Verbatim 3TB Store 'n' Save Desktop Hard Drive, USB 3.0, Diamond Black 97581

Before we begin, check the review (re the 3 TB model) by CambyPCWizard right here at Amazon. I quote:“It only gives you 2tb of empty space. It has 2 partitions that you can not do anything with. Wait for the 4tb”Indeed, perhaps 80% of the hapless PC’ers who buy the 3 TB model (without reading my review) will believe the drive is screwed up. Too bad everyone at Verbatim is a Mensa and cannot bother to write a decent quick-start user manual. Verbatim will receive a lot of returns of the 3 TB model when the only thing defective is the user manual.This is a combined review of these two models:Verbatim 3 TB Store n Save 97581 external USB 3.0 Hard DriveVerbatim 2 TB Store n Save 95780 external USB 3.0 Hard DriveThese hard drives have a few special features: on-off switch, Green Button software, excellent warranty, free back-up software, and cooling slots.Use the on-off switch to power off the drive when you do not need it (be sure to remove hardware using Windows so you don’t lose any data not yet written to disk). Many external USB hard drives do not feature an on-off switch. Green Button software is advanced power management to reduce power usage during times when your external HD is powered on but not being used. Most external USB hard drives have some method of reducing power usage when the drive is not accessed for an extended period (ask each manufacturer what their approach is).Both of these models cool well with appropriately placed cooling slots. It is absolutely amazing how many other brands of external hard drives are sealed boxes with no cooling slots or they have cooling slots ON THE BOTTOM (heat is trapped as it rises). In fact, the majority of other-brand external hard drive enclosures are not designed for proper cooling.Both models carry a seven year limited warranty – which is the best available.The USB 3.0 is very snappy compared to USB 2.0.Nero back-up software is included, but I have not tried it (I prefer SecondCopy by Centered ).You can run these drives while they sit on their thin edge (vertical). Not sure how you keep them from falling over.Neither model actually has feet, but rubber nubs are provided (you stick them to the bottom of your drive). This is satisfactory, the rubber nubs raise the drive slightly off the surface and keep the drive from traveling around on smooth surfaces.A possible negative: The provided USB 3.0 cable which connects the drive to the PC is very short.Unless you intend to place your Verbatim HD immediately next to your PC, consider a purchase of something like the following:http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002GNRZR0/ref=oh_details_o01_s01_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1or a similar cable in the length that you require.Be aware: The real capacity of all these drives is about 20% less than Verbatim claims it is, for the same reason that every HD manufacturer lies about the capacity of their hard drives.I have four total of these Verbatim drives. Two of the 2 TB 97580. Two of the 3 TB 97581. The 2 TB drives have been trouble free. If you only need a 1 TB or 2 TB external hard drive (non-portable), I recommend the Verbatim Store n Save without reservations.All the negative info below pertains only to the 3 TB and 4 TB models. Read the following before you return your (???defective???) 3 TB Verbatim external hard drive.-----------------------------------------------Open letter to Verbatim:Dear Verbatim: Following is a partial excerpt from my letter to the retailer.-----------------------------------------------Mr. X, Customer Service Department Manager, Retailer:Dear Sir,Your Store is fine. I am not too pleased with the manufacturer of this device. I spent a lot of time figuring out what is going on with this device (Verbatim 3 TB Store n Save external hard drive). One problem is Verbatim's totally inadequate documentation and incomplete technical support. I think I now understand this problem but I solved it with little assistance from Verbatim. Expect to receive a lot of returns of these hard drives from computer newbees. I have a fair degree of computer knowledge and (at first) I thought something was defective with this hard drive. Why? Because it arrives from the factory set up incorrectly for Windows 7 and Windows 8 PC's. I cannot say with certainty that this external hard drive will not work (as it arrives from the factory) with any PC. This is a brand new entry to your lineup of offerings so you cannot anticipate how many of these are going to come back. However, when you start to receive a LOT (40% to 50%) of returns of this item, you should contact the manufacturer and INSIST that they provide a proper manual and proper technical support. An incomplete owner's manual of four pages (containing zero substance) is not acceptable.Thanks Steve==================================================================================Dear Verbatim: Following is a