The 500GB My Passport Essential Portable USB Hard Drive from Western Digital is a portable hard drive in a durable housing, great for use with laptop computers. The drive features an interface that allows it to be connected and powered by USB 2.0, a rotation speed of 5400rpm, a 2MB data buffer and bus transfer rates of up to 60MB/sec. The drive is an excellent storage solution for users who are on the move.
| Performance | |
|---|---|
| Capacity | 500GB |
| Interface | 1x USB 2.0 (Mini-B) |
| Drive Speed | 5400rpm |
| Buffer | 2MB |
| Average Seek Time | 12ms |
| Sustained Data Transfer Rate | Not Specified by Manufacturer |
| System Requirements |
Windows XP, Vista, 7; Mac OS X Tiger, Leopard, Snow Leopard USB port |
| General | |
|---|---|
| Mounting | Portable |
| Power Requirements | Bus-powered |
| Environmental Requirements |
Operating Temperature: 41-104°F (5-40°C) Storage Temperature: -4-149°F (-20-65°C) |
| Dimensions (WxHxD) | 3.1 x 0.6 x 5" (8 x 1.5 x 13cm) |
| Weight | 0.23 lb (0.1kg) |
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Reviewed by 13 customers
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Comments about Western Digital 500GB My Passport Essential Portable USB 2.0 Hard Drive (Red):
I love this little drive. If you aren't looking for something with firewire and just a plain ol' USB port, this drive its awesome. It's small, portable & so far, works like a charm. Love the passports.
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Comments about Western Digital 500GB My Passport Essential Portable USB 2.0 Hard Drive (Red):
the product works great. looks great. very easy to transfer files or music and movies. very compact size also.
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Comments about Western Digital 500GB My Passport Essential Portable USB 2.0 Hard Drive (Red):
Using to back up and image my laptop hard drive. Simple plug and play, compact and convenient. Product does exactly what it is supposed to do.
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Comments about Western Digital 500GB My Passport Essential Portable USB 2.0 Hard Drive (Red):
Small, compact and fast. I love this hard-drive. Its cute and small. easy to carry around and can fit even in my pocket. so good. really good for the price.
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Comments about Western Digital 500GB My Passport Essential Portable USB 2.0 Hard Drive (Red):
I like WD products. This one is portable and easy to use and can be used with out any additional power source. I have to try whether this will work with my sony audio player in the car which has usb card reader. If it is done i can store 500 Gb of songs. I think i can roam from south to north in US to finish all the songs.
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Comments about Western Digital 500GB My Passport Essential Portable USB 2.0 Hard Drive (Red):
I could not find any instructions on how to use this product. Being 73 years old,I am not computer literate enough to figure it out on my own. But after quick lesson from my daughter I am able to download all my photos.
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Comments about Western Digital 500GB My Passport Essential Portable USB 2.0 Hard Drive (Red):
Wow, is this thing small! I needed a HD to transport photos from one PC to another. I bought the My Book and liked it but it was a bit big so I made that my permanent external backup HD and bought a Passport for my portable unit. I just got it and it and am impressed. I did not install the backup software because I intend to drag and drop only my photos but the drag and drop worked fine and fast. I got it in red to help me keep track of it and I bought the recommended hard shell case which is a nice accessory even though it is oversized for theis HD. The case has a strap inside to secure the HD and a web pocket for the USB cord which are both handy. Obviously I cannot comment on its long term use since I just received it. I would not recommend this unit for a main backup but would recommend the MyBook for that which unit is clearly much more heavy duty with an external power cord and ventilation ports.
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Comments about Western Digital 500GB My Passport Essential Portable USB 2.0 Hard Drive (Red):
I just love this little hard drive. It hold so much data, pics, movies etc. I don't know how I ever lived without one.
Red is my fave color so this worked out really well. I would recommend this to others.
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Comments about Western Digital 500GB My Passport Essential Portable USB 2.0 Hard Drive (Red):
This hard Drive couldn't be any better. Well except the fact that the Red version has pink sides. But hey it is a great product. Works well and is very easy to use. As for being 500 GB it is extremely small and compact. It is great!
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Comments about Western Digital 500GB My Passport Essential Portable USB 2.0 Hard Drive (Red):
This is the optimal product available today for computer backups. A wonderful time-saving feature is that it is powered by the USB port, so extra cords and an AC outlet are NOT needed (especially nice when traveling). You can carry all your files around in your pocket, backpack etc; this unit is very lightweight. The 500 GB capacity is enough to hold my photograph collection, CD backups, and all my document files for work and personal use. (Only for video backups would I need a second one - I can't wait until they come out with the 1 TB version.) I have owned similar units for several years and all have functioned smoothly.
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Comments about Western Digital 500GB My Passport Essential Portable USB 2.0 Hard Drive (Red):
Good, just a little slow. I needed to reformat from fat32 to get larger files transfered.
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Comments about Western Digital 500GB My Passport Essential Portable USB 2.0 Hard Drive (Red):
I purchased this as an additional drive for my laptop and needed it to be portable. I was using a much larger external drive but it was not portable. This has worked out very well, it is easy to use and works like it is suppose to.
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Comments about Western Digital 500GB My Passport Essential Portable USB 2.0 Hard Drive (Red):
I have my Passport plugged into a USB port on the side of my monitor. When I use my KVM switch to switch from one computer to another, the Passport switches too. It makes it so easy to back up files on both my computers using the same device. This is a good investment in computer technology, and the next time a hard drive goes out on me, I won't be grieving the loss of my files.
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