SimpleTech Signature Mini (250GB, light blue)

The good: Large capacity for a travel drive; very compact and light; bus powered; good bundled backup software; cool and quiet in operation; three-year warranty; two free gigabytes of online storage.

The bad: No FireWire; doesn't ship with power cord.

The bottom line: The SimpleTech Signature Mini Black Cherry is a compact, USB-only external hard drive that will tempt you with its sleek design, and then win you over with its capacity, performance, and price.

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Description: This Simpletech Signature Mini is a 250GB, external hard disk drive. Compared to other external hard drives on the market, it is relatively inexpensive at around $120. This drive attaches to a system though a USB 2.0 port. This is a 5400 rpm drive and comes with an 8MB cache.

Pros: Has a 250GB capacity, which is somewhat larger than some similarly priced hard drives. By way of comparison, the typical cost of a product with this large a capacity is $245.

Cons: Spins at only 5400 rpm. This is not out of line with the product's price, but is slower than the average hard drive on the market today.

Suitability: Suited for those who don't want to take apart their computer to add another hard drive -- just plug it in.

Value: Given its relatively inexpensive price, this hard drive has good features for the money.