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Seagate GoFlex Slim review

Seagate GoFlex Slim
Our Rating :
Price when reviewed : £68
inc VAT

One of, if not the thinnest external hard disk currently available, but you have to pay a lot for it.

Specifications

320GB hard disk, USB3, 78x124x9mm

http://www.scan.co.uk

Portable hard disks are almost always pocket-sized, but few are quite as diminutive as Seagate’s latest; the GoFlex Slim is a pencil-thin 9mm thick, almost half the height of many other 2½in disks. It weighs a barely noticeable 160g and easily slips into a pocket, which makes it ideal for taking your data on the move.

It’s common for small external hard disks to sacrifice performance in order to shrink in size, but that isn’t the case here. Because it combines a high-speed 7,200RPM spindle with USB3 connectivity, we were expecting good results from our file transfer tests. Thankfully we weren’t disappointed; large files written at 92.5MB/s and read at 139MB/s. Small files read speeds were an equally impressive 58.1MB/s but the disk could only manage a disappointing 13.3MB/s when writing them.

Seagate GoFlex Slim

Like all GoFlex products, the interface connector can be removed and replaced with an alternative. There currently aren’t any connectors specifically designed for the Slim, but we tried connectors designed for larger disks and they all worked fine.

The GoFlex Slim looks fantastic thanks to an anodised aluminium finish. Its tiny dimensions have more in common with a USB memory stick than an external hard disk; it’s just as easy to carry around but offers a significantly greater capacity. Performance was also impressive. The only problem is the price. Despite having only 320GB of storage space, the Slim costs more than most 500GB disks. Unless you must have the slimmest disk around, there are better choice around.

Basic Specifications

Rating ***

Storage

Hard disk Seagate STBE320100
Capacity 320GB
Formatted capacity 298GB
Price per gigabyte £0.21
Disk size 2.5in
Interface USB3
Power connector USB from host
Spindle speed 7,200rpm
Cache 16MB
Seek time 12.0ms
Weight 160g
Size 78x124x9mm
Power consumption idle 1W
Power consumption active 2W

Buying Information

Backup software included Memeo InstantBackup
Price £68
Warranty five years RTB
Supplier http://www.scan.co.uk
Details www.seagate.com

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