The Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black) is your answer to sleek, 'future-proof' portability. With this bus-powered drive, you can have up to 5Gbps USB 3.0 speeds with complete backward compatibility with USB 2.0, allowing you to take full advantage of your drive immediately while still ensuring future usability. The drive is powered by the USB interface, so you need not tote around a power adapter.
As a few more advanced features, the drive can be password protected and encrypted. It includes software that can quietly tell the drive to backup the content on your computer. In addition, the included WD Drive Utilities software offers added drive info and management. If you need to store extra video, photo, music, or data files and want a high-capacity portable solution, check out this drive from Western Digital.
| Interface | USB 3.0 (backward compatible with USB 2.0) |
| Capacity | 2TB |
| Data Transfer Rate | USB 2.0: Up to 480Mbps USB 3.0: Up to 5Gbps |
| Operating Temperature | 41 to 104°F (5 to 40°C) |
| Storage Temperature | −4 to 149°F (−20 to 65°C) |
| Format | Formatted NTFS for Windows XP, Vista, 7 Requires reformatting for Mac OS X Leopard, Snow Leopard, or Lion |
| Dimensions (LxWxH) | 4.37 x 3.24 x 0.82" (11.1 x 8.24 x 2.1cm) |
| Weight | 0.51 lb (0.23kg) |
REVIEW SNAPSHOT®
by PowerReviewsPros
Cons
Best Uses
Most Liked Positive Review
Great, Reliable Product
Bought this for its compactness and large storage size. But the first time I transferred 300 plus gbs from my secondary drive to the Passport....my main drive crashed. (I asked every ...Read complete review
Bought this for its compactness and large storage size. But the first time I transferred 300 plus gbs from my secondary drive to the Passport....my main drive crashed. (I asked every IT friend I knew if transferring that amount of data had anything to do with the crash, and the resounding answer was no. Bought a new main drive, and I'm once again up & running). With that said:
Pros: USB 3.0, backward compatible with 2.0; small, very small, sleek, attractive, and love the storage capacity. Stayed relatively cool even when transferring the above-mentioned 300gbs.
Cons: short cord, but I understand this has to do with transfer speeds and for users of notebooks, etc. Still......
The software that comes bundled with this version comes pre-installed in the drive, within their own respective folders. I've read many negatives about the software, especially the password lock. Although, yes, it's pre-installed, WD has given users the option of which program they want to initiate. Your choice. Otherwise, if you just want to bypass all of it (as I have) it's ready to be used as a straight storage device right out of the box. Just think of the Passport as a more sophisticated, over-sized flash-drive: Sweet and simple. Would definitely recommend a protective case for it, too, especially if you intend on transporting it a lot.
Highly Recommended
VS
Most Liked Negative Review
Failed Within First 6 Hours
I've always been wary of Western Digital drives, ever since my film school days where the majority of my friends who brought them to class experienced drive failures at least once (some more than ...Read complete review
I've always been wary of Western Digital drives, ever since my film school days where the majority of my friends who brought them to class experienced drive failures at least once (some more than once) during our 15 month diploma program.
I decided to take a chance with this product anyway since it promised a lot of storage in a convenient and portable package. Based on the reviews here, I thought maybe WD had overcome their durability issues from the past, and I didn't anticipate that I would run into any serious problems right off the bat.
After unpacking the drive, I hooked it up to my 2012 MacBook Pro via USB 3.0, formatted it to the HFS+ file system (Mac OS Extended (Journaled)) using Apple's Disk Utility as I normally would, and all was good at first.
I then copy/pasted two folders (about 1.2TB of data total, mostly video files) onto the drive, and left it to transfer. The computer was set to stay awake and sleep mode was disabled, in order to keep the transfer going.
When I came back a few hours later to check on the transfer, only about 30% had copied over and nothing else was happening. The drive had apparently crashed and would not respond at all. Instead it kept spinning, clicking, and clunking repeatedly. It would not eject from the computer properly, and all attempts to revive it failed. Disconnecting and reconnecting resulted in the same thing: the drive would try to warm up, but then get stuck in the spin/click/clunk cycle again.
I returned the drive the next day, and will not make the same mistake of trusting Western Digital again...
REVIEWS
Reviewed by 139 customers
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Displaying reviews 1-20
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Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
I use it to backup my data on my PC. I like that it is bus powered and doesn't need AC power. I also like its built-in software.
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
This drive is used for storing my music library and as such 'travels' quite bit. It's fast (usb 3), small, and easy to use. It's also very quiet which is important since it's connected to my stereo system.
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
lots of space and it's small meaning you can take it with you everywhere.
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
I am a digital photographer and need need quick supplemental externalmemory for images. The Passport is bus driven, easily attached to any computer, and operates effectively. In short, the Passport is an excellent solution for effective portable memory.
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
Product matches description.
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
Small, Lightweight, fast, easy o use, adaptable to USB 2 or USB3, relatively inexpensive, good value.
