Most Reliable External Hard Drive For Mac

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1-16 of 434 results for 'most reliable external hard drive' Skip to main search results Amazon Prime. Eligible for Free Shipping. WD 2TB My Passport for Mac Portable External Hard Drive, USB-C/USB-A - WDBLPG0020BBK-WESE. 4.2 out of 5 stars 304. 99 $99.99 $99.99.

The Best External Hard Drives for Mac in 2019 Looking to add storage, or for a smart way to back up your Mac? Here's what you need to know, along with our top-rated Apple-friendly drives. The WD Element can rightly be called one of the most reliable external hard drives on the market. It is quite compact for the model with a storage space of 2 TB and fairly affordable for the HDD of its range.

BestExternal Hard Drives for MaciMore2019

When it comes to storing data, personal information, and essential documents, you can never be too safe. External hard drives are not only useful for storing data but are an excellent way to transport files from one location to another. When you take into account price, ease of use, and portability, the Seagate Backup Plus Slim is the most reliable hard drive you can carry around with you at all times.

Best Overall: Seagate Backup Plus Slim (2 TB)

If you want a reliable external hard drive that has a decent amount of storage, is super easy to carry around and has a very affordable price tag, the Seagate Backup Plus Slim is the best option for most people. Formatted for Windows and Mac right out of the box, it's easy to carry all your essential documents from desktop to laptop without missing a beat.

The Seagate Dashboard back up system is a fantastic simple tool that can let you schedule backups to ensure you never miss any critical files you need in case something terrible happens to your computer. You can set automatic backups daily, weekly, or monthly, and change the frequency whenever you want.

Seagate also throws in a one-year complimentary subscription to Mylio Create. This can help you wrangle your photo library if you don't already use some photo managing tool, and a two-month membership to Adobe Creative Cloud Photography Plan.

Pros:

  • Affordable
  • Great backup software
  • USB 3.0
  • Metal enclosure

Best Overall

Seagate Backup Plus Slim (2 TB)

Reliable, portable, and affordable.

Don't worry about lengthy setups or formatting procedures. Plug in the Seagate Backup Plus Slim 2TB which is formatted for Mac right out of the packaging.

Best USB-C hard drive: Samsung T5 Portable SSD (1 TB)

This small compact SSD drive from Samsung comes with both a USB-C to USB-C cable and a USB-C to USB-A, meaning it's perfect to use with your MacBook or Mac.

Its fast 540 MB/s read and write speeds are more than enough to transfer any file. And should be able to store all your photo and video files with ease thanks to its straightforward software. Plus, if you're worried about encryption, the Samsung T5 Portable SSD has you covered with an optional password to launch the drive, and AES 256-bit hardware encryption on all your files.

Pros:

Most Reliable External Hard Drive For Mac
  • USB-C
  • SSD
  • Super compact
  • AES 256-bit hardware encryption

Best USB-C

Samsung T5 Portable SSD (1 TB)

Fast and encrypted

With 540 MB/s read and write speeds the Samsung T5 Portable SSD is fast enough for photographers and videographers to transport all their work.

Compatible with Time Machine right out of the box, the 8 TB storage capacity on the Western Digital My Book is perfect for people looking for a lot of stage at a reasonable price. It's USB 3.0 meaning it's easy to take advantage of its storage speed with fast transfer speeds.

While portability is not the Western Digital My Book's strong suit and it needs a separate power source, it does offer 256-AES encryption when you download its easy-to-use security software. It ensures all your important files and documents stay private.

If you're looking for a drive that has lots of space, os you don't have to have multiple as your storage needs grow, look no further.

Pros:

  • Lots of storage
  • 256-AES encryption
  • Time Machine compatible

Best Capacity

Western Digital My Book (8TB)

Lots of storage for those who need it

Western Digital offers 256-AES encryption when you download its security software, meaning you can rest easy knowing your private information and personal data is safe.

