For only $135 at the time that I bought it (which was Xmas 2008 from JB Hi-Fi), it was probably the cheapest dollar to gigabyte ratio external hard drive out there. Pretty damn cheap! I've tested it on Windows XP and Windows Vista and it works fine. According to the box, it also works with the inferior Mac OS.
Pros and Cons:
Pros
Cons
Cheap gigabyte:dollar ratio
Fairly chunky
Relatively quiet
Can't run off only USB
USB 2.0
Video Review:
Design:
The Maxtor Basics comes in black only and isn't that fascinating in design. Then again, it is just a external hard drive, and style doesn't really affect me.
The right hand panel of the external hard drive is glossy to give it that little touch of style. The roundish shape of the external HD makes it less boring.
There is also a small light on the front that shows when it's working or when it's on standby.
The rear has two plugs. One for connecting power to the power point, and the other for the USB. Unfortunately, the Maxtor Basics hard drive cannot run without AC power.
File Transfer:
I'm not that much of a power user, but the Maxtor Basics transfers files relatively quickly. I can't remeber exact times, but I was able to backup many of my files from my computer without taking too much time, but it could have been faster.
While using Windows Vista, and while transferring a large .ISO file across from the external HD to the computer, it averaged around 5MB/s. When transferring music it hit over 20MB/s. These are speeds while listening to music on the drive while browsing through it, so these values can be higher.
The 1337 Verdict:
If you're not into breakneck speed or micro sized hard drives, the Maxtor Basics is the way to go for saving money. There are 2.5" 500GB hard drives out there that can run solely off USB, but they're for around $300+.
With the Maxtor Basics, you can keep a backup of all your stuff for around $120 for 640GB. No need for portability, just keep this big brother at home, and have a spare USB stick for when you're on the move. Those USB sticks come out in crazy sizes now anyway (up to 64GB).
