|
The Seagate FreeAgent drive combines a sleek design with a solid, reliable
drive inside. But the goodies don't end here, as all models feature an elegant
exterior design, a slim profile, and with a distinctive amber illumination the
FreeAgent has more to offer than being just a tempting piece of hardware. The
FreeAgent Go series of drives includes software that allows you to sync your own
personal OS settings and other files, so that you essentially carry your PC with
you in a package that's slimmer and lighter than a laptop, while the FreeAgent
Pro drives include a powerful and configurable auto backup software which keeps
taking backups of your important files.
The drives that we got ranged from the largest member of the Seagate
FreeAgent family, the 750GB FreeAgent Pro model featuring Seagate's current
largest 3.5" hard drive, to FreeAgent Pro 500 GB and FreeAgent Pro 320 GB, with
the smallest being the FreeAgent Go 160 GB. So, one can choose from a list of
drives based on the storage capacity one's looking for.
 As far as connectivity is concerned, all FreeAgent Pro models feature
interchangeable input modules that allow USB 2.0, FireWire 400, and eSATA
connectivity. On the other hand, FreeAgent Go has USB 2.0 connectivity only. But
while FreeAgent Pro provides the maximum options for connectivity it's big on
size and requires external power to run.
Apart from good looks, performance is where FreeAgent scores additional
points. Overall performance of the drive was good, with the operation equally
cool and quiet. The little noise that it produces is extremely soft, and the
seek noise is virtually inaudible. Even though the drive gets heated up on heavy
usage, its performance was not hampered. On each occasion, the time taken to
transfer data was constant, measuring 7min13sec for 10 GB of data for FreeAgent
Go. Its bigger brother, the FreeAgent Pro was not bad either, taking 7min 34sec
for the same amount of data.
There are several drives available for lesser price but Seagate's FreeAgent
series is an attractive solution for anyone looking to add external storage to
their systems.
|