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11 'external hard drive' stories July 2013 - September 2015
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9to5Toys Last Call: 5-Port USB charger $10, Segate 8TB Desktop HDD $200, iPhone 6/s Battery Case $20, more

Avatar for Sep 24 2015 - 9:01 am PT
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Keep up with the best gear and deals on the web by signing up for the 9to5Toys Newsletter. Also, be sure to check us out on: Twitter, RSS Feed, Facebook, Google+ and Safari push notifications.

Today’s can’t miss deals:

Last Call Updates:

App Store Free App of the Week: Doodle Jump SpongeBob SquarePants ($2 value)

The best 5-port USB power supply (Aukey 8A/40W) is $10 Prime shipped (orig. $50)

Double your iPhone 6/s battery capacity w/ this 3,100mAh MFi Apple-Certified Case for $20 Prime shipped (Reg. $37)

Seagate Backup Plus 8TB USB 3.0 Desktop External Hard Drive $200 shipped (Reg. $250)

$100 iTunes Gift Card for $80 w/ email delivery via PayPal: save 20% on movies, apps, more

Gift Cards w/ email delivery: Staples $100 for $85, Applebee’s $50 for $40, other restaurants, more

Spigen iPhone 6s/Plus cases in multiple styles and colors as low as $3 with free shipping

Wrap your new iPhone 6s with Speck’s CandyShell Grip case for $14 shipped (Reg. $25+), more

Giveaway: This is Ground’s Mod Laptop 2 is a road warrior’s dream bag, up to $499 value

More new gear from today:

Shine on! Free MP3 Downloads: Pink Floyd’s Wish You Were Here (Reg. $8), much more

More deals still alive:

Apple iPad Air 2 Wi-Fi up to $150 off (all colors): 16GB $349, 64GB $449, 128GB $549 (Reg. up to $699)

The best USB car charger (Aukey 4 port/48W) is just $7 Prime shipped, Lumsing 6000mAh Power bank: $10

New products & more:

Skreens combines your DVR, Xbox One, Roku and more onto one screen

Polk’s new flagship Omni S6 speaker goes after the multi-room audio crown

9to5Toys Last Call: 15% off Nomad Apple Watch accessories, iOttie iPhone 6 car mount $10, Pebble $60 w/ .edu, more

Avatar for Mar 17 2015 - 9:00 am PT
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Keep up with the best gear and deals on the web by signing up for the 9to5Toys Newsletter. Also, be sure to check us out on: Twitter, RSS Feed, Facebook, Google+ and Safari push notifications.

Today’s can’t miss deals:

Last Call Updates:

 

Samsung D3 Station 4TB Desktop External Hard Drive $100 shipped (Reg. $150)

Mount iPhone 6 in your car: $10 (Reg. $23), keep it charged w/ MFi Lightning cable: $7 Prime shipped (Reg. $14)

Thinking Apple Watch? Pebble’s original timepiece might be a better buy for iOS users

Sling TV hits Xbox One with free one month trial for Live users, additional channels announced

1Password 5 for Mac is on sale for $35 (Reg. $50) – stop using weak passwords right now

Small States Review: Carved’s Live Edge iPhone 6 cases ensconce your device in one-of-a-kind raw wood, multiple giveaways

More new gear from today:

SurfBoard SB6121 DOCSIS 3.0 Cable Modem (refurb): $45 shipped (orig. $70), more

  • New! Games/Apps: MacID for iOS goes free (Reg. $4), GuitarToolkit 50% off, freebies, more
  • New! Daily Deals: Onkyo 5.2-Ch. 4K Receiver $230, 3Doodler 3D Printing Pen $70, more
  • New! Klipsch Image X5 Noise-Isolating in-ear headphones $70 shipped (Reg. $90+), more

More deals still alive:

Get started with Tile Bluetooth iOS/Android item trackers for $20 Prime shipped (20% off)

iTunes Free App of the Week: 8bit Doves ($3 value)

13-inch Retina MacBook Pro (Mid-2014) 2.6GHz/8GB/128GB $1,060 (orig. $1,299), more

Apple extends deeper discounts to its refurbished store: AirPort Extreme $129, 13″ MacBook Air from $719, more

Apple laptops up to 25% off: MacBook Air from $750 w/ .edu, Pro w/ Retina display from $1,100 w/ .edu

Updated Apple TV pricing gets passed down as players refurbished by Apple hit a new low of $59

New products & more:

With summer approaching, SABER introduces the iPhone connected EDGE smart grill

How-To: Choose the best external hard drive for your Mac (or iOS device!)

Avatar for Jeremy Horwitz Mar 12 2015 - 11:25 am PT
43 Comments

I feel old saying this, but having used computers since before external hard drives existed, I can say with certainty that buying a hard drive is easier today than it’s ever been before. For traditional drives, prices are low, options are numerous, and capacities are so high that your only choices are “enough space,” “more than enough space,” and “way more than enough space.” I could point you towards a gigantic 5-Terabyte $139 Seagate USB 3.0 hard drive right now and end this article without another paragraph. Since Apple doesn’t even sell a Mac with that much disk space, you could back up five (or more) computers to that drive without running out of room. Or you could store a decade worth of digital photos alongside a giant media library. For $139!

