SimpleTech Signature Mini (250GB, green)

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.

Read full review

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 $135. This hard drive connects to a system though a USB 2.0 port. This is a 5400 rpm drive and has an 8MB buffer.

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

Cons: None noted, given available product data.

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

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