External

Best Thunderbolt 3 Drive: LaCie Rugged Thunderbolt

LaCie hard drives have always been good for people on the go because of the rugged design. The LaCie Rugged Thunderbolt can withstand some dust, dirt, and even a tiny bit of water being splashed on it.

It's 7200 RPM Hard drive keeps things running smoothly. And the included USB-C cable — which supports Thunderbolt 3 — makes it perfect for MacBook and Mac users alike!

Cons:

  • Only 130MB/s

Best Thunderbolt 3 Drive

LaCie Rugged Thunderbolt

Rugged design with Thunderbolt 3

The LaCie Rugged Thunderbolt 3 is a favorite because it can withstand drops, dust, and even the occasional splash of water, making it easy to carry around!

Best for Legacy Hardware : G-Technology G-DRIVE USB 3.0 (4TB)

While Apple has been going the way of USB-C and Thunderbolt 3 for a while now, some of us still use older hardware and thus don't need hard drives that have USB-C connections. If you're still rocking USB-A or even a Thunderbolt 2 connection from your Mac, the G-Technology G-DRIVE USB 3.0 (4TB) is a perfect companion.

Its all-metal design is not only more durable than plastic hard drives, but it also looks stylish! Plus, it's 7200 RPM speed allows the G-Technology G-DRIVE USB 3.0 to achieve 195 MB/s read and write speeds. This makes it fast enough to transfer large video files quickly and efficiently.

Cons:

  • Needs to be reformatted for Windows

Best for legacy hardware

G-Technology G-DRIVE USB 3.0 (4TB)

Stylish and fast even on older computers

With 7200 RPM, this hard drive works hard and fast to get your files transferred quickly. Plus, it uses USB 3.0, and it even has a Thunderbolt 2 port.

The CalDigit Tuff does the best it can to live up to its name, giving you a hard drive that isn't as delicate as most. Its official IP rating is IP57, meaning it can be submerged in 3-feet of water for 30 mins and come out the other side functional. That's not all; this Thunderbolt 3 compatible drive can also withstand falling from about 4-feet high. We still don't suggest that you purposely abuse the CalDigit Tuff. Still, it's always good to have peace of mind when you're carrying your hard drive around.

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Cons:

  • Only come in 2TB

Best rugged drive

CalDigit Tuff

Can withstand drops and water

Official rated IP57, the CalDigit Tuff can survive an accidental dip into the water and has a great price tag.

If you're used to dealing with giant file sizes and need a hard drive that can handle transfer data fast, the Samsung X5 is one of the fastest SSD's you'll find. Its read and write speeds are 2,800MB/s and 2,300MB/s respectively, and the entire body is made of metal, making it much harder than plastic drives. Plus, The internal frame on the inside is shock resistant for drops from 2 meters.

This SSD comes with Thunderbolt 3 technology included. This you can take advantage of the fast speeds on your Mac or MacBook Pro, and it doesn't need any formatting, so it's plug and play!

Pros:

  • 2,800MB/s read speed
  • Shock resistant
  • Thunderbolt 3

Best fast drive

Samsung X5

Incredibly fast SSD

If you need blazing fast speeds for giant files, the Samsung X5 is a monster external SSD that can handle any workload.

Bottom line

The Seagate Backup Plus Slim is the most reliable hard drive you can carry around with you at all times. It is formatted for both Mac and Windows right out of the box, and its easy-to-use software can automatically do backups for you as often or as little as you want.

Seagate also throws in a one-year complimentary subscription to Mylio Create. This program can help you wrangle your photo library if you don't already use some photo managing tool. A two-month membership to Adobe's Creative Cloud Photography Plan means it's perfect for budding photographers as well.

Credits — The team that worked on this guide

Luke Filipowicz is an iMore staff writer who has been carrying around his Seagate Backup Plus Slim since his college days.

