 Very good hard drive! |
| Review Date: November 24, 2009 |
| Reviewer: Sree V. Remella, Tempe, AZ |
I work for Computing support at Arizona State University, and I have enough technical knowledge to be certified as a TECH JUNKIE :).
I am a photographer too, so I have tons of Photos (about 160GB), Videos, Software, Movies and Documentaries. I was looking for a simple external hard drive without any backup software included, I am smart enough to do manual incremental backups with file tree structure intact (I use GOODSYNC to backup, its very simple and easy to use and free).
I have looked at many many external HDDs and narrowed down to two models "Samsung Story 1TB - very good one too" and this one (I wanted it to be cheap too - got this for $85 on [...]). I did not go with other WD models because of their annoying Backup Software.
Coming to the WD Elements 1TB: Its much smaller than I expected. It is dead silent, I had to touch it to convince myself that it was running, when I first turned it on. Its not too heavy either. The indicator light is placed at the rear, which is a very good thing (I find these LED's annoying, especially at night).
After I did the first setup, I copied 383GB of data (931GB was total space). It took about 4hr 47min, speed varied between 20MBps to 37MBps. This is pretty good speed for USB 2.0. It was just a bit warm (my old segate hard drive would be very very hot for this amount of data transfer).
I would recommend it to beginners or pros alike. I am very happy with this purchase!
UPDATE:
After about three months of heavy usage, it never gave up on me. Its still dead silent and works flawlessly. It never got even warm!!
Follow these steps to get GOODSYNC for FREE:
In the beginning GOODSYNC was free, later they made a paid version as it gained popularity..
but there is a way to get PRO version for free...
1. go to good sync website
2. signup for a trial offer and you get PRO serial for free (I signed up for eMusic trial)
3. Once you get the serial, end the subscription before the trial expires...
NOTE: The above mentioned procedure may not work anymore :(
UPDATE: 07-28-2010
I sold my WD Elements 1TB and got a 2TB one a couple of months ago(as my data is on rise all the time), couldn't be happier :)
I bought it from TigerDirect for $156 and got $23 cashback via Bing...awesome!! |
Excellent, well designed product for the money!
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| Review Date: November 19, 2009 |
| Reviewer: Gaurav Kumar, Union City, CA |
I bought this on sale at Fry's for $99, way below the amazon price. I wanted something simple as most hard drives these days come with their annoying built in software which cannot be deleted (like WD Essential Edition). This is a hassle free drive and is not bundled with any of the extra software which is exactly what I wanted. You simply plug it in and it works. It can easily be formatted to work with macs as well. I've been using WD hard drives for years and I own several models of the "essential" and "passport" editions. They are very reliable.
This elements hard drive has a sleek and sexy, minimalist design. It is well built overall and constructed of durable plastic. There is a slot for the USB cable, a slot for the power adapter and a tiny circular white light which blinks when it is in use (the light is not overwhelming as some hard drives can be). All three of these features are on one side/face of the hard drive (as shown in the picture), so if you have this plugged in and it is facing away from you, you won't see the light at all. This doesn't bother me but it may be a turn off for some people.
When in operation, it is very smooth and quiet compared to other WD hard drives I own. This may be due to the fact that it is closed entirely and there are no holes for ventilation as in other WD models. But this doesn't bother me because I just use this as a backup and don't need it on all of the time. This could (emphasis on "could") be an issue if you are constantly using your hard drive because it may become hot. I haven't experienced this at all, just speculating. If you are just backing up files and, say, watching a movie on your computer which is stored on the hard drive, I think you'll be fine and there won't be any heating issues.
More info here on WD's website: [...] |
Good value, no extra junk software!
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| Review Date: December 2, 2009 |
| Reviewer: ScottW, Northwest Washington |
I purchased the 1tb Elements (WDBAAU0010HBK-NESN) for use with a Dish DVR 622.
Installation was was truly "plug and play". I simply took it out of the box, plugged it in, and it was immediately recognized by the DVR. I have since transferred about 200gb of content to/from it, and have watched content directly from the drive. So far, it is working perfectly. It automatically spins down after a few minutes of non-use, as well as when the DVR is powered off. It also spins back up automatically (less than 10 seconds) when the DVR accesses it.
