It’s been less than a year since I acquired my trusty MacBook Pro, but it’s already filled to capacity with important documents and precious photos. Since I can’t physically expand the disk space within the computer, the search was on for a Mac-friendly hard drive that offers the holy trisect of features: speed, capacity, and reliability. I put three of the most promising new external drives to the test to see which one could live up to my demanding storage requirements.

First up, the 3TB Seagate FreeAgent GoFlex desktop hard drive is not only capable of storing my entire video collection of ’90s TV shows, but it also performed exceptionally well in our write- and read-speed tests: 34MB/s and 36MB/s, respectively. The FreeAgent works interchangeably on both Mac and PC, and can connect via FireWire 800 with a separate adapter, though that will cost an extra $50. The included Memeo Backup software is a bit of a memory hog and it’s only a 30-day evaluation copy, but purchasing it ($29.95) does enable the FreeAgent’s encryption abilities as well.

For a portable hard drive, the 1TB Toshiba Canvio packs enough power to keep all of your files quickly synced without needing a power cable. Canvio put up respectable numbers, too, clocking in with a write speed of 27MB/s and a read speed of 35MB/s. The drive also comes with a full version of Mac-friendly NTI Shadow Five backup software, which can be configured to do scheduled backups, clone your entire system, safely encrypt your data, and restore files deleted by mistake--impressive for a 5400 RPM portable drive that can fit in your pocket.

The new 1TB Iomega eGo posted similar write and read speeds (26MB/s and 35MB/s) via USB 2.0. But when we plugged it in via FireWire 800, we got an instant speed boost up to 57MB/s and 73MB/s. Additionally, its titanium silver chassis pairs up really well with our Mac, and it comes with 2GB of online tbackup via MozyHome. But it’s more expensive than the other drives and comes with an inconveniently large power brick.

The Seagate outshined the others in speed and capacity, making it the best of the bunch if you’re looking for a desktop drive. But if it’s a portable option you need, the Canvio did just as well in its small form-factor.

Canvio for Mac
COMPANY: Toshiba
CONTACT: www.toshiba.com
PRICE: $99.99, 500GB; $119.99, 750GB; $139.99, 1TB
REQUIREMENTS: USB 2.0, Mac OS 10.5 or later
Portable. Doesn’t need a power cord. Backup software rivals Time Machine.
1TB maximum capacity. USB only.

 

 

Ego Desktop Hard Drive
COMPANY: Iomega
CONTACT: www.iomega.com
PRICE: $159.99, 1TB; $249.99, 2TB
REQUIREMENTS: USB 2.0, FireWire 800, PowerPC G3 or greater, Mac OS 10.4 or later
Built-in FireWire 800. Preformatted HFS+. Four kinds of software with purchase.
Huge power brick. Power button instead of plug-and-play.

 

 

FreeAgent GoFlex Desk
COMPANY: Seagate
CONTACT: www.seagate.com
PRICE: $129.99, 1TB; $189.99, 2TB; $249.99, 3TB
REQUIREMENTS: USB 2.0, Mac OS 10.5 or later
High capacity. Very speedy. Works interchangeably between Mac & PC.
Annoying software bundle.