The Best of Both Phone, and Tablet
Entered CNET Catalog: 05/23/2008
SKU: WDMS3200
Manufacturer: Western Digital Corp.
Manufacturer description
Equipped with both FireWire 400 and USB 2.0 interfaces, and formatted for Mac, this portable hard drive features a clever capacity gauge and comes with a soft drawstring bag. It is perfect for Mac users on the go and. Use it to pack up your office files and take them home, carry thousands of songs or pictures and back up your Mac laptop using Apple Time Machine.Product summary
The good: Decent performance; bus-powered; capacity gauge works as port cover; Mac OS X-ready; cool and quiet during operation; five-year warranty; low cost per gigabyte.
The bad: No option for external power; no FireWire 800.
The bottom line: Whether you use a Mac or a PC, the 320GB Western Digital My Passport Studio is the perfect compact external drive with a low cost per GB, a compact design, decent performance, and a surprisingly lengthy warranty.
Editors' review
- Editors' Choice: No
- Reviewed on: 06/12/2008
Add FireWire 800, and the Western Digital My Passport Studio could make for the perfect pocket-size external hard drive. Offering FireWire 400 and USB 2.0 connections, this 320GB drive still impressed us with its compact design, decent capacity and performance, and competitive cost per gigabyte. Western Digital lists it for $210, but it can be found online for less (Buy.com, for example, sells it for $185--for 58 cents per gigabyte). If you don't need the FireWire connection and are looking for something even a little more compact and colorful, the USB-only SimpleTech Signature Mini Black Cherry is a good bet. Moving in the other direction, the OWC Mercury is a bit bulkier and costs slightly more per gigabyte, but it supplies FireWire 800. For those looking for the middle ground, however, Western Digital's 320GB My Passport Studio resides in a sweet spot.
| Drive type | External hard drive |
| Connector options | FireWire 400, USB 2.0 |
| Available capacities | 160GB; 250GB; 320GB |
| Capacity of test unit | 320GB |
| Drive size | 2.5-inch |
| Drive speed | 5400rpm |
| Cache | 8MB |
| Dimensions (LWH) | 4.9 x 3.2 x 0.71 inches |
| Notable design features | Sleek aluminum casing with capacity gauge |
| OSes supported | Windows XP, Vista, Mac OS X |
| Software included | Hard=drive management tool for Mac |
| Service and Support | 5-year warranty |
Design and features
As the name suggests, the My Passport Studio has about the same footprint as an actual passport and is about three times thicker. It's also very lightweight at 6.7 ounces. The drive looks somewhat like a book, with a sleek aluminum casing that takes the place of the cover, and black plastic taking the place of the pages.
The My Passport features dual interfaces: FireWire 400 and USB 2.0. It doesn't offer FireWire 800, which is a bit disappointing as this option allows for the highest possible speed for a pocket-size external hard drive. On the plus side, it has a capacity gauge. It's just a ballpark measurement with four blocks that glow white as you gobble up another 80GB of space. And when not in use, the gauge can be slid to the side to cover the ports, protecting them from dust.
The drive ships with two data cables (FireWire 400 and USB 2.0), a quick setup poster, and a velour string purse. The drive is bus-powered. You just have to plug it into a Mac and it works. Preformatted for OS X, the My Passport Studio needs to be reformatted for use with Windows. This is a very simple process that requires a few mouse clicks using Windows' built-in disk-management utility.
The My Passport Studio is the first pocket-size external hard drive that doesn't come with a power port. This means it relies entirely on the power provided by the computer's port. We didn't run into any instances where the drive failed to operate, but we suspect there might be some computers, especially older computers with USB 1.1 ports, that don't provide enough juice to operate the drive. While the chance of the drive not working with your computer is low, if you can, it's a good idea to test the drive with your laptop before purchasing it.
