2012 has just ended, and what a great year it was. Despite the apocalypse not quite happening, there was still world recession problems and freak storms and floods On a positive note, one thing finally happened – It was the year where it became completely possible to get external hard drives with mind-boggling storage capabilities, that can read and write at high speeds, at affordable price ranges. This list includes the very best hard drives with at least 2TB of storage that 2012 had to offer. 2013 will undoubtedly be a great year for storage enthusiasts, especially after CES 2013, where many exciting hard drives were announced (such as Seagate’s Wireless drive). For a more detailed look, we recommend looking through our external hard drive reviews section for an in-depth look at specific hard drives.
Let’s get started, shall we?
Number 7 – LaCie Rugged Mini External Hard Drive
LaCie is a juggernaut in the hard drive industry. They frequently release drives, and more often than not – they are big hits. The LaCie Rugged mini external hard drive was released a few years ago, but remains one of the top sellers. Its biggest selling point is that with the help of clever design and material choices – it is almost indestructible. It is waterproof, can survive high falls and it can even be run over with a 1 ton vehicle, and continue to work without a hiccup. It also runs at USB 3.0 speeds, is portable enough to fit in your back pocket and to cap it all off is affordable. Very recommended.
Number 6 – Samsung M3 1TB Portable External Hard drive
Okay, maybe this one doesn’t come in 2TB, however, the scrumptious design by itself merits its inclusion regardless of size. Despite having a monster 1TB of storage space, the Samsung M3 is extremely light, portable and easy-to-use thanks to it only needing a USB cable for power. It is also USB 3.0, meaning it will fly on computers with USB 3.0 ports.
Number 5 – Western Digital My Book Studio 2TB Firewire 800
The My Book Studio hard drive is one of the quietest hard drives we have ever (not) heard. It is truly a beautiful product, and would hold its own when standing next to a 27″ iMac. One of the key features of this drive is its interface, as it uses Firewire 800. Not everyone has this type of interface (commonly found on macs), however, it is much faster than the standard USB 2.0, which makes transferring files and creating large backups an absolute breeze. Recommended drive.
Number 4 – Apple Time Capsule 2TB
This 2TB external hard drive was designed by Apple, and as such you are assured a thing of beauty. The Apple Time Capsule 2TB is a small unit when compared to the average hard drive, but this isn’t just any external hard drive. This product is also an excellent modem that allows you to cleverly create an network backup extremely easily. It has simple connections – Power, 1x USB, Lan-in and Three Lan-Outs. In short: You could have a perfectly running Wi-Fi home network, while all your data is backed up in the background onto the hard drive in under half an hour. Truly remarkable and so easy a child could set it up. Very Recommended
Number 3 – G-Technology G-drive 2TB
Many of you may not have heard of ‘G-Technology‘, and the reason is they are Hitachi’s hard drive manufacturing name. I’m sure everyone knows by now how reliable and experience Hitachi are as a technology manufacturer. The G-Drive is an extremely solid piece of kit, it has multiple interface ports and sports a beautiful and sturdy metal case. There is no annoying fan to be worried about, as the drive has been mounted with an external case with hundreds of small ventilation holes to keep the drive cool. The drive is lightning-fast and very reliable – It even comes with every kind of cable at generous-lengths too, to cover all the interface ports that come in the drive. Absolutely marvellous drive and one that no buyer will ever regret. Extra recommended.
You can also read our detailed G-TECHNOLOGY G-DRIVE EXTERNAL HARD DRIVE REVIEW.
Number 2 – LaCie Porsche Design P’9230 2TB
LaCie has released a supremely gorgeous hard drive using the Porsche image for inspiration. Fortunately, LaCie really paid attention to how Porsche do things and their product reflects this. The design is a pure work of art – A lovely industrial design which is rather similar to Porsche vehicles. It is exceedingly quiet and speedy thanks to the USB 3.0 – again, similar to a Porsche vehicle. And the highlight of the design – The LED light. You may wonder how the LED could be the highlight of this beautiful drive, let me explain – The LED light leaves a small and sexy refraction on the nearby surface. Sexy as Porsche.
Number 1 – Western Digital My Passport 2TB
For the very large part of the last decade, Western Digital has continued to be one of the driving forces of the hard drive market. Constantly releasing excellent drives with even better prices. So it comes to no suprise that our number one 2tb external hard drive of 2012 goes to the Western Digital My Passport 2TB. As the name suggests, this external hard drive is smaller than a passport and extremely portable. It is USB powered, so no need for chunky power cords and uses the impressive USB 3.0 for blistering speeds. The drive is also surprisingly quite, never gets hot and is plug-and-play hardware at its best. Plug it in, transfer files or play files off the drive, unplug and done. Couldn’t be smaller, couldn’t be simpler, it’s simply difficult to see how it could be better with our current technology. It is simply the best and the first drive anyone needing extra storage should look at. The most recommended drive of them all. 5 Stars.
You can also read our detailed review for the Western Digital My Passport 2TB
So that’s it for now, as 2013 unravels and new good/bad hard drives come out, we will add drives to the list. For now enjoy your awesome 2tb external hard drive.
