Toshiba’s Portable External Hard Drives make computer backup simple. Our drives take the complexity out of backing up your computer data by providing easy-to-use backup software for both Windows and Mac users. Powered by USB 2.0, you can take your files just about anywhere. Just one click and you’re on your way to creating a digital safety net to help protect your files. With Toshiba’s Portable External Hard Drives, you’ll enjoy mobile storage space for even the largest digital libraries. Our 500GB1 Drive is capable of storing up to 142,000 digital photos, or 131,000 digital music files, or 410 downloaded digital movies. Toshiba’s Portable External Hard Drives work with both Mac and PC computers and include software that makes backing up your computer simple. Note: The part number (P/N) that appears on the packaging is used to identify all the items in the box, including the hard drive (which has its own distinct model number), color, software, cable, user guide, etc. This number is used for ordering purposes. The model number that appears on the bottom of the hard drive is used to register the device with regulatory agencies (UL, FCC, etc) and identifies a specific mechanical and electrical design.

User Reviews about Toshiba 500 GB USB 2.0 Portable Hard Drive - Liquid Blue (HDDR500E04XL)

I just received my Liquid Blue Toshiba 500 GB HD. Tech support was very helpful in helping me reformat the drive to NTFS (it comes formatted with FAT32). My 1st backup with FAT32 took 4 1/2 hours to backup just over 26 gbytes for an approximate average speed of 1.6 mbytes/sec. After the reformat, it did the same backup at about 5.8 mbytes/sec. A big improvement, but essentially the same as my 4-year old Seagate 40 GB drive it is replacing. I would have thought hard drive write speeds would have increased more in that time, but it seems the emphasis has been driving down costs and increasing storage capacity. Fair enough. The short USB 2.0 cable could also be a bit longer, guys.

The drive works fine and for someone doing periodic backups during the day or overnight where time is not of the essence, I suspect the speed will be sufficient. I note that the backup speeds were all over the lot: at times, it dropped to 0.3 mbytes/sec and other times ramped up to 20 mbytes/sec. Most of the time it spent in the 4-7 mbyte/sec range. If Toshiba can figure out a way to maintain the speed in the 10-12 mbyte/sec area, this would be one kick-ass backup. FWIW, I am running a 2004 Pentium 4 with a 3 ghtz CPU and 1 gbyte of RAM so newer machines may run this drive faster. The user manual is among the worst I've seen -- it basically isn't even a user manual, just some product descriptions and terminology definitions. A few paragraphs on how the Toshiba drive can be used most efficiently would have been appreciated along with tech specifications so you can research how your specific hardware and software can work best with the drive.

The 3-year warranty is a great feature for folks who backup daily or very frequntly. These drives seem to fail for people doing heavy backups on a daily or near-daily basis. If you are like me and don't have essential add-ons to your PC except every few weeks, then less frequent backing up will probably extend whatever lifespan this drive (and others) have.

All-in-all, a quality backup with plenty of storage space in an aesthetically pleasing case style. -- Easty To Use Quality Backup Protection

I've had this hard drive for a couple months now and I love it. I bought it when my internal hard drive in my desktop started to go out. It was meant to be a backup of all my docs and music, but now I just use it as a full time hard drive. Its quick simple. I've had no problems. The only thing was when I first connected it to my computer, I had a USB hub that was connected to the back of my tower. I connected it to the hub and I kept getting an error on my computer. All I had to do was connect it directly to the tower. Turns out since its USB powered, the hub doesn't provide enough power to run the HDD. But no worries. Its still a great device. Price was very good for 500gb. Its small and easy to take with me when I go somewhere with my laptop. Definitely recommend! -- Pretty Good!

A snap to install. Light weight and easily portable. Price was good and delivery quick. -- Good value for a good price.

I am relatively technology challenged, so this self-contained portable hard drive is perfect for me. Just plugged it in and it does all the rest. -- Toshiba Portable Hard Drive is great.

I LOVE this little external hard drive! It's low-profile, small and light, and has little rubber feet to keep it in place. It has a nice mini-USB cord that's only about 6", which is perfect for toting around w/o a lot of extra bulk and weight. Buy the suggested Case Logic case for it and you can take it everywhere, all the time. Very happy with my purchases. -- Toshiba 640 GB USB 2.0 Portable HD