Lory Gil is the Managing Editor of iMore and an avid believer in having as many backups of your important files and documents as possible.

Rene Ritchie is the foremost authority on all things Apple and has insider knowledge about the goings-on at the biggest tech company in the world. When it comes to accessories for Mac, Rene has used them all.

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Every individual had faced such a situation in their lifetime to do erased hard drive recovery on Mac. This circumstance could occur if the hardware has been subjected to any damage. The hard drive might comprises of some important files which is used for business processing or it can also have different types of files related to videos, music, etc. Sometimes the hard drive could be accidently erased while you are running any programs or applications. The reason for the deletion of the hard drive cannot be predicted but still you can find many ways for erased hard drive recovery on Mac. In this scenario you require some reliable source to get back your hard drive along with the necessary files for further usage. The recovery process involves getting back the files stored in the hard drive without any modification. The software used in the recovery procedure should restore the data in the hard drive which has been erased accidently without the knowledge of the user.

Part 1. The Most Reliable Erased Hard Drive Recovery on Mac

Most Reliable External Hard Drive For Mac Windows 7

iSkysoft Data Recovery for Mac plays a vital role in bringing back the erased hard drive recovery on Mac with less difficulty. This software has many features to recover all types of data stored inside the hard drive. Moreover it has many options to prevent the drive being erased without the knowledge of the user. The optimum utilization of the software enables to protect the hard drive as well as recover the data stored in the erased hard drive on Mac. It serves as one of the reliable software and it is user friendly. The process involved in the recovery in very simple and it can be used even without any technical knowledge. It is highly recommendable to use iSkysoft hard drive recovery software to recover your hard drive files. The process involved is very simple and you can do it by your own without any assistance from anyone.

Why Choose This Erased Hard Drive Recovery Software:

Most Reliable External Hard Drive For Mac Download

  • You will be able to recover any type of data like video files, music files, images, documents etc.
  • You can recover more than 50 types of files during the process
  • The files will be restored with the help of file signature.

Step-by-Step Guide for Erased Hard Drive Recovery Software on Mac

Step 1. Download the iSkysoft Data Recovery for Mac software. Next install them to begin your recovery process. Launch the application. This application prompts you to select the file types to be recovered. You can reduce the scanning time by customizing using the filter option. This option enables you to select the required data files which have to be restored. This filter option lists out image files, videos, documents etc. Select any one from the list based on your needs. Choose them and then hit 'Next'.

Most Reliable Portable External Hard Drive For Mac

Step 2. Now the software will lead to a list of drives available in your Mac system. Select the drive in which you need to process the data recovery. And then click 'Start' to begin the scanning process.

Step 3. When the scanning process is completed then select the files which have to be recovered and click 'Recover' button. This action enables to complete erased hard drive recovery on Mac without any difficulty.

Part 2. How to Backup Data Before You Erased Hard Drive

The optimum way to backup data on Mac is by using the external hard drive with maximum storage capacity.

Most Reliable External Hard Drive For Mac 2019

Step-by-Step Guide to Get Deleted Videos Back With Backup

Step 1. Connect the external storage using the USB port in your Mac system. You can select the external storage capacity based on the requirement. If you want to backup more data then go for high capacity external storage.

Step 2. Format the external hard drive so that the files have been stored properly in Mac for better recovery process. This process helps to sort out the files which enables in an easy recovery. Select the external drive and click on the format button to establish the formatting process.

Step 3. The backup process is carried out by launching Time machine application. If this is not automatically triggered then you can make a manual launch by using the system preference options. Select this external hard drive to be the default back up storage when prompted.

Step 4. Enable the time machine utility to begin your backing up process automatically. Initially it might take more time but later the files get automatically backed up without any difficulty. Schedule the backup process within some interval of time by enabling the given options.

Best External Hard Drive Backups

Thus backup your files in the hard drive in an easier method before it get erased accidently. Follow the above process to save your files for future use even the hard drive get erased.