Cost per gigabyte
At $185, the My Passport Studio serves up its 320GB of capacity at a competitive 58 cents per gigabyte, trailing the Maxtor OneTouch 4 Mini by 2 cents.
| Model | Capacity | Est. street price | Cost per GB |
| SimpleTech Signature Mini Black Cherry | 320GB | $160 | 56 cents |
| Maxtor OneTouch 4 Mini | 160GB | $90 | 56 cents |
| WD My Passport Studio | 320GB | $185 | 58 cents |
| Iomega eGo Portable Hard Drive | 160GB | $100 | 63 cents |
| OWC Mercury On-The-Go | 500GB | $350 | 70 cents |
| Toshiba USB 2.0 Portable External HDD | 160GB | $140 | 88 cents |
| G-Tech G-Drive mini Triple (7200RPM) | 200GB | $270 | $1.35 |
Performance
The WD My Passport Studio performed well in CNET Labs testing. We tested the drive using both USB 2.0 and FireWire 400 connections.
In USB 2.0 testing, the drive topped our charts on our write test scoring 149.12Mbps, narrowly edging the rest of the compact 2.5-inch drives we've tested. Its read score finished in the middle of the tightly grouped pack.
The My Passport Studio's FireWire 400 performance couldn't equal that of the OWC Mercury On-the-Go but far better than the G-Tech G-Drive mini Triple's FireWire 400 throughput. The My Passport Studio's FireWire 400 write speed was 19 percent faster than writing via USB 2.0.
The drive was quiet and stayed very cool during our tests.
(Longer bars indicate better performance)
 |
Write | |
Read |
Service and support
Western Digital has a lot of love for the My Passport Studio and backs it up with a generous five-year warranty. This is the longest we've seen for a pocket-size external hard drive. As there's generally not much support needed for external hard drives, the warranty duration is the most valuable support and Western Digital delivers. Nonetheless, the company's technical toll-free phone support is available from 8 a.m. till 7 p.m. CST, Monday through Thursday, and from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Friday through Sunday. At its Web site, you will find a comprehensive set of Web-based support including downloads, product RMA, a sizable knowledge base, and an online installation guide.
User opinions
Select a User Opinion to view: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15out of 15 user reviews
Will Never Buy WD Again!
Pros: Small, easy connectibility
Cons: Unreliable - crashed after only 3 months of normal usage, almost lost all of my precious data.
out of 15 user reviews
DO NOT PURCHAS
Pros: It is inexpensive.
Cons: It does not work.
out of 15 user reviews
lost 200BGworth of data b/c none of my pcs recognize it
Pros: this is a ***** product, you will loose all your data. you can read around the internet and see how any people are trying to figure out why this device is not recognized by any pc. i bought it 2 mnts ago and now i can't access my 200GB worth of data
Cons: no support from WD. i can't find the reason why this devise is not recognized by none of my computers, not only one but all of them, the same for windows
out of 15 user reviews
Two Broken in One Year
Pros: Good Shape - Small.
Cons: Two of these broke with in a year of each other.
out of 15 user reviews
Minimal performer, terrible Mac instructions
Pros: Quiet, small, blue
Cons: Difficult to configure for Mac; can't store data on multiple OS's
out of 15 user reviews
Not as easy or as friendly to use
Pros: It has plenty of memory-320gigs.
Cons: When I plug it in, it does not offer me easy and friendly access to use it. I am not a tech, I'm just like the other 99% of users out there. I need easy, friendly operation. I want it to open up a window like a browser, on any computer, and help me.
out of 15 user reviews
TEMPERATURE PROBLEM
Pros: NOT GOOD BECAUSE I PAY 50$ MORE TO USE FIRE WIRE 800 CABLE
Cons: FREEZ WITH MAC
1. 11 sep 2009 i had one.
after one hour it gone to be self disconnected, hanged after 20gb file transfer, and doesn't matched with time machine.
2. 12 sep 2009 get help from apple & DW
3. 13 sep apple send me some non useful information.
4. 15 sep DW sent me new link for new driver, but problem existed.
5. 16 sep gone to DW guaranty.
6. 19 sep they changed my device.
