Company: Seagate
Price: $159.99 (On Sale!)
Product : FreeAgent Go for Mac

Portability Rating: 4.5 stars
Durability: 4.5 stars
Re-use/Replay Value: 5 stars
Overall Rating: 4.5 stars

Seagate’s latest FreeAgent Go for Mac portable hard drive is an staggering from the moment you lay your eyes on the sleek shiny enclosure. Unraveling the amazing clam-shell packaging, you’ll find the drive itself, a lengthy USB cable with 2 USB heads (one is for data transfer, and one is for power), along with a small, shorter wire that is used when traveling.  The FreeAgent Go for Mac also is equipped with a short user manuel to help assist some questions you might have.The FreeAgent Go’s top surface feels metallic while maintaining it’s very light and very portable structure. The chassis is really nicely sealed against any accidental spills, and seems pretty durables enough to withstand the harsh conditions that these hard drives might encounter.  These hard drives can easily last for many years. The top face of the hard drive features a tiny Seagate logo, along with an array of LED’s which lights up white when connected to a computer’s USB port.  The lights glow brighter or dimmer depending on how much you are using the drive.  Once you eject the drive from the computer, the lights slowly dim down until they turn off, reassuring you that it is ok to then pull out the USB port.

Seagate provides multiple variants of the original FreeAgent Go for the PC.  They can be purchased in 250GB, 320GB, and 500GB capacities and a choice of Titanium Silver, Tuxedo Black, Ruby Red, Royal Blue, Sky Blue, Solar Orange, Think Pink, Champagne Gold, Spring Green and Forest Green colors. Unfortunately, with the FreeAgent Go for Mac, you can only buy the drive in silver.  On the bright side, you can order the drive with Firewire compatibility which is great.  The FreeAgent Go for Mac comes in the following models:

Interface

Capacity

Price

Firewire 800, 400, USB 2.0

250 GB

$89

Firewire 800, 400, USB 2.0

320 GB

$99

Firewire 800, 400, USB 2.0

500 GB

$189

USB 2.0

250 GB

$99

USB 2.0

320 GB

$119

USB 2.0

500 GB

$149

The FreeAgent Go comes with printed user guide that is fairly simplistic.  Just one thing I had to point out is that the user guide incorrectly refers to a single USB Type A connector cable instead of the included Y-USB Type A connector cable.

While testing the drive,  I used both the included Y-USB cable and a standard single USB cable on a desktop and laptop, both of which worked perfectly. I have a 17” Intel iMac, and a 13” MacBook Pro, just for those who are wondering.  Unfortunately, if your notebook was manufactured before the year 2000, you might need to plug both ends of the Y-USB cable into your notebook to supply sufficient current to power the hard drive.  You can see the test results here (I used Xbench to conduct my results):

The Seagate FreeAgent Go for Mac 500GB is a remarkably designed piece of USB hardware.  While I would still prefer the Seagate Go for Mac 500 GB with firewire, $150 is hard to complain for this extraordinary hard drive.  I definitely recommend you buy a FreeAgent Go, whether it is the Mac or PC version.  Seagate made them both equally amazing, and the price makes it a must have.

Since the USB versions of the FreeAgent Go for Mac don’t come with a dock, you can buy their FreeAgent Go Dock+ for just $39.  The dock let’s you quickly connect your drive into your computer, but it also doubles as a powered three-port USB hub.  I got a Dock+, and I find it really convenient.  I mean, honestly, who wouldn’t buy an external hard drive that gives you extra USB ports, right?

Pros: Thinner than the Firewire version.  Speed is pretty good, and the overall experience is excellent.  Price is also very affordable.

Cons: Slower than Firewire version.  Doesn’t come with any built-in software like the original FreeAgent Go.  USB version doesn’t come with a dock, and doesn’t come in a variety of colors.