Western Digital (WD1200B05RNN) 120 GB USB 2.0 Hard Drive

Pros: Price, good speed on USB 2.0 connection, installs easily
Cons: No power switch, no software

Introduction "There are 2 categories of computer users- those that have lost data, and those that will lose data." The Western Digital 120 GB hard drive usb 2.0 is designed to offer additional hard drive space via a usb port. This will add more ...

Pros: Fast. Easy to install.
Cons: Keeps showing disk full when NOT.

I just bot this disk. It was a breeze to install and transferred data nice and fast (using firewire interface).
HOWEVER, when I tried to transfer large video files to it, it choked. I could transfer 2 and 3 GB files ok, but it showed disk full...

Pros: looks nice, not very noisy, very easy to setup
Cons: no SMART status monitoring available, and they fail like crazy

searching google you will find huge problems with ALL external usb2 drives. the problem might be fixed when xp sp2 comes out in a few months. meanwhile, this western digital drive works ok in windows 2000 and on usb 1.1.

but with xp and using the usb2 connection, it repeatedly gives 'delayed write fail' errors. if you unplug it and plug it back in, and reboot, you will get it to work...and without losing data.

but i did the western digital diagnostic test, downloaded from their web site, and found horrific numbers of bad sectors. sure, i sent it back at my expense [and they insist on fed ex and a static free packaging]. but they told me it would be a long wait. and meanwhile i lost all my data.

what good these drives are i cannot say, since what you buy them for is backup and security.

Pros: Easy to set up, quiet
Cons: High failure rate, little support help

My first drive failed after 2 months with an awful grinding noise. I lost 2 years of photos of my son. The replacement drive arrived and failed 6 months later...but was only warranteed for 90 days! So, now I'm out my data and a drive. Will never buy another Western Digital product.

Pros: Works great til it FAILS COMPLETELY
Cons: Non-existent customer support from Western Digital

The drive worked flawlessly for about six months. Then, for no apparent reason, one day when I attached it and tried to access it, I was told, "The drive e: is not formatted. Do you want to format it now?" Obviously, I didn't since I had six months of data stored on it. "My Computer" showed the drive as present, but "Total size" and "Free space" were both blank.
Nothing I could think of would allow WinXP to access the drive.
I took it to another computer, also with WinXP--still no data.
I took it to another computer, with Win98. The drive and all my data were present and fully accessible.
Back to the WinXP computer--nothing.

Two requests to Western Digital's web site support yielded NO responses at all. Not even automated acknowledgements.

I bought the drive as a BACKUP for the small hard drive on my WinXP laptop. But what good is a backup that can't be accessed?

I'll never buy another Western Digital product.

Pros: Good price after rebate. Good performance
Cons: No power button. Not meant for portable use.

After using the hard drive for over a month, there are no major issues that would steer me away from buying another WD external HD. While it is true that you can run into a hassle with the rebates, that is true of any company. Performance wise, I have had no issues at all. I transfer data back and forth from the drive without problems. I also use my DVD burner to copy files from the HD without incident. My only complaint is that the drive does not have a power button and that it states that the HD is not meant as a portable device. What do I want with an external drive if it isn't portable? Anyway, if you are looking for good performance for the price, I recommend this drive. Also, if you are in the market for external HDs, take a look at Lacie. They make reliable external HDs as well.

Pros: None
Cons: Rip-off artists

Do not buy any products from Western Digital. Not only are they inferior (check out ratings), they bait and switch. They promise you a rebate, then find a loophole to deny it. They don't give you a reasonable opportunity to "comply" with their requirements. Their customer service reps are argumentative and impotent to solve anything.

If you are desperate for a "deal" on an external hard drive, and if you don't mind getting cheated, by all means, buy their products.