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
We have been looking for a portable HD small enough to fit in our firesafe and this is perfect. Small, fast and 2TB of storage plenty to keep all our photos safe in case of natural diaster or robbery. This is the perfect backup.
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
Use everyday as auto daily updates, use WD back-up software, works great pluse Windows back-ups. Easy to use, has it's own health checks just mouse over the icon in sys tray. Updates were not a problem. Formatted into two drives. Western Digital user since 2006! Never had problems with WD hard drives!
Bought Jan 2013.
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
It is really easy, I didn't have to install anything before I used it. It looks really good and it's not that big, perfect to put in your pocket.
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
Very compact, looks like its well built.
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
I bought this drive because I have another old WD Passport drive (250 Gb) and I'm delighted with the results.
The use I'm giving to this new drive is to take with me everything I cannot put into my laptop's hard drive.
It came formatted as FAT32, so I needed to reformat for a Mac. Once connected, everything looked normal but DiskUtility failed every time, even with different setups. I tried with a different machine but always the same error. I was starting to think the drive had a problem and made one last try. I opened TimeMachine and selected the drive to work as backup. TimeMachine reformatted it in a snap and it worked fine! Just to be sure everything was alright I reformatted it with DiskUtility and this time it worked as expected.
I've used it for just a few days but it works perfectly. It's fast, reliable, small and light.
The USB cable is a bit short.
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
I just about filled it up with data. It is a backup that I will only use occasionally.
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
The only thing better, maybe, than this 2TB "My Passport" Portable Hard Drive would possibly be a 3TB hard drive. If you need portability with easy access to your files this is it! B&H has the lowest "delivered to your door" price anywhere that can be found. Lower prices are advertised but shipping and tax take it up to almost local retail.Have not discovered a downside to this product and doubt I will.Thank You B&H!
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
Just perfect for fast downloads with USB 3.0
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
Very good quality piece
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
This is the second one I have purchased. The drive works so well and I am using both of these for off-site storage, primarily for my photo library and LR Catalogs.
One thing that is not mentioned in the manual - WD does recommend using the "Safe to Remove" app before disconnecting the drive to guarentee it is not still in a read/write mode.
I'm still using these drive on a USB 2.0 system and actually they seem faster than the internal HDD on the system. I'll upgrade to USB 3 soon.
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
Great little drive for traveling, at least I hope. I'll see how it compares to LaCie. This will be used for photo back-up while traveling.
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
Small and very simple to use. This is my 3rd Western Digital portal drive. I don't need 2tb but it will get filled up sooner or later.
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
Ilove this products for being small and portability.
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
Small, compact, works very well. Use for backup of photo library. Comes with backup software that will run continuously if desired.
One thing that is not in the included manual - WD Tech Support indicated you should always "Safely Remove" device from your computer before disconnecting the drive. This is to make sure there is no "read-write" activity still taking place on the disk.
Really compact, runs fast, even at USB 2.0 but remarkable at USB 3.0. Included cable is a little short but necessry to guarentee correct power delivery to device.
REVIEW SNAPSHOT®
by PowerReviewsPros
Cons
Best Uses
Most Liked Positive Review
Great, Reliable Product
Bought this for its compactness and large storage size. But the first time I transferred 300 plus gbs from my secondary drive to the Passport....my main drive crashed. (I asked every ...Read complete review
Bought this for its compactness and large storage size. But the first time I transferred 300 plus gbs from my secondary drive to the Passport....my main drive crashed. (I asked every IT friend I knew if transferring that amount of data had anything to do with the crash, and the resounding answer was no. Bought a new main drive, and I'm once again up & running). With that said:
Pros: USB 3.0, backward compatible with 2.0; small, very small, sleek, attractive, and love the storage capacity. Stayed relatively cool even when transferring the above-mentioned 300gbs.
Cons: short cord, but I understand this has to do with transfer speeds and for users of notebooks, etc. Still......
The software that comes bundled with this version comes pre-installed in the drive, within their own respective folders. I've read many negatives about the software, especially the password lock. Although, yes, it's pre-installed, WD has given users the option of which program they want to initiate. Your choice. Otherwise, if you just want to bypass all of it (as I have) it's ready to be used as a straight storage device right out of the box. Just think of the Passport as a more sophisticated, over-sized flash-drive: Sweet and simple. Would definitely recommend a protective case for it, too, especially if you intend on transporting it a lot.
Highly Recommended
VS
Most Liked Negative Review
Failed Within First 6 Hours
I've always been wary of Western Digital drives, ever since my film school days where the majority of my friends who brought them to class experienced drive failures at least once (some more than ...Read complete review
I've always been wary of Western Digital drives, ever since my film school days where the majority of my friends who brought them to class experienced drive failures at least once (some more than once) during our 15 month diploma program.
