Silicon Power 1TB Rugged Portable External Hard Drive Armor A80, Waterproof USB 3.0 for PC, Mac, Xbox and PS4, Blue

This is a great hardened USB drive! I have not bought 3 of them, one for my wife (who was overseas when her other name-brand external HDD failed), one for my daughter (who will be going overseas) and one for myself, to replace a drive that I somehow misplaced (huh?) The form factor is great, with the USB port plugged with a rubber stopper to keep dirt and water out, and best of all, a small cable that is stored in the side of the case itself! How handy! The mil-spec rating seems to be holding so far, as I have not had any issues with any of the drives. I have not benchmarked them, but with USB 3.0 (connected to a 3.0 port, of course), it seems pretty quick, at least twice as fast as my USB 2.0 WD drive, and faster than my WD USB 3.0 drive.

I used this primarily as a TimeMachine backup drive for my MacBook Air while backpacking in East Asia. It stayed as it is (no extra protective case) in my backpack while trekking through the Himalayas, through airports, tossed in and on and out of dirty, dusty, and muddy buses, daily usage in the deserts and during rainstorms, and weeks in huts on beaches. Never once did I take extra care to protect it. I didnt care much for the USB holster situation, but it kept the cable secure so Ive come around to appreciating it. It got wet, dropped, tossed, and generally abused for 6 months of backups and general usage (e.g. video playback direct from the drive). Nearly a full year after returning to the States, its still my backup drive and sees at least weekly use.

It is fast and has tons of space in a fairly small package. BUT - About once a day it exhibits unstable behavior that usually forces me to (temporarily) live without the data on the drive, or restart my computer. Im running it with a one-year-old HP laptop, and heres th feedback my computer gives me: 1. You need to format Drive H before you can use it 2. USB device not recognized 3. The drive or network connection that the shortcut refers to is unavailable 4. One of the USB devices connected to this computer has malfunctioned and Windows does not recognize it. 5. Unknown device needs troubleshooting 6. Windows has stopped this device because it has reported problems. (Code 43) 7. Try reconnecting the device. If Windows still does not recognize it, replace the device. So far Ive gone to the manufacturers website to download drivers, and spent hours searching online for possible solutions - but to no avail. So, if you want an occassional-use drive to store some infrequently used files (and youre computer-savvy), this drive will give you bang for your buck. If you want access to the files on a regular basis, be prepared to restart your computer.

Great product. Works perfectly right out of the box. I run windows (one of the older versions,...not the newest one) and it performs perfectly for me. It didnt require any formatting or anything like that. I stores files easily just like a USB thumb drive...a really BIG thumb drive. I like the fact that it comes with 2 cables, one long (around 18 inches or so) and one short (around 4 or 5 inches.) The short cable has a convenient storage slot built into the side of the hard drive. I usually leave it there and just use the long cable. Mainly, because the short cable really requires a desk or table top of some sort for the hard drive to sit on while using it. Otherwise, if your on a laptop (sitting in a chair or whatever) youd have something roughly the size of a DVD case (but alot heavier) just dangling from a little 4 inch cable. This is why I usually just use the longer cable.

I did my own accidental drop-test and dropped the Water-Resistant 1TB off a table at a cafe onto a solid hardwood floor covering cement. It wasnt damaged at all, either functionally or its good-looking blue case. Ive had zero problems over the last year with this drive on a Win7 x64bit laptop and pc. Its always recognized. Thats more than I can say for other usb devices, including the WD Passport I have and a good many thumb drives. And its fast. I work in computer graphics on video editing and 3d animation directly off this drive. The drive feels fast and I dont notice a lag even working with these type of large files. My only con is I wish they made a 2 TB version. I want a drive that is a carry-along backup-everything plus a work drive for projects. I prefer to keep things consolidated, and not 1 drive with this backup, 1 with that. 1TB isnt enough for that purpose.

