:

Specs:

  • Dual USB 3.0 and USB 2.0 compatibility
  • Up to 3x faster transfer rates with USB 3.0
  • High-capacity portable storage
  • USB-powered – no power supply needed
  • Preformatted for Windows

Model: WDBACZ0010BBK-NESN

Hard Disk Size: 1000 GB

Hard Disk Interface: Serial ATA

Width: 5.07 inches

Height: 6.61 inches

Weight: 0.58 pounds

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