I decided to take a chance with this product anyway since it promised a lot of storage in a convenient and portable package. Based on the reviews here, I thought maybe WD had overcome their durability issues from the past, and I didn't anticipate that I would run into any serious problems right off the bat.
After unpacking the drive, I hooked it up to my 2012 MacBook Pro via USB 3.0, formatted it to the HFS+ file system (Mac OS Extended (Journaled)) using Apple's Disk Utility as I normally would, and all was good at first.
I then copy/pasted two folders (about 1.2TB of data total, mostly video files) onto the drive, and left it to transfer. The computer was set to stay awake and sleep mode was disabled, in order to keep the transfer going.
When I came back a few hours later to check on the transfer, only about 30% had copied over and nothing else was happening. The drive had apparently crashed and would not respond at all. Instead it kept spinning, clicking, and clunking repeatedly. It would not eject from the computer properly, and all attempts to revive it failed. Disconnecting and reconnecting resulted in the same thing: the drive would try to warm up, but then get stuck in the spin/click/clunk cycle again.
I returned the drive the next day, and will not make the same mistake of trusting Western Digital again...
REVIEWS
Reviewed by 139 customers
Sort by
Displaying reviews 1-20
Previous | Next »
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
I use it to backup my data on my PC. I like that it is bus powered and doesn't need AC power. I also like its built-in software.
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
This drive is used for storing my music library and as such 'travels' quite bit. It's fast (usb 3), small, and easy to use. It's also very quiet which is important since it's connected to my stereo system.
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
lots of space and it's small meaning you can take it with you everywhere.
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
I am a digital photographer and need need quick supplemental externalmemory for images. The Passport is bus driven, easily attached to any computer, and operates effectively. In short, the Passport is an excellent solution for effective portable memory.
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
Product matches description.
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
Small, Lightweight, fast, easy o use, adaptable to USB 2 or USB3, relatively inexpensive, good value.
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
We have been looking for a portable HD small enough to fit in our firesafe and this is perfect. Small, fast and 2TB of storage plenty to keep all our photos safe in case of natural diaster or robbery. This is the perfect backup.
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
Use everyday as auto daily updates, use WD back-up software, works great pluse Windows back-ups. Easy to use, has it's own health checks just mouse over the icon in sys tray. Updates were not a problem. Formatted into two drives. Western Digital user since 2006! Never had problems with WD hard drives!
Bought Jan 2013.
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
It is really easy, I didn't have to install anything before I used it. It looks really good and it's not that big, perfect to put in your pocket.
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
Very compact, looks like its well built.
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
I bought this drive because I have another old WD Passport drive (250 Gb) and I'm delighted with the results.
The use I'm giving to this new drive is to take with me everything I cannot put into my laptop's hard drive.
It came formatted as FAT32, so I needed to reformat for a Mac. Once connected, everything looked normal but DiskUtility failed every time, even with different setups. I tried with a different machine but always the same error. I was starting to think the drive had a problem and made one last try. I opened TimeMachine and selected the drive to work as backup. TimeMachine reformatted it in a snap and it worked fine! Just to be sure everything was alright I reformatted it with DiskUtility and this time it worked as expected.
I've used it for just a few days but it works perfectly. It's fast, reliable, small and light.
The USB cable is a bit short.
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
I just about filled it up with data. It is a backup that I will only use occasionally.
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
The only thing better, maybe, than this 2TB "My Passport" Portable Hard Drive would possibly be a 3TB hard drive. If you need portability with easy access to your files this is it! B&H has the lowest "delivered to your door" price anywhere that can be found. Lower prices are advertised but shipping and tax take it up to almost local retail.Have not discovered a downside to this product and doubt I will.Thank You B&H!
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
Just perfect for fast downloads with USB 3.0
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
Very good quality piece
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
This is the second one I have purchased. The drive works so well and I am using both of these for off-site storage, primarily for my photo library and LR Catalogs.
One thing that is not mentioned in the manual - WD does recommend using the "Safe to Remove" app before disconnecting the drive to guarentee it is not still in a read/write mode.
I'm still using these drive on a USB 2.0 system and actually they seem faster than the internal HDD on the system. I'll upgrade to USB 3 soon.
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
Great little drive for traveling, at least I hope. I'll see how it compares to LaCie. This will be used for photo back-up while traveling.
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
Small and very simple to use. This is my 3rd Western Digital portal drive. I don't need 2tb but it will get filled up sooner or later.
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
Ilove this products for being small and portability.
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Western Digital 2TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive (Black):
Small, compact, works very well. Use for backup of photo library. Comes with backup software that will run continuously if desired.
One thing that is not in the included manual - WD Tech Support indicated you should always "Safely Remove" device from your computer before disconnecting the drive. This is to make sure there is no "read-write" activity still taking place on the disk.
Really compact, runs fast, even at USB 2.0 but remarkable at USB 3.0. Included cable is a little short but necessry to guarentee correct power delivery to device.