Transcend 1 TB StoreJet M3 Military Drop Tested USB 3.0 External Hard Drive

This is my 5th USB portable drive and a year later I can say that so far the drive has performed very solid, nothing outstanding but SOLID, I dropped two times, once was even plugged and disconnect on middle air and hit the floor. Still working... Dont know who ultimate builds the inner HD of this transcend but hasnt give any error so far. For reference chronological bought from older to new my portable USB Drives were and are . . . 1 Seagate 500GB death in two years 2 Western Digital 500GB dead after a year of light use 3 Western Digital essential 1TB dead in less than 2 years 4 Toshiba Canvio 1TB (the cheapest on AMAZON the day I bought it) 2 years and running 5 Transcend StoreJet (this one) still running

So overall, this is a good hard drive from the money. However, I picked this one specifically because the claims of military grade toughness. This wasnt a feature i intended on utilizing, but I was sold on the idea of a HDD that wouldnt corrupt, much less break from being dropped. (of course, within reason). Reality wasnt nearly as kind as the advertisement would have you think. I knocked it off the top of my PC box twice within 5 minutes moving stuff around. That was the end. The fall was a mere 2 feet or less. Ive dropped older, generic external hdds from double that distance multiple times and they still work to this day! However, It was plugged in at the time of the incident, so perhaps they expect it wont be dropped during operation..... Which would sound fair, but they specifically used the word military. Describing its durability as acceptable in the type of situations where everything that can go wrong, does, raises expectations a lot. In the companies defense, I couldve had a faulty product. I also made no effort to seek a replacementassistance from them. I wouldnt be adverse to buying one of these again if I were in the market for a drive and theirs was one of the cheapest at that time.

I received the 1TB drive yesterday, and I absolutely love it. As a Linux-only person, its important to me that products work--and work well--with Linux. This drive most definitely does. Straight out of the box. As with most things Linux, the OS detects the hardware and the user doesnt need to do anything. No software to install, nothing to configure, just plug it in and youre good to go. Of course, the software thats included on the drive doesnt work with Linux--its only for Mac and windows--but I wouldnt use it anyway. I prefer to manage my files with my own methods, so Im not missing anything by not being able to use the included software. For what its worth, the software is stored in directories called RecoveRx, StoreJett ToolBox, and Transcend Elite. Linux users please note: Its file system as shipped is FAT32. If you leave it like that youll come across the idiotic microsoft nonsense of thinking THISFileName and thisFILEname are the same. Use gParted or your favorite disk partition utility to format it as ext3, ext4, or whatever your preference is, to get around that issue. Im very impressed, and pleased, with the speed of copying files to and from this drive. Super fast! Its military grade shock resistance is nice to have, but hopefully I wont ever need it. :) For its price, $68.99 (and free shipping, since I have Prime), its a great buy.

Looking for another durable backup, but got a Silicon Power 4 TB drives and it started clicking and my computer had issues recognizing. To be extra careful, ordered a replacement. It clicked continuously when I was doing nothing to it. Ive had the Transcend since 2/2016 with no issues other than backup software I dont care for, so going to take a chance on them again, even though the 4 TB is a lot more expensive than Seagate, WD and SP.

I purchased this drive due to its military drop grade rating which gave me a feeling that it would be perfect for backing up my most important documents and files. After getting the drive I loaded it up with about 200 GB of documents and photos. Less than one month later the drive just stoped working. No light, no noise, nothing. The drive had never been dropped or removed out of its protective casing and only used twice. I bought a new cable ($6 on Amazon) hoping that was the cause of failure, but still the drive did not function. I called Transcend support who instructed me to send back the drive which they would try to recover the data, and if unable to recover, would replace the drive. I informed them that I was uncomfortable sending them the drive to recover since it contained documents with all my personal data and account numbers. The service person told me that they would not look at my personal data. I asked if that policy was documented somewhere and was told that I just had to take his word for it. Feeling we were at a stalemate and looking for options I asked if I could physically destroy the drive beyond data recovery, then send it back with the invoice for a replacement. He told me that was not an option and if I returned the drive with any physical damage it would not be covered. Needless to say Im now sitting here with a drive that stopped working within 30 days and no hopes for a replacement unless I trust them enough to recover my data without viewing it. In my mind the risk is too great so Ill just have to eat the $67, fortunately it was on sale at the time so I didnt pay more. I would not recommend buying this drive unless youre OK sending it back to them to recover your data after it stops working.

