Western Digital My Passport Studio
Western Digital's My Passport Studio hints at Mac aesthetics, but at least it has a matt black finish for the main body. The 1TB unit I tested included both FireWire 800 and USB 2.0 cables, but unlike some other models, Western Digital doesn't include a FireWire 400 cable.
Alas, this drive is also in the same league as the Verbatim Store ‘n’ Go. Its sequential performance is somewhat better – with 76MB/s writes and 68MB/s writes – but it can't handle random operations with any kind of speed. It features a USB 2.0 interface too, so no alternative Superspeed options for PC users. While its price tag is in keeping with other portable drives, its performance does impact on its value for money.
Reg Rating 65%
Price £180 (1TB)
More info Western Digital
Western Digital My Book Studio II
Like the G-Tech G-RAID, this behemoth from Western Digital also comes in 6TB form created by the marriage of two 3TB drives in a RAID-0 like configuration. I must say that the twin drive format really does bolster the My Book line a lot. You get two FireWire 800 ports, eSata and USB, but unfortunately only USB 2.0. Given WD’s success in the USB 3.0 market it would have really broadened this drive for all season's appeal to see it featured.
As for performance, the 6TB Studio II reads at 77MB/s, but it struggles to get much beyond 50MB/s when writing, so that’s a bit of a let-down. If you can live with the plastic enclosure and the average performance, but don't want to spend a fortune, then a My Book Studio II is definitely worth considering, as the larger capacities WD offer are pretty good value overall. ®
Reg Rating 70%
Price £295 (4TB), £380 (6TB)
More info Western Digital
Ten... FireWire 800 hard drives
COMMENTS
Alternatives
How about some reviews of disk caddies? 2.5s, 3.5s etc with such connections. I use an OWC with FW800, 400, USB and eSATA on it and it's not exactly difficult for a novice to load in a drive.
So, what conclusion ?
Where's the roundup table? where's the conclusion? This article is lacking in providing a clear view of the 10 contenders.
Realistically anyone thinking of the G-Raid would be better to go for something with a Thunderbolt connection (yes newer Macs only I know) but Firewire tops out at about 80Mb per second - the Lacie RAID (thunderbolt) drive I now use gets 320-330Mb per second.
If you want 'cheaper' storage (i.e. for backups etc.) and are happy with Firewire's limitation then the best value drive is probably the 'Western Digital My Book Studio II' as it costs barely any more than the drives it contains. So worst case you could use it now and may be able to buy a Thunderbolt enclosure in the future and re-home the drives.
No review of Lacie Rugged triple? (FW800, USB3.0/2.0)
http://www.lacie.com/uk/products/product.htm?id=10553
Iomega Mac companion is rubbish
Have you actually tested that thing ?
Hook it up through firewire and the high power port is just that : a high power charger. you lose ALL USB capability.
Hook it up using USB and you lose the high power charger port. it becomes a dumb usb hub. Firewire disables as well.
You cannot hook it up using both cables. It is or USb, or Firewire ... not BOTH. and you need to sacrifice the usb ports or the high power charger ...
on USB the drive als o has the annoyance that it keeps waking up the MAc from sleep mode.
THe LEd's in the front require installation of a special piece of software form iomega that is also buggy. ...
In other words : FAIL. And, yes , i do have one. Sandpaper exterior. Works fine as a drive .. but that's it. the additional stuff doesn't work right.
