Western Digital My Passport Edge
Portable hard drive
By Zara Baxter, Auckland | Friday, 01 February 2013The Western Digital My Passport Edge is a tiny external drive, around the size of a slim wallet. It weighs about the same as one too.
The included software, which comprises WD Drive Utilities, WD Security and WD Smartware, allows you to perform a number of useful tasks and diagnostics, such as password protecting your drive, encrypting the drive, set up backup, test the drive and securely erase it. We used the Windows apps, but there’s also a set for Mac users.
We found the software installation a little longwinded – it’s worth having a few minutes spare to configure everything the first time you plug the drive in.
WD has a smart backup that can locate all your personal files and back them up, or you can choose files and folders. HP used the WD smart backup system in its smart backup drives from a couple of years ago, and the system works simply and conveniently.
As an external drive, the WD performed well. When copying 10GB of photos using USB 3.0, it averaged a pacy 103Mbyte/s write speed, though the read speed was only 34Mbyte/s.
If 500GB is sufficient for your storage needs, and you like an external drive to handle your backup, then the WD My Passport Edge is a good option. Its size and portability make it very useful, especially for laptop owners. However, it doesn’t come in alternate capacities, so if its one tiny size doesn’t fit you, there are other options that work well, such as the Seagate Backup Plus.
This review was first published in the December 2012/ January 2013 issue of New Zealand PC World.
WD products are great
WD products are great I just bought a 2TB Passport portable, and I highly recommend WD products they are well designed and reliable
Posted by Anonymous at 10:26 on February 7, 2013
WD products are great I just bought a 2TB Passport portable, and I highly recommend WD products they are well designed and reliable
Posted by Anonymous at 10:26 on February 7, 2013
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I bought one a few weeks ago for my mac and it is very sleek indeed. It looks very Apple. The metal finish is great and it feels well built and performs well.
Posted by Anonymous at 10:34 on February 7, 2013
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