An external storage device is one of the most important investments you can make for your Mac. Sure, Macs come with nice new hard drives that have a vast amount of free space, but once you add applications, buy (or make) digital music and videos, and move photos from your camera to your computer, your Mac may tell you that “your startup disk is almost full” at an unexpected moment. An external storage device can also help you better organize your files. And if you want to perform data backups with Mac OS X’s Time Machine, an external storage device is a must-have.
You have myriad storage choices—external hard drives, desktop RAIDs, optical disc burners, solid-state drives, flash drives, and network-attached storage. Depending on your situation and your file types, some storage devices will serve you better than others.
In this buyer’s guide, we’ll provide insight into storage media and technologies, and help you determine which solution is best for you-so you can unleash your inner packrat.