letter to the manufacturer of my latest PC:--------------------------------------------------Mr. X Technical SupportTuesday 12 February 2013Dear Sir,Please see your Feb 10 email appended below.Yes, I agree with you. I believe that you are exactly correct.I have solved the problem (i.e., I now see one single device with one single continuous partition). Just letting you know some of the details.My issue is with Verbatim and their total lack of proper documentation.The Verbatim instruction booklet is four very sparse pages with not-useful information like (quoting): "Once the AC Adapter has been properly connected to the drive and an AC outlet, you can press the ON/OFF button to power on the drive." In other words, Verbatim states the obvious but provides zero hints why one physical device (the single huge external hard drive) shows up as multiple drives containing multiple partitions (in Windows 7 Disk Management).I have retired all of my old PC's which featured older operating systems. And I understand the issue of MBR vs GPT. So I had a vague idea what I was searching for. I fault Verbatim for failing to explain this issue and lay out the complete sequence of procedures to correct this issue.My sequence of corrective procedures:(1) Obtained "Verbatim Mode Change Tool" from Verbatim. Applying this software application to the> 2.2 TB external hard drive changed my view in "Disk Management" so I now viewed only one device divided into two partitions. The first partition ended at the 2.2 TB barrier and the second partition was not accessible.(2)Windows 7 "Disk Management" could do nothing with the second partition. Selecting "New Volume" affected only the first partition. Deleting the first partition, formatting, nothing made any difference. The second partition remained inaccessible. Instructions from Verbatim were not helpful (incomplete).(3) At the Command Prompt, DiskPart could not locate the second partition (insisted there was no second partition). So I used the Clean Command in DiskPart to delete the hidden partition. Be sure to caution any newbee to make certain that they have the proper disk selected in DiskPart if they wish to avoid a nasty surprise.(4) I finally had a single disk, no partition(s), one continuous unallocated accessible space.(5) When I returned to "Disk Management," it finally "saw" a brand new hard drive. Clicking "New Volume" in Disk Management caused Windows to prompt me to choose whether I wished the new disk to be "GPT" or "MBR." This choice was not possible until I cleared out the partitions, formatting, and whatever Verbatim did to make this one physical device appear to be more than one drive. I chose GPT because that is appropriate for > 2.2 TB hard drives.(6) I formatted the drive NTFS with allocation unit size 4,096.Thank you for your assistanceSteve--------------------------------------------------On 2/10/13, Support wrote:> Hello Steve,>> I suspect that Verbatim may have formatted the drive in an unorthodox manner> to provide broader compatibility with older computers.>> It should be possible to clean the existing format & initialize the drive> with the GPT partition style to create a single, greater than 2.2TB> partition. If you can provide a screenshot of the disk management> information, I should be able to confirm this and provide further> instructions on how to reformat the drive into a single volume.>> Kind regards,>> Mr. X> Technical SupportI do recommend both of these models. You cannot beat the warranty. They run very cool compared to other external hard drives. I expect these Verbatim drives to last for many years because they are trouble free.When you order the 3 TB model, immediately contact Verbatim technical support to obtain the “Verbatim Mode Change Tool.” Verbatim does not offer the tool unless you request it. And yet, for the vast majority of you, the tool is essential.You do not need to go through all the bs that I went through with my first Verbatim 3 TB purchase.Instead, follow this simple step-by-step procedure:(1) Save all software (provided by Verbatim) to another device (so you don’t lose it).(2) Run “Verbatim Mode Change Tool” and apply to your new 3 TB Verbatim hard drive(3) Look at the HD in Windows Administrative Tools => Disk Management. If you do not see one continuous unallocated partition, contact Verbatim Technical Support for assistance.(4) In Disk Management, click on your new hard drive. Windows will request a choice between “MBR” or “GPT.” Select “GPT” for drives over 2.2 TB capacity.(5) Format the drive(6) Move software back to Verbatim hard driveEasy and simple.Side note: By the end of year 2013, Verbatim will be offering a 4 TB model of their Store n Save External USB 3.0 hard drive. So if you need huge capacity, you might wish to delay your purchase. Everything that I have written re the 3 TB model – also applies to the 4 TB model.Warning: If you return your HD to Verbatim for any reason, first, try to save a backup of your data to another device.