Well...I dont know if I can officially call it an upgrade, being that I own a few Seagate drives and have never had a problem with any of them. But this drive is neck and neck with my Seagates. I love the color. Its the same color as my old motorcycle. Looks great along side a Macbook (which also was the same color of my bike....ok....ill stop now.) I was worried this drive would be a bit too heft because of the added real estate for the additional hidden wire, but it really is not a problem. And its also not as thick as I thought it was going to be. It is still bigger than my GoFlex, but since it has about 650 more GB than my GoFlex, I wont complain. Also, the hidden wire seems to stick out a little bit. I can never seem to get it fully hidden in the wire storage area, but its not enough to be annoying. I am very careful with my electronics, so I dont plan on dropping or spilling anything on it, so I didnt really care so much for the military specs. More so than anything, I needed a 1TB drive that was small, and I loved the fact that it had the integrated wire that can be stored. I was going to go with the

I ordered this to replace a seagate drive that I owned for a few years. I tend to carry my drives in a backpack so I was looking for something that could withstand a little abuse. I researched different drives for quite a bit and overall decided on this drive due to the cost/gb, features, size, items that came with it, lack of bloatware, CNET review. PRO: - Compact and Small - Very Fast, transferred nearly 200gb of data in about 20 minutes - Havent had the chance to test the drop ability, dont really want to. CNET tested this though and had good results. - Given a secondary cord that is 18 CONS: - Short cord from size is just a bit too small, cant really fit into any usb effectively without making the drive get in the way. - Smooth surface MAY induce dropping of the drive OTHER THOUGHTS: - Many people complain about the drive emitting a high pitched whine. I have heard this, but generally, it only lasts for a second or two as the drive spins up. After that, I find that I do not notice any noise from the drive whatsoever. The whine itself is not really ear piercing either. Do not let this be a determination when deciding whether or not to get this drive. I am glad I didnt. - Had the drive for a couple weeks now. I may update this after about 6 months.

This is my second one I bought and I just love this drive. The first was for myself because my old external was on its way out, and I bought the second for my brother who unless given a drive would never have backed up his data. This feels really tough, silent, durable. I am surprised about the few bad drives that people have gotten, but unfortunate hard drives are physical spinning devices and can fail almost out of the box, and manufactures try their best to not have that. Even though the hard drive could be dropped and tossed around, remember they are not infallible, even solid states can have issues. All in all though, it is a great product, built tough, and should last.

Very happy I decided to go with the Silicon Power A80 instead of the usual Western Digital or Seagate. Its a very high quality portable HDD and though I havent tested (nor want to) the water resistant/shockproof casing it seems very sturdy and has a very nice fit and finish. It is also surprisingly thin for being so protective. I love how it comes with a very small USB cable that tucks away for portability as well as a full cable for home use. The speeds have been very good for being USB 3.0 powered, no extra cables needed just one USB. Works smooth and quick on my brand new intel i7 Macbook Pro 13 which has USB 3.0 ports. So far I am very impressed with this product and its overall a great value for your money if your looking for a 1 TB portable drive.

So far satisfied with this drive. The Silicon Power Armor A80 has met its advertised promise so far. I have not checked its strength by doing any drop test on it (It seems unnecessary at this point). But as far as its speed and storage capacity it is right on as promised. I have a little bone to pick with about the Armor A80. It is in reference to the short cable and the scant instructions/information available with the unit. I have ordered two of these drives. The short cable comes twisted, something that looks odd. Well both units have been the same way. I dont know if it is that the short cable is intended for USB2.0 or what is the issue with it. But in any event twisting this short cable does not show it to be durable. This short cable is one of the features that make this drive appealing. With the twisting going on once damaged and no way to get another one is a bit of a dead end owning an Armor A80. This part makes me hesitate a little about the Armor A80. I have searched in Silicon Power website and even emailed them about ordering an extra cable. There is no response back. (The Silicon Power USA seems to be a whole different company which disclaims involvement with the 1TB units). Lastly is the amusing part that whenever trying to download the SP Widget software the link leads to an offer of CIALIS. Wow!!!! It has been surprising to find out that Silicon Power is into Pharmaceuticals too :). These units are not cheap in anyway. The price is among the highest seen online. So it is prudent to get more information with the units or online, about instructions, ordering or support. After all, I am satisfied with my Armor A80 and will order it again. The above ranting is more intended to make the distributor or manufacturer provide better support.