SimpleTech by Hitachi Signature Mini 500 GB USB 2.0 Portable External Hard Drive FS-U25/500E (Espresso)
by Hitachi
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List Price: Our Price: $75.00 You Save: $49.99 (40%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Category: CE See more product details |
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Customers in the UK,
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of SimpleTech by Hitachi Signature Mini 500 GB USB 2.0 Portable External Hard Drive FS-U25/500E (Espresso)
Customer Review: Problem Alert - caveat emptor
Summary: 3 Stars
I originally ordered this on December 31st and ordered it with Saturday delivery. Amazon delivered it with no problems on Saturday. I immediately opened it and attempted to install it and OOPS - no software installed on it. No problem mon - went to the manufacturers website and figured I would download it from there. The harddrive hooked up with no problems so I just needed the software. Well after about two hours of looking on Simpletech, Hitachi and Fabrik's websites I realized it wasn't so easy - every hardrive but this one was listed under support. And there is no support on weekends from humans. Without the software it might as well be an elegant rock. So I called Amazon and asked for a reploacement and they were very good and sent a new one pronto which arrived without delays on Monday. Guess what? No software again on the machine. At least this time it was before 5PM CST and there was tech support available. Well, I called 4 numbers for 20 minutes straight and nobody answered the phone - all 4 rang and rang and rang until 5:05CST - at which point I finally got a hold of a receptionist at Hitachi who said they had phone issues. She eventually had somebody from Tech Support contact me (after calling again 20 minutes later) at which point the guy talked to me like I was a moron and told me he could have saved me the trouble of having Amazon replace it - that they format these portable hard drives 100 at a time and sometimes they don't get the software loaded. I asked him why they didn't put this on their support site so I at least knew what was going on - and he said they couldn't because of copyright problems with the software. When I asked a manager the same question about putting some mention of this problem on their website he said they wouldn't want to redflag a problem like this. So I will do it for them right here - watch for defective hard drives on this model!!! Well the tech support guy did email me a link to download the software - but unless you feel like going through the hassle - avoid this.Customer Review: Mini is Perfect for My Mac Book Pro
Summary: 5 Stars
It's small, compact, quiet, fast, light weight, space saving, racy looking, different colors for easy ID, rubberized coating for a sure grip, stackable, extremely portable, with easy instructions to convert to Mac.
I have 4 Minis. I bought the first one over a year ago. I have one for my Time Machine back up, one for music, one for photos/videos, & a 500G to back up the others, that I keep in a fire proof safe.
Some suggestions for those who gave bad reviews:
1. When the drive is running, leave it alone! Don't pick it up or move it around. Just leave it sitting flat.
2. You must dismount the drive properly! See FAQ on Simple Tech's web site.
3. Don't be in such a hurry! Wait several seconds to be sure the drive has fully stopped.
4. Don't yank the USB plug out. You might create a tiny spark. Sneak the plug out gently, especially if it's windy or there's static electricity in the air.
5. As for the lack of power complaints...The shorter the USB cable, the greater the power. Try using your camera cable. At about 50+G of info, the external drive may need up to 1 Amp to get going. If the Mini is not seen by the computer, unplug everything - Mini first. Then attach both USB plugs of the "Y" cable & reconnect - Mini last. Best to get an externally powered USB hub. Belkin makes a nice little white 4 (& 7) port. Each port of the Belkin puts out ½ Amp (500mA). I can run several Minis at once, without any power problems.
6. Lastly, if your not backed up at least twice, you're not backed up at all.
Use a little common sense & save yourself a lot of grief.
The Mini is a great little product!!! Be nice to it, and it'll be nice to you.
Customer Review: It works. And guess what's in it!
Summary: 4 Stars
I bought this external hard drive when it was on sale. It was cheaper, actually, than buying a bare hard drive, so I went ahead and bought this thing even though I did not quite need it.
The drive worked nicely. It is no speed demon; not only is it only equipped with USB 2.0 port, but it houses a 5400rpm hard drive, so it is naturally slow, topping out at somewhere north of 20MB/s. On the upside, it does not require an external power source (unless your USB port is wimpy and/or swamped with other devices from the hub). I have noticed that the casing did not close properly; this, I later realized, was due to a broken tab. It did not affect its functionality, but I question its build quality.
Then I required a 2.5" hard drive for a new computer. Despite the small risk of hard drive not fitting, I opened up the casing (oops, there's my warranty!). Inside sat... a Hitachi Travelstar 5K500. I believe it is a late revision. It is a good sign as a hard drive. As for the rest of the parts? Well, the USB-to-SATA circuit part was very small, and it might just work with 3.5" hard drive (I'm not making any guarantees! Do this at your own risk.). Casing is flimsy plastic (durr) with an LED on top. It's structurally sound overall, but I wonder if this is a good casing for heat dissipation. Perhaps it's the culprit for hard drive failures others are experiencing?
Customer Review: Going to buy another one
Summary: 4 Stars
I have a Simpletech 250 GB portable hard drive. Now I need another because it is full. It is very reliable, quiet and small. The only con I have is not long after I got mine the label on the back came off. Its printed right on the drive that if the label is "removed or tampered with" the warranty will be void. I've never had to test that theory, but it kind of scared me that the label came off so easily. I think the heat (it doesn't get super hot, but does get warm) loosened the adheisive and it just eventually fell off. I kept the label but I think it would suck if I had to have it repaired and they wouldn't do it because the label came off, no fault of my own.
Overall it's a great drive though. And the price here is unbeatable. I'm going to get one of these, and office max has a 1tb desktop drive on sale right now that I'm getting for backup if I don't find something less expensive here.
Customer Review: have it for 4 years now-since 2005
Summary: 5 Stars
great product , i had different assortment of brands of HD external and enternal , allllll HD well fail at some point, so don't complain about the loss of data , just mirror ur backups as much as u need , simple tech are the only external Hd that sevived that much time, knowing that i droped it couble of times at work on hard floor , and my kids droped it many times at home of my disk , and each time when i say this was the end of that drive (due to the hard droppings) , i plug it in and , it's working as same as first day i got it, and by the way i got it for only $60 from stables cuase it was in dameged packeging , even the floor assistan told me u will be taking great risk buying that one specialy that sale was final , on my way home i reialized i just through away my $60 , but when got home i was very gratfull to the quality this drive was made at ...great jobe