But buying an external hard drive isn’t necessarily that simple. There are a bunch of factors worth considering before making a purchase, including everything from reliability to portability, design, capacity, speed, and connectivity. Some hard drives are really cheap but have a higher chance of failing after a year or two of heavy use. So in this How-To, I’m going to discuss the big issues you need to consider, and guide you towards the best external hard drive for your needs…


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9to5Toys Last Call: Lexar 256GB flash drive $80, Better Call Saul free on iTunes, Sling TV free trial, more

Avatar for Justin Kahn Feb 9 2015 - 9:06 am PT
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Keep up with the best gear and deals on the web by signing up for the 9to5Toys Newsletter. Also, be sure to check us out on: Twitter, RSS Feed, Facebook, Google+ and Safari push notifications.

Today’s can’t miss deals:

Last Call Updates:

Lexar 256GB S73 USB 3 Jumpdrive Flash Drive (100mb/s read): $80 shipped (Reg. $170)

Download the first episode of Better Call Saul in HD for free

Sling TV is now available with free 7-day trial, details on new channel availability

Valentine’s Day bailout: up to 70% off select jewelry and free 1-day shipping

Valentine’s Day Roundup: ProFlowers 30% off, Gap/Timbuk2/J.Crew up to 40% off, more

Get 67% Off The Productivity Pack (Updated to include 3 Months of Dropbox Pro FREE)

Small States: Woodchuck USA complements Apple products w/ USA-sourced wood, 15% off & giveaways

More new gear from today:

More deals still alive:

New products & more:

Review: G-Technology’s G-Drive USB is a pro-grade Mac hard drive at consumer prices, in 2TB-6TB sizes

Avatar for Jeremy Horwitz Dec 30 2014 - 9:40 am PT
9 Comments


Professional video editors and filmmakers have raved about G-Technology’s hard drives for over a decade. These users — day-one adopters of Apple’s Mac Pro and MacBook Pro computers — need a lot of hard disk space, fast interfaces, and above all else, reliability. Losing part or all of a project can kill a movie, so nothing is left to chance on the storage side. I’m not a video professional, but as a father, my family photos and home videos are some of my most valuable possessions, and I don’t want to lose them to a hard drive failure. Numerous recommendations led me to Hitachi GST subsidiary G-Technology’s G-Drives years ago, and now there’s a new entry-level model that’s affordable enough for everyone: G-Drive USB ($160-$400, available here for $150 and up).

G-Drive USB offers all the capacity, speed and reliability G-Tech drives are known for, but in a smaller enclosure with fewer ports on the back. I’ve been testing one for the past month, and it’s as excellent as the five earlier G-Tech drives I’ve used since 2006. G-Drive USB isn’t the cheapest hard drive around, but when you care about long-term reliability, it’s worth paying a premium for peace of mind.


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Want a Time Capsule but find it a bit pricey? Create a DIY version with $35 Rasberry Pi

Avatar for Ben Lovejoy Aug 29 2014 - 7:47 am PT
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I’m a huge fan of my Time Capsule. Once an hour, both my MacBook Pro and Air machines are backed-up automatically via wifi without me having to do a thing. As a wise friend once observed, the only 100 percent reliable backup system is one where you don’t have to do a thing – not even plug in a drive.

But there’s no denying that at $299 for the 2TB model or $399 for the 3TB model, the Time Capsule isn’t cheap. You can buy a 2TB external hard drive for well under $100 or a 3TB one for slightly more. You’d normally need a more expensive NAS system to make it work via wifi, but Remy van Elst has created an instructible enabling you to do it with nothing more than a $35 Raspberry Pi.

You’ll need to be comfortable with command lines, and it will take you a little time to get it all configured, but at the end of it all you’ll have a working Time Capsule – that looks to OS X just like the real thing – for somewhere around $120.

Review: OWC Mercury Elite Pro Mini dual-drive external enclosure with RAID

Avatar for Ben Lovejoy Jun 26 2014 - 3:32 am PT
28 Comments
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One of the reasons I like Macs is that their useful life tends to be significantly longer than that of a typical Windows machine. This is especially true of the pre-Retina MacBook Pro models, where it’s trivial to upgrade both the RAM and the drive.

I’d previously swapped out the 750GB hard drive and optical drive that came with my late-2011 MacBook Pro 17 for two 1TB hard drives. Along with a RAM upgrade, that gave me a 16GB RAM, 2TB hard drive machine. The plan was to use the machine in that form for a year or two, then do a further upgrade to SSDs once 1TB models arrived and fell to a halfway sensible price.