One thing some people might not like: The case is designed to sit flat (as pictured), not on its side. There are four small non-skid pads on the bottom corners, but none on either side. There is no indication on the box, in the documentation, or on Western Digital's web site as to whether the drive will work properly on edge. As a general rule, WD drives are designed to operate sideways or even upside down (any X,Y,Z orientation), so this one probably will too -- but you'll need to provide your own non-skid pads.
Several similar Western Digital drives, such as the late model "My Book" series, now include a firmware-based CD-partition that is difficult to remove, and can cause compatibility issues with some devices. That partition contains backup software and utilities that are of questionable value in any case, and of absolutely no value when using the drive with a non-computer device (like the Dish DVR). The Elements -- at least at time of this review -- doesn't include any of that junk. (Note: WD does have a downloadable utility to remove the partition from the other drives, but if you don't want that junk then save yourself the time/trouble and just buy the Elements drive.)
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Very nice drive for a low price
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| Review Date: November 23, 2009 |
| Reviewer: T. Truong, San Jose CA |
I picked this up from Fry's when it was on sale for 100 bucks.
I like the price.
I think the main differentiators between this and the higher price drive is that it has only 1 year warranty, and does not come bundled with any software to help you back up stuff.
But seriously who uses any of those anyways? Drive is preformated to NTFS, if you have a mac you'll need to reformat to be able write to it.
what I like:
very small.-for a 3.5" drive. very quiet and does not vibrate as much as my seagate 1.5TB drives.-This maybe due to the drive running at a lower RPM. I couldn't find the SPEC to say what this drive spins at.
Drive spins up and down(powers down) when not in use. very nice. the white power LED isn't overly bright.
dislike: enclosure snaps together, making it hard to swap out the drive in the future. only 1 year warranty. but I think that the 1 year is pre-built into the pricing.
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Total value for money!
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| Review Date: January 11, 2010 |
| Reviewer: Karan Madan, Chicago, IL USA |
This is a great external hard drive for expanding your digital storage capacity. I was in need for added storage and wanted to go for the 2TB WD Elements External Hard Drive. I wasn't really happy with the prices I was seeing for the 2TB hard drive, and that is when I decided to check up on the 1.5TB drives. WOW! I was amazed at the price Amazon was offering these drives and I got two of them. Yes, two! (My work requires that kind of storage space)
I got 3TB worth of storage for the price of a 2TB External hard drive!
That said, let us talk about the performance of these drives -
1) Build and form factor - Nice sleek looking enclosures. All black, the sides are fingerprint magnets with a glossy finish. The top and bottom panels have a matte finish. Looks matter to me, even if it just an external drive. The microUSB and AC sockets are closely spaced with a small white indicator light besides them. All in all very compact, sleek, and aesthetically pleasing device.
2) Performance - I am getting constantly good speeds on these drives. Reads at 30MB/s and writes at about 24MB/s, which is good and fast enough for my needs.
As always, users have to be careful with all hard drives, internal or external. I am handling my drives with the utmost care. I don't want to lose any important data.
Finally, this drive is a complete value for money purchase. I say go for it if you are out looking for a large capacity external hard drive. |
Excellent External Drive
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| Review Date: May 2, 2010 |
| Reviewer: Mark A. Valente, Danville, CA United States |
The Western Digital WD Elements is probably most notable for what it doesn't have:
1) It doesn't have any clever "look at me" flasing/glowing/blinking lights. One tiny light in the back will confirm it is on. But you won't need to check because "it just works".
2) It doesn't have any annoying, auto-loading, "I know better" software. There are lots of great backup programs available (freeware, shareware and built into most operating systems). And, of course, you can always just drag-and-drop files right onto the drive.
3) It doesn't get hot. Heat is a killer for electronics so that is even more important than you might think.
4) It doesn't make ANY sound.
5) It doesn't take up much space. It is smaller and more compact than any other external drive that I have purchased.
6) It doen't have any goofy stands or attachments. It is squared on all sides except the back so you can position it any way you want to.
