twofish72's Full Review: Seagate OneTouchâ„¢ III Mini Edition 120 GB IDE Ha...
With dropping prices for hard disks, making a backup on a DVD or digital tape is not really feasible anymore. For the average person, using an external hard drive is not only the fastest but also the most cost effective way. When you want to get an external drive for your desktop, you have an almost unlimited number to choose from. But I wanted one for my notebook that is portable and doesn't need an additional power supply.
So my eyes fell on the Maxtor One Touch III Mini - A 120 GB hard drive.
The technical specs
Capacity: 120 GB
Interface: IDE/EIDI, connected to a mini USB 2.0 port
HDD form factor: 2.5"
Spindle speed: 5400 RPM
Average latency/access time: 5.56 ms
Data transfer rate over USB 2.0: 480 MB per sec
Size: 5.5" x 3.5" x .75"
System requirements:
- Pentium III with 500 MHz
- Windows 2000 or XP
- 128 MB RAM
- One free USB 2.0 (or 1.1) port
Using the drive
Like every external drive, just connecting it to the PC is enough. There is no need to install any software or download any drivers. The "One Touch III Mini" comes with an USB cable that has one mini-USB plug that goes in the drive and two regular sized USB plugs (one red, one black) to connect to the PC. You connect the drive through the red plug. Should your USB port not have enough power for the drive, you can connect the second plug to a second USB port. This way, two USB ports provide the power for the HDD which should be enough. Personally, I have not yet needed that feature.
While this is a nice idea, the three way cable can be annoying if you have the habit (like I do) to just stuff the hard drive into your notebook bag/backpack, as it will most certainly entangle with whatever is in there. So if your computer supplies enough power over one plug (which is very likely), try to get a regular UBS to mini USB cable.
If for whatever weird reason even two connected USB plugs don't supply enough power for the HDD, then you can order an optionally available power adapter to connect directly to the drive. But like I said, I have never even used the second USB plug, so I I doubt anybody really needs an additional power adapter.
The provided software package
Even though the drive is ready to go when connected, Maxtor supplies some software with it. The software doesn't come on CD or DVD but is pre-installed on the drive when you purchase it. The manual is also available on the drive itself as a PDF document.
The software provides a pretty impressive set of functions for a free software package. The individual functions are as follows:
1. Settings: Here you can adjust the power settings and tell the drive when to into power-saving mode. You can also customize the OneTouch-Button to start a specific application when pressed. Than can be any backup software for example or the backup function that the software itself comes with (which is the default).
2.Backup/Restore: As the name says, here you can pick out folders on your computer to backup to the drive and of course, restore them. Pressing the OneTouch-Button on the drive will start the backup function on default.
3.Sync: A very useful function that lets you specify a folder on your computer to be synced with the external drive. Whenever a file is changed and saved in the original folder, it is automatically copied to the Maxtor HDD. You can also set the sync process to manual and program the OneTouch button with it for example. You can use this function to sync your data to different computers.
4.Rollback: A feature that restores your computer to the state of a set restore point, much like the function already built into windows. You can set automatic restore points to be set every 24 hours.
Judgment
Originally, I only wanted an external drive so I could back up my stuff. The fact that I use a notebook meant that I wanted a drive that doesn't need an external power supply. Those were my only requirements. I was very happy to find out that I got so much more.
The software package is a real treat. For people that don't want to buy third party backup software and don't like to use the backup software from Windows, this is a real alternative. Okay, it cannot be compared to a professional backup suite or system restore utility but it does its job very good and surely is enough for the average computer user. The software package features on screen help and is very intuitive and easy to use so even beginners should not have a hard time using the software to it's full potential.
The quality of the drive itself is good. I have carried the drive in my backpack around for a couple of months now (jammed in one of the pouches on the back) and I see no signs of wear and the drive works like a charm.
The size is good. Small and light. And since it doesn't need an external power source it is ideal for users on the go. I would not get the drive for desktop users that just want an external HDD because for the money, you get bigger and faster drives (and you won't mind an external power supply). But if you carry it around, the requirements are different and this drive is perfect for that.
So if you are looking for an external, portable HDD for your notebook/laptop and 120GB is enough for you, there is no reason why you shouldn't take a very good and close look at the Maxtor OneTouch III Mini. I can recommend it without reservations.
Includes - External Hard Drive, USB Y-Cable, Quick Start Guide, Software and User Guide pre-loaded on drive 120GB Capacity 2.5-inch ATA Hard Drive, 54...More at Amazon Marketplace
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