LaCie Rugged 160GB USB 2.0 External

I'm using 2 versions of the LaCie Rugged. the 100GB 7200rpm version (since oct-2007) and the 200GB 5400rpm version (since sept 2008).

I never had any issues with these drives. They worked instantly on Windows XP, Windows Vista, Mac OS and in Ubuntu (all using USB). No extra drivers needed.

In the begining I did a few firewire tests on my Mac Book Pro. But there was no clear gain in speed or transfer rates, so I decided to stick with USB only use. (less cables to carry! :) )

As a programmer I use them both daily. The 200GB is my back-up drive. The 100GB version contains a few very large files (> 15GB VMWare images). It is used very heavily every day since I run the VMWare images directly from the drive ( over USB 2.0). So that is at least 6 hoursof use every working day.

I never had any problems or crashes. I carry them around in my laptop bag and I have already dropped the 200GB version a few times.

PS I think the image of the product is wrong.

I couldnt get any after sale service when this product failed after just a few months. I had to pay for another company to retrieve the data which meant losing my warrantee. No after sale service from Lacie.Very poor and would never buy one of their products again.

Cheap, easy to use, plug and play, however gets extremely hot if left plugged in. Good drive for the money therefore I well recommend the Lacie 160GB USB 2.0 external hard drive.

The Lacie 160GB USB 2.0 external is one of the best value for money external drives on the market. It takes seconds to install and offers a large capacity at a low price.

What more could you ask for you might ask? I think it would have been nice if they had included (as do some of their rivals) some PC backup software. Lacie sells heavily to the Mac crowd and if you're one of them you'll likely find the backup utility provided very useful. PC users, by contrast, get nothing.

The company is proud of the fact this unit is designed by FA Porsche. It's what could be described as "functional", which is to say pretty bland with only a tiny orange LED to tell you it's turned on.

No matter, it is well constructed and subsequent units can be stacked on top of one another thanks to a clever arrangement of the unit's rubber feet fitting into groves on the drive's top.