7) And finally, it doesn't cost much. Considering drive space for cost this is the best value I have ever gotten on a drive.
For reference I have purchased two Seagate Freeagent drives, a 1 TB MyBook and have put several old drives into external drive enclosures. All of them are still working. I also have passing experience with several others from work and associates -- I like the WD Elements solution the best!
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The way it should be done
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| Review Date: February 21, 2010 |
| Reviewer: Andy in Washington, Washougal, WA |
This drive is just what the doctor ordered. I use it to backup files stored on my NAS drives, so I am not all that concerned with speed. It is attached to a computer running XP/Pro.
The Good Points:
The unit is a great size
The unit is quiet. No noise at all- no fans, no disk heads chattering, nothing.
There are no fancy lights. There is one little (and I mean little) LED on the rear that you never see. No fancy lights, flashing LEDs, fancy bar charts, nothing.
Uses a mini USB connector, but it is supplied with the drive.
No included software/firmware that you have to fight with to delete.
No problems attaching to computer or being recognized by OS.
The Bad Points:
None, as far as I was concerned.
The unknowns:
Two out of two units worked fine out of the box, and both have been running for a week or two with no issues so far. Only time will tell if there are any long term problems.
Not real sure how fast the drive is, but seems ok for backups.
One potential problem:
It is actually difficult to know if this unit is doing anything, or is even turned on without looking at the back. That may be frustrating to more technophobe users.
Summary: Great, simple drive. |
Very good USB drive
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| Review Date: March 10, 2010 |
| Reviewer: Ruslan Moskalenko, Pleasanton, CA United States |
I've never noticed how good this drive is until I started using the drives from the other vendors. Then it became obvious to me that this disk is:
1. Absolutely quite
2. Not getting hot or warm
3. It's faster than all 2TB USB2.0 drives I've tried.
4. It does have a usable indicator but it doesn't lit up your room at night with too much light
5. Works perfectly under Linux (not every vendor's drives do apparently).
6. The price is really good.
Bottom line is this is an ideal disk. You buy it, plug it in and forget about it.
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Very nice hard drive with no excess frills.
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| Review Date: April 15, 2010 |
| Reviewer: R. Hiranaka, |
I'm very glad I purchased this drive. The hard drive is enclosed in a somewhat heavy but simple metal case, and Western Digital seems to take great pains with their retail packaging to minimize shock without using excessive packaging materials. They are using a GreenPower drive in there, so it remains quiet, cool, and merely sips energy. However, do not expect this to be a speed demon. It runs at the same speed as your average notebook drive, so filling up a large capacity drive such as this one may take a long time. The drive also comes with the benefit (to me) of having absolutely no useless backup software preinstalled. The only real complaint I have lies with the AC adapter. I generally prefer a plug with the adapter separate. This one comes with a "wall-wart" which takes up far too much space on a surge protector.
I've had about 5 WD drives in the past, and of those 5 only one has failed me. All drives will eventually fail, and as such I see the company's ability to help you much more important than whether or not a particular drive fails. WD is one of those companies that is fairly reasonable when it comes to RMA and replacement of their products, so that's always a good sign.
Full formatted size for a 1.5TB drive is 1.35TB (as expected). Before placing anything valuable into something this large, I run Windows error checking, the company's diagnostic program (in this case WD Data Lifeguard found on their website), use full drive encryption by TrueCrypt to avoid being paranoid if I need to send it back for warranty, and finally I transfer and delete roughly a third of the drive's capacity a few times to stress test it. I've found that if a drive is to ever fail within a reasonable amount of time, this regimen will kill it and save me the trouble of an RMA in the relatively near future. |
Great Drive for the Money
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| Review Date: February 1, 2010 |
| Reviewer: Richard P. Willard, Olathe, KS USA |
| I got this drive primarily to run regular back-ups of my Mac via Time Capsule (Snow Leopard OS). The external hard drive I had previously wasn't large enough any longer (250 gig). The Western Digital drive set up quickly and easily. No problems whatsoever. It's also very quiet so I never really know it's on. I got it at a great price through amazon. It's excellent in every way. |
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