MaxtorOneTouch - Hard drive - 120 GB - external - Hi-Speed USB - 7200 rpm - buffer: 2 MB

We ordered what we thought was a current model. When we had to call the manufacturer because it was difficult to install, their Help Desk told us we had a model which was obsolete..they helped us install it, but it is a big disappointment.Buyer beware...

I use this as one of my backup drives on a Mac OSX machine. I actually have 2 backups one being redundant. When adding external drives to any Mac they should always be reformatted with disk utility. After I formatted them and started to use them they would crash my machine when they were both on. After talking to the Maxtor support it was determined that all I needed was a different type of driver that I accessed from their website. There is no such thing as a perfect brand of hard drive they all suffer from the same problems. I have known people who have had maxtors for over 10 years with no problems. sometimes you get a lemon and they crap out after 3 weeks. It happens to all of the manufacturers. The point of all this rambling is be vigilant! Do multiple backups of the things that are truly irreplaceable. Pictures should be archived to CD or DVD at least 2 times a year. All it takes is to lose the first 3 years of you children's life to pound this concept home. As for the hard drive you can choose any reputable brand and be reasonably certain that it will be OK. Just don't get USB 1.0 like I did because it took 38 hours to backup 100gig. You should buy the largest capacity that you can afford and go with Firewire or USB 2.0Personally I don't use the Button or the retrospect software. I use Backup from apple, but I have heard it works just fine.

I purchased the Maxtor hd and then read the reviews. I assumed I'd be shipping it back for a refund. Maxtor has a "Read Me First" page which corrects an error in the User's Guide. Perhaps this was a problem with early shipments? Since I have a slight touch of Alzheimers, I actually got to that section of the User's Guide and noticed that the written instructions didn't match what I was seeing on the screen. While I was fumbling around for Maxtor's 800 number, I ran across the Read Me First page again which guided through the rest of the set up. All easy enough. I backed up my documents, 3 Gb, which took only a few minutes with the 2.0 USB connection. If not for the error in the User's Guide I would've rated this buy 5 stars. The one button update works fine. On a noise level, Maxtor rates between my Dell and Gateway, so on that basis, I rate the Maxtor noise completely acceptable. The only issue left is longevity.