Western Digital WD Elements 2 TB USB 2.0 Desktop External Hard Drive WDBAAU0020HBK-NESN
- Simply affordable
- Easy to use USB 2.0
Product Description
Designed with the same commitment to quality that made WD external drives the number one drives in the world, Western Digital’s WD Elements USB 2.0 external hard drives are the right answer for simply affordable add-on storage. Just plug it in to a USB port and start saving your photos, music, video, and files. Kit contains; USB 2.0 external hard drive, USB cable, AC adapter, Quick Install Guide…. More >>
Western Digital WD Elements 2 TB USB 2.0 Desktop External Hard Drive WDBAAU0020HBK-NESN
I work for Computing support at Arizona State University, and I have enough technical knowledge to be certified as a TECH JUNKIE
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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…
Rating: 5 / 5
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: [...]
Rating: 5 / 5
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.
Rating: 5 / 5
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.)
Rating: 5 / 5
I was originally going to purchase the Western Digital WD Elements 1 TB USB 2.0 Desktop External Hard Drive (model WDE1UBK10000N). My sister in-law has that model and it truly is built like a tank. Metal case, rubber protectors on each end. It really looks like it could take few bumps. I picked up this particular model because I saw it on sale for $60 at the store that has a red bullseye for a logo. For that price I’d be silly not to snag it up.
As others mentioned it has a plastic case which is ok. Metal would’ve been nicer. And it is completely silent. Other than seeing the white light in the back blinking when transferring files, I cannot tell that it is actually working. But it is working
. I transferred 149 gb of data from my old external drive to this one in about 3 hours. It’s usb so I’m used to relatively slow transfers. The true test will be if it lasts as long as my iomega external hard drive which I’ve had for over 6 years. Even though it’s old, it has a small fan, an on/off switch, a long power cord and it feels like it can take a bump. I just needed a back up in the event the old work horse died on me.
Good:
+ cheap – $60 for “1TB” of storage space
+ plug and play
+ no annoying preloaded software
+ very quiet
+ barely warm after extended use(my old drive would get noticeably warm even with its built-in fan)
Not so good:
- plastic case. probably good idea not to lug this around too much.
- edges are shiny and attracts finger prints (this really didn’t matter to me, but I thought I’d mention it
- short power cord ~6’4″ (old drive’s power cord is over 11′), though usb cord is a bit longer than my old drive (4’3″ vs. 3’5″). It would’ve been better to add length on the power cord and shorten the usb.
- no fan
Price was the determining factor in choosing this drive over the “tank”. If this can last as long as my old external hard drive then it will be $60 well spent.
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UPDATE (11/29/09):
- actual storage space of 931 gb is a bit confusing at first. Per comments and some google searching 931gb is correct. Don’t be alarmed when you first see the available space on your external hard drive.
Rating: 4 / 5