Seagate ST302504FDA1E1-RK FreeAgent Desktop 250 GB 3.5" USB 2.0 External Hard Drive
by Seagate
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List Price: Our Price: $45.00 You Save: $104.99 (70%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Category: CE See more product details |
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Seagate ST302504FDA1E1-RK FreeAgent Desktop 250 GB 3.5" USB 2.0 External Hard Drive
Customer Review: my experience with seagate freeagent desktop 250gb external hd
Summary: 5 Stars
I'm one of the lucky ones I guess that didn't get a defective HD. I've had it for about 3-4 months and I don't have much to complain about. It doesn't 'hijack' my computer or cause it to crash. I use it everyday for backing up, sometimes more than once, but it's off the rest of the time. I've had the opportunity to use it in an emergency setting when I had restore my files to my computer after formatting my computer in an unrelated misadventure. It comes with software for backing up your computer which really isn't all that awesome because it doesn't back up all file types. Thus, some file types have to be backed up the old-fashioned way (drag & drop) which I think I can handle. That said, I use their backup software everyday because it works so quickly, 15 seconds or so. A review I read before buying the product mentioned they had trouble with the plugs staying in in the back of the device, but I had absolutely no problem there. Another sticky issue is stopping the device after backing up, that is, using the windows taskbar icon to stop a device that's connected to a USB port. Supposedly, if you just unplug the USB plug without 'stopping' the device using that taskbar icon you can lose data, and that goes for any storage device plugged into a USB port. However, sometimes stopping this particular device is difficult and you get this error message saying it cannot be stopped right now, and so on and so on. There's a work-around at the SeaGate forum that gets you thru this when it first happens, but sometimes the workaround doesn't work, especially if you've deleted something from the external HD. In this scenario you just have to unplug it without stopping it first, and so far I've been lucky & haven't lost any data doing this. But so long as I don't delete anything from the external hard drive, I don't have any problems.Customer Review: Easy to set up, easy to use, a great product.
Summary: 5 Stars
Took 30 seconds to hook up, 1 minute to set up on my laptop, I began the initial back up immediately.
Been using the hard drive as a back up and also as an external hard drive for new files about 3 weeks now. = No problems of any kind.
Those who are having problems, I suggest you
1)Read the simple instruction book and FOLLOW IT
2)Set up the drive including the automatice sleep mode power off that turns the drive off after x minutes of non use.
3)Make certain you follow the PC windows and Vista directions AND do not unplug the external drive - or any other device - until you have pressed the "safely remove hardware" icon on your PC and received the message that HW may now be safely removed.
You know, its hard to make things foolproof especially so when the fools refuse to read or follow the clearly spelled out requirements of their PC's operating system. The safely remove hardware SW utility is built into the Windows operating system for a reason - to enable users to safely remove hardware. DUH!!!!! Suggest you all use it.
Also while the hard drive does not have a physical on/off switch. It does have a Software on/off switch built into it. Suggest users actually download and READ the instruction manual and then activate the SW controls to set up the hard drive - You can turn it on and off automatically by setting a software driven timer.
Finally, pulling power plugs in and out all the time is
A BAD THING TO DO. Use the built in software on/off switch. By doing so the hard drive - a very rapidly spinning disc platter - will shut down properly, instead of crashing each time you pull the power plug - and surprise surprise, the hard drive will last longer and not fail you.
This is a great product.
good luck!!!
Customer Review: Solid, simple set-up
Summary: 5 Stars
I'm a technical/knowledgebase writer for a large software company and whenever I get a new product, I'm really aware of the set up process and documentation to improve on my own work.
With that, I'm surprised to hear some of the bad reviews of this product. The manual is a simple, one sheet that gives you 5 steps to set it up totally in pictures and a single line of text. In fact, it was easier than that for me on My Winddows XP Pro machines: I yanked it out of the box, plugged in both the usb and power supply, and it was recognized immediately and worked perfectly. I didn't install any software.
Also, keep in mind that it uses USB 2.0. If you are running USB 1.0 on an older computer it won't transfer as fast.
Additionally, my girlfriend has an older, USB 1.0 laptop running XP Home, and I recommended this to her because it has a power supply. This means if you are looking to buy one of the USB 2.0 powered portable/external HD's, it won't have the juice to work. But since this runs off AC current (plus into the wall), she has no issues and has been totally happy storing her MP3 collection it.
As for power consumption, yes, it keeps spinning. BUT, these hard drives are generally meant as backup or storage of media files. Since it only turns on when the computer boots up, this is fine for most applications. The effort to unplug the drive from the back is no different then reaching for an on/off switch. Additionally, if you are using it to play back you MP3 or video collection, the drive will have to spin up anyway to play them back.
I'd highly recommend this drive for experienced and non-techies alike - and, yes, would buy it for my mom. A drive this easy to use keeps guys like me out of business ;^)
Customer Review: Excellent Experience After 8 months
Summary: 5 Stars
I don't know about those who wrote negative reviews but I've had mine for about 8 months now. No problems what-so-ever. What Todd wrote below, I concur with. The no-software thing...yes, they maybe missed the boat promoting someone's software but that's a good thing for us end users. Personally, I'm tired of the bloatware and adware that gets loaded with those trial softwares. Thumbs up to Seagate for leaving that out!
And K. Gittens who wrote about the no writing to disk light. That very same long amber light you mentioned flashes quite boldly when the drive is reading or writing. Your PC's built in HD light isn't that bold.
The no power switch thing? Is that a con? Do we need one? Maybe some do but I don't. I want my drive ready at all times. I don't want to have to remember to reach over and power up the drive. That also would create problems if you create a scheduled automatic back up and had the power switch turned off.
For me, this drive is super easy to set up and use, and has been bullet proof so far. I've always been a Western Digital fan but had an opportunity to buy this drive at a great price. So far, I am not sorry I did!
The manual is a crack up. 5 x 5 inches on glossy paper.
Cover: "This Won't Take Long."
Page 1: "Take your FreeAgent desktop drive and cords out of the package."
Page 2: "Plug in the power cord."
Page 3: "Plug in the USB cable."
Page 4: "A few seconds after your FreeAgent desktop drive lights up, you're ready to go."
Back cover: "Please enjoy."
Literally folks, it's that easy. Even your new answering machine isn't that easy!
Good job, Seagate!
Customer Review: A breeze to get it running!
Summary: 5 Stars
It's not often that a technical product is geared towards the non-techie. It's rarer that it delivers a product that works for a non-techie. Certainly external hard drives are nothing challenging anymore, but Seagate embraces non-technical folks with quirky packaging and a ridiculously short setup manual that includes the estimated time to completion - in minutes and seconds!. Not only is the Free Agent truly plug and play but the look is clean, sharp, cool, and eye-catching. You won't mind having this sit on your desk. This thing takes longer to get out of the box than it takes to get it functioning. Seriously!
Of course I'm something of a techie, so in order to get a truly non-technical seal of approval, you'll have to read a review from a grannie. I wouldn't hold your breath.
My only gripe in order to truly make this device fully functional would be to address the obvious next steps: how do I do a full system backup? How do I copy files? Seagate makes an error in not cross-promoting an equally easy-to-use backup third party software. Of course all Windows XP users have Microsoft Backup available, which includes an easy-to-use wizard to get you going.
As someone who has had a few hard drives fail on him in the past, I remark at how long it took me to get one of these things. Remember, all hard drive manufacturers measure the reliability of a hard drive in terms of "mean time to failure," which implies that all hard drives eventually fail. With a backup hard disk, you always are operating with a safety net!