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Review: Seagate Wireless Plus 2TB hard drive

Admire Moyo
By Admire Moyo, ITWeb's news editor.
Johannesburg, 26 Aug 2014
The Seagate 2TB Wireless is a compact drive measuring 127 x 89 x 19.9mm and weighing only 256g.
The Seagate 2TB Wireless is a compact drive measuring 127 x 89 x 19.9mm and weighing only 256g.

With the plethora of devices that we carry around these days - smartphones, tablets, etc - we find ourselves generating large amounts of data on a daily basis.

Thus, it has become a necessity to intelligently store this data in a central repository to avoid losing the files, or if we need to access them anytime, from anywhere. There are lots of storage devices on the market to select from and this has seen stiff competition among vendors as they try to outdo each other.

Being a tech journalist, I have been privileged to sample some of the leading storage devices from vendors like Seagate, Iomega and WD. On getting the Seagate Wireless Plus 2TB hard drive for review, the irresistible temptation was to gauge how it sets itself apart from the competition.

Look and feel

The Seagate 2TB Wireless is a compact drive measuring 127 x 89 x 19.9mm and weighing only 256g. It can easily fit in a pocket for those who always need their files on hand.

Dynamite comes in small packages was the only conclusion I could come up with, judging from the device's diminutive size and the sheer size of data it can absorb.

The drive is shiny black in colour with a metallic plastic surface. It has an on/off button on its side for WiFi connectivity. Underneath, the device is rubber, which makes it sit sturdily on any surface.

It is also available in 1TB and 500GB versions and is covered by a two-year warranty.

Connectivity and battery

There's no need for an external power source as a microUSB 3.0 port handles charging its internal battery, which lasts for up to 10 hours. Nonetheless, when the drive is connected to a number of devices, the battery life is greatly reduced.

One of the Wireless Plus' biggest selling points is that it is a portable backup drive that doubles as a WiFi hotspot, allowing users to stream media files and share data with smartphones, tablets, computers, TVs and game consoles.

This enables mobile devices connected to the drive's WiFi network to use its storage for backup as well as playing media stored on the drive without a wired connection.

In summary

Pros: WiFi connectivity, portability
Cons: Expensive
Capacity: 500GB, 1TB, 2TB
Connectivity: USB 3.0, WiFi
Dimensions: 127 x 89 x 19.9mm
Weight: 256g
Price: R2 499
Rating: 9/10

Transferring media wirelessly proved quite easy. One first needs to download a free app called Seagate Media, which works as a file manager and supports Apple, Android and Windows RT devices, in addition to Amazon's Kindle Fire. All that is then required is turning on the on/off button on the side. Two notification lights indicate the status for the wireless signal as well as the remaining battery life.

The Seagate Media app also enables users to back up their pictures and videos instead of going back to the computer.

At 2TB, the device can accommodate hundreds of movies, pictures, music files, etc, much to the benefit of today's digital consumers. Furthermore, the device can be automatically synchronised with cloud file-sharing services like Dropbox or Google Drive.

According to Seagate, when using the drive as a hub, users can share a single Internet connection with up to seven smartphones, tablets or PCs. However, I noticed the more devices you connect, the slower the media transfer becomes.

The vendor also claims that with AirPlay compatibility, Wireless Plus can wirelessly stream what's on the drive to Apple TV, various audio systems and AirPlay-enabled speakers and devices.

Verdict

Retailing at R2 499, the Seagate Wireless Plus 2TB hard drive does not come cheap. However, for those who need access to digital media files on the go, this can be a worthy investment.

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