7. problem exist whit new device
8. i use a new cooling system under storage.
what you think:
every thing work with fire wire 800 with out problem.
result: DW calculation for heat transferring is fail.
out of 15 user reviews
Failed within 5 months
Pros: it was small and seemed to travel well
Cons: Stopped working after 5 months. Company warranty sucks and did not cover recovery. It cost me $700 dollars to recover wedding pictures I had tried to store - thank god I got them back. This is a very untrustworthy product.
out of 15 user reviews
Dead in 3 months
Pros: Small and compact.
Cons: It died in 3 months. It failed at its most important function...to store data.
out of 15 user reviews
LOTSA SPACE; BUT VERY UNRELIABLE; BROKEN IN 5 WEEKS
Pros: LOTS of space; brilliant for storing games; superb for backup
Cons: BUT IT WAS BROKEN IN ONLY 5 WEEKS
Needs an extra power supply if you use a USB hub (like me!) which'll eventually crashed by either 2 much voltage or your dog tripping over it
Unreliable workiness on XP laptops due to lack of power: unsafe removal
out of 15 user reviews
Unsure of Reliability
Pros: Very small and works like a dream when it does work.
Cons: Very unreliable, after looking online I've read about a lot of people who cannot mount the drive after some time (usually when the warranty dies) or they have to format to get it to work again! Eeeesh!!
out of 15 user reviews
excellent, easy, no criticism
Pros: Perfect operation, quiet, no problems
Cons: Nothing at all!
out of 15 user reviews
Love these Drives!
Pros: I currently have 5 of these puppies. They run and run and run. Plenty of space for data and app storage, and work well for backups, too.
Cons: No external power.
No Firewire 800.
Should be armored (rubberized) against shock.
Connection cable way too short.
Better padded cases.
Indicator to tell when drive is 'disconnectable."
out of 15 user reviews
Broken in 90-days
Pros: The drive is small therefore takes up almost no desk space. No power source needed and very quite.
Cons: It lasted just about 90-days and went south on me. Unfortunately, I purchased it at Best Buy and it was a real hassle getting my money back. I would not buy another. All my backup was gone.
out of 15 user reviews
Fast and portable storage
Pros: Small size; lightning quick data transfer via Firewire; no separate power cable needed
Cons: Proprietary cable needs improved design
I use mine for video file storage. I plug my camcorder into the Mac, start up iMovie and import the footage off the DV tape, then unplug the camera and plug in the My Passport Studio. I can move the new footage from my hard drive to the Passport drive, and iMovie treats the Passport drive just as it does the the Mac's hard drive, making it simple to pull from up to 320 GB of video clips.
On the down side, the Passport's proprietary cable is short and difficult to keep plugged in on the Passport side, with it's mini-USB and Firewire 400 plugs on seperate cables, yet molded together about 6"/15 cm from the plugs. On mine, one of the plugs must be twisted slightly when inserted, and one of the leads is a little longer then the other. Since they're fused together the tendency is for the shorter lead to come unplugged, not a good thing when doing data transfer. Also, if you lose the cable or leave it behind, you'll need to be prepared with an extra on since you can't pick one up just anywhere.
All in all, though, the Passports small size, huge storage and ease of use makes it a great product.
Updated on Sep 13, 2009BUYER BEWARE! I'm updating my review; I didn't know I would need to get a replacement cable for my WD My Passport Studio 320Gb for Mac, but I did foresee possible problems owing to the proprietary nature of the interface cable. Now I'm a victim. After waiting a couple of weeks for the cable, listed as "Out of Stock" on WD Store's website, I called their support line and explained that I needed to get a cable since my Macbook Pro was using WD's MPS for Time Machine backups. I was told they would get one out to me right away ("Hmm...I thought they were out of stock.") As you may have guessed I was sent the wrong cable and now, months later, the cable is still listed as "out of stock." So unless you want your portable storage to last only as long as the cable lasts (my didn't last but a few months), I'd stay away from this one.
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