This is magnificent & sooo WONDERFUL external drive to use with the Chinese Video capture cards!! Most importantly I connected this SPECTACULAR external hard drive with my video capture card and I kept recording stuff from my satellite receiver, movies, TV soaps, TV shows and I SWEAR this external hard drive NEVER heated and NEVER get warm even!!!! I hate it when the external hard drive becomes hot after prolonged period of usage and here in Saudi Arabia the temperature is very high, but this BABY doesnt heat or become hot even after hours & hours hours & hours hours & hours hours & hours of usage and I touched the surface its just sooo normal!!! The design is VERY GOOOD and its durable and very good quality and transfers data VERY FAST to my laptop and life became easier with the button on top that connects it to PC if accidentally removed!! I loved it..I loved it..I loved it and HIGHLY recommend it <3

My poor laptop has a 128 GB pcie ssd. I was planning to upgrade it in order to meet my storage requirements. And then there was chaos! - go for a cheaper higher capacity sata ssd or a similarly priced, lesser capacity, pcie drive. After reading several opinions, I decided to go with the sata option, as Im not a content creator, just a student. Then I thought of getting an external hdd instead. Upgrading internal storage is cool but not so convenient. I also knew that buying a higher capacity ssd would create a black hole in my pocket. Settling for a lesser capacity 256GB ssd might still retain those OMG! Im out of space! vibes. Hence, external ssd FTW (for me atleast :p). I did some research online comparing the drive speeds of WD, Seagate and Transcend. I found Transcend to be the constantly faster one (by not much though). Also, the MILITARY GRADE PROTECTION! Anything with that label means I should buy it. I have been using this for over two months now and havent seen any problem. No, I dont play baseball with it. Yes, I handle it with care. No, i havent dropped it yet. The cable, although just 1ft, is good as well. No complains yet. Bottom line, go for it if you prefer capacity over speed and cant spend triple figures for >256GB ssd.

Im a game developer and an art student and the one thing that us computer folks need nowadays is a reliable external hard drive. I shepherd over large files almost on a daily basis, throughout several different computers for rendering high def graphics and files, and pretty much hope that my hard drive would withstand the beating I give it and hope and pray that it would not break down because of all the time spent and hard work put into everything saved. Thats why I love this little piece of hardware. It does not feel cheap like a Seagate or a Western Digital. Its got 3 levels of drop damage protection and I know a lot of people hate how heavy it is, believe me its not. For someone like me who walks around the room holding a hard drive going from computer to computer, it actually helps to know how weighted it is so it actually prevents me from dropping it. Plus, Ive dropped my Passport external HD and the USB connector actually came off, so going to the Transcend was a good experience. Not to mention, the connection speed is FAST. I plug this in and it connects to my computer within seconds, transfer speeds are awesome, and it disconnects without a problem. The only thing Im a little confused about is on the box it stated QUICK RECONNECT functionality for the button, but unfortunately it is not. The button only serves as a QUICK BACKUP function while Transcends Elite software is running on the background. I would highly recommend this as ive tried 3 generations of Seagate Flex HDs and 4 gens of Western Digitals from portables to desktop HD.

I bought this for a somewhat unusual purpose: to keep my iTunes library on. I was using a WD MyBook for external iTunes library and other media. I like this drive much better. Though it does go to sleep after 10 minutes, the spin up time is SO much faster than the MyBook. I dont know if this is because it is a smaller drive, or what, just know its great! The surface of the drive case is non-slip. Didnt think that mattered to me, but it has been a real bonus, since this drive gets hauled around a lot. It gets connected to a powered USB3 hub most of the time. I havent needed to plug in the second USB to power the drive. One note: I have to disconnect this drive from the hub before I boot up my ASUS Gamer laptop, else the boot gets stuck on the ASUS screen. Not really a big deal. I have other hubs and USB device combos that cause this same problem.

Pros: - Sturdy enclosure, without being too bulky - Rubberized outer casing (doesnt slip around on surfaces) - Can be powered with only one USB plug - Fast USB 3.0 transfer speeds Cons: - Sometimes got fairly hot - Enclosure failed after a year and a half I purchased this hard drive at the end of December 2012, and it lasted till May 2014 before failing unexpectedly. I used it primarily as a drive to store data while away from home, and as a drive where I could carry large photo/video projects with me while traveling on work trips. The drive functioned fine for the most part--The transfer speeds were surprisingly robust, though it did sometimes get unusually hot. I never had any reason to doubt its durability though, and it seemed like it was built to last. Sadly, on the first day of my most recent work trip, the device completely failed without warning. In the middle of accessing files for a project, the drive disconnected, and became unresponsive. Plugging in the second USB plug for additional power didnt help, and there was no sign of the device being connected in the Device Manager (Windows 8). I tried it on a second computer (Mac 10.8) and with a different cable, but neither option helped. Despite everything I tried, the drive appeared dead. The device was still under warranty, but I desperately needed to access projects still stored on the drive. Instead of going through the hassle of trying to get a warranty replacement, I ordered an off-brand 2.5 USB 3.0 enclosure, tore open the Transcend casing (voiding my warranty in the process), and put the bare drive into the replacement housing. Thankfully, the drive popped up in Windows Explorer (with all my data intact), and everything appears to be working great in the new enclosure. So for whatever reason, it seems the circuitry in the Transcend enclosure was at fault. I never dropped/mishandled the unit, and never put stress on the connector. And to Transcends defense, this drive is built like a tank. Beneath the outer rubber layer is a shell of hard plastic, underneath which is another cage of rubber, before finally reaching the drive itself. I have no doubts that it would survive a drop or twelve, and would compare the housings build quality to that of an OtterBox phone case. Sadly, it seems I simply had bad luck when it came to quality control.