When that finally happened, and I did the upgrade, that gave me two 1TB hard drives surplus to requirements. I could have placed each into its own external drive caddy, but one 2TB drive is more useful than two 1TB ones, so I decided instead to try out OWC’s Mercury Elite Pro mini. This is an external enclosure for two 2.5-inch drives, which supports both USB 3 and Firewire 800, drawing power from either source – making it a portable drive without the need for external power … 
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9to5Toys Last Call: Up to 55% off Toshiba storage, Samsung EVO 250GB SSD $165, games galore, Logitech mini Boombox $80, more

Avatar for Sep 9 2013 - 3:04 pm PT
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From 9to5Toys.com:

A large majority of the deals we cover each day come from a variety of ‘Daily Deal’ websites or are so popular that they don’t even last 24 hours. We know you can’t be at your computer every second, so we’re going to round up the best deals each day to make sure you have a fair shot at the deals you want. Be sure to follow 9to5Toys.com so you never miss a deal... Twitter, RSS Feed, Facebook, Google+.

Today’s featured deals:

Storage deals:

Gamers’ Deals:


Other great deals from today:

The best deals that are still alive:

New product announcements & reviews:

  • Amazon announces the all-new Kindle Paperwhite e-reader, now available for preorder starting at $119
  • Western Digital fills out its NAS-optimized RED hard drive line with new 2.5 inch versions
  • Review: The Just-Mobile UpStand, a functional iPad stand wrapped in a beautiful design
  • Sony officially begins serving up 4K Ultra HD video downloads with one big caveat
  • LifeProof’s new protective nuud case for iPad mini now available
  • JBL Spark Bluetooth speaker features a fresh design and promises big sound
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9to5Toys Last Call:1TB Seagate desktop HD $50, Lightning 4-in-1 charging cable $6, Madden 25 for $45, app deals, more

Avatar for Aug 27 2013 - 3:00 pm PT
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From 9to5Toys.com:

A large majority of the deals we cover each day come from a variety of ‘Daily Deal’ websites or are so popular that they don’t even last 24 hours. We know you can’t be at your computer every second, so we’re going to round up the best deals each day to make sure you have a fair shot at the deals you want. Be sure to follow 9to5Toys.com so you never miss a deal... Twitter, RSS Feed, Facebook, Google+.

External Hard Drives: 1TB Seagate Expansion $50, 2TB Toshiba Canvio $110

4-in-1 USB Sync/Charger Cable (Lightning, 30-Pin Apple and Samsung, Micro-USB) $6 shipped


Other great deals we love:

  • New! Sony & Samsung drop as much as $1500 off 4K Ultra HD TV sets
  • New! Virgin is selling iPhones at next month’s prices (20% off), iPhone 5 starts at $440
  • New! 1-year subscription to Wired Magazine: $5 (Reg. $60)
  • New! Logitech releases a limited edition ‘Tippsy the Elephant’ UE BOOM Bluetooth speaker exclusively at the Apple Store
  • New! Game/App Deals: Call of Duty Black Ops 2: $30, Madden 25 (Xbox 360/PS3) $45, more
  • New! Cases for Tablets and Smartphones Reduced to $4 shipped
  • New! 4-in-1 USB Sync/Charger Cable (Lightning, 30-Pin Apple and Samsung, Micro-USB) $6 shipped

Freebies:

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9to5Toys Last Call: Storage deals (SSD, portable), $60 LifeProof nüüd waterproof iPhone 5 case, iTunes movie sale, more

Avatar for Aug 13 2013 - 3:00 pm PT
0 Comments

From 9to5Toys.com:

A large majority of the deals we cover each day come from a variety of ‘Daily Deal’ websites or are so popular that they don’t even last 24 hours. We know you can’t be at your computer every second, so we’re going to round up the best deals each day to make sure you have a fair shot at the deals you want. Be sure to follow 9to5Toys.com so you never miss a deal... Twitter, RSS Feed, Facebook, Google+.

Today’s Featured deals:

Storage Deals:


SOLD OUT LifeProof nüüd iPhone 5 Case w/Snow, Dirt, Water & Shockproof Design $60 shipped (Reg. $80)

Apple Deals:

Other great deals we love:

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9to5Toys Last Call: External Hard Drive deals, $129 iPod touch 16GB 4th gen (open-box), $38 iPod shuffle, 60W Solar charging kit, apps/games/Blu-rays, more

Avatar for Jul 30 2013 - 3:00 pm PT
0 Comments

From 9to5Toys.com:

A large majority of the deals we cover each day come from a variety of ‘Daily Deal’ websites or are so popular that they don’t even last 24 hours. We know you can’t be at your computer every second, so we’re going to round up the best deals each day to make sure you have a fair shot at the deals you want. Be sure to follow 9to5Toys.com so you never miss a deal... Twitter, RSS Feed, Facebook, Google+.

Also check out the latest 9to5Mac Happy Hour to hear the latest 9to5Toys segment. During the show, there’s a mention of $50 video conversion software currently available for free and the VPN service proXPN.com available at a 20% discount.

Today’s Featured deals:

External Hard Drives: Hitachi Touro 4TB USB 3.0 $130, Seagate Expansion 3TB $100 shipped

Apple Deals: iPod Shuffle 4th Gen. 2GB (new, silver) $38, iPod Touch 4th Gen. 16GB (open-box, black or white) $129

Other great deals we love:

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