Great for son to backup his computer at college and keep in a secure place. He’s impressed with it.

So this is Verbatim's new hard drive design. I believe that it's a step BACK from previous models. Previous models were aluminum frame and this new design is plastic. Previous models had rubber feet on the bottom and the new design has no feet at all. Still has the very short USB cable and the AC adapter cable length has gotten shorter as well. Good thing it still uses the same 12V 1.5A adapter as previous models so I can use them instead.Fortunately it still has a Samsung hard drive internally. It's the Samsung HD204UI model, known for running cool and very quiet, as well as being the most reliable drive on the market.The front LED is beaming blue compared to yellow on previous models. It also has a switch for powering on and off as opposed to a button. The vents are on the sides now. Previous model had vents on the bottom. So it should always run fairly cool even after hours of use.Overall, I'm happy with this drive but not sure why Verbatim took a step back with the quality of the enclosure. They still back their product with a 7 year warranty and no other manufacturer can top that. This is my 7th Verbatim drive purchase and I will continue to buy them.

I've read comments regarding two partitions issue. I've perused myself for many hours to solve it until I stumbled into that software, already included on your HDD. That "Verbatim Mode Switch Tool" is a breeze to use. Open it, click "Start", use "Standard mode" but do not forget to CHECK "Switch mode". Of course, there's a disclaimer that you will loose all your data. Operation will take less than a minute. Ending result is a new, single partition of 2.7TB which is what I and everyone else was looking for.My original HDD is a Toshiba model DT01ACA300 and has a tendency to get hot after intensive use. At 51°C, it is a little bit high. Nonetheless, I've bought another one with Seagate model ST3000DM001-1CH166 inside. A notice stating why the disc came with two partitions is included in my new disc box. But, still no instructions about the procedure to get a single partition. Granting one star less for this inconvenient.

Initial install: The unit would not start up. Tried a couple of power transformers, included the one from the box, no luck. The LED on the front panel would not light. The computer would not recognize it. Contact the manufacturer directly and was told to buy another power converter. I did so. No luck. I have asked for a replacement from Amazon. They were fully cooperative and the replacement is on its way. We will see...Update: Amazon sent a replacement that worked fine after completing the install of an USB 3 module. I am holding back the five star ranking as Vebatim's customer service did not figure out what the problem was and insisted that the unit did not include a power converter (it does). The USB 3 module's instructions were also inadequate.

This Black Beauty of a hard drive is awesome. I would recommend this to anyone seeking external storage.

I was looking for a simple USB HD to plug into our AirPort Extreme to share files from. We've got a 2 gig WD drive which works fine, but has that lame mini-usb connector (flimsy) and no power switch. Does the power switch matter? Not really, USB is hot-pluggable so maybe that's not something to complain about... Have I had a problem with the WD USB connector, no. It just kinda hangs on there though.The Verbatim drive is smaller, feels more solid, and has a decent housing. It also has a very nice USB 3 cable, that while short, is perfect for our application where the router is adjacent to the drive. It's also got a 7 year warrantee. Compared to the frequent reports of WD drives going back it seemed like a safe bet. When looking for another drive like this, I'd buy this on again.

Automatically installs. Very fast and very well constructed.

Must reformat using Verbatim software (included on the hard drive) if using for video storage on a Bell TV Receiver. Would not work with Bell 6141 receiver as the drive is factory formatted as NTFS and the Bell receiver only works with Fat 32 format. Note that formatting using the receiver will erase the formatting program and standard formatting tools do not work on Verbatim hard drives. Copy the program to your computer hard drive first and use the copy to format the hard drive from the computer.Starting directly from the receiver will result in a request to reformat the external hard drive which if selected will try to reformat. The result will be the Bell receiver will only erase the formatting program stored on the external hard drive without reformating to Fat 32.I Did not try the drive for any other application. Support info was either minimal or lost during the failed reformatting and finding the Verbatim Formatting program online was a bit of luck as I initially assumed that the Microsoft formatting tool was compatable with the Verbatim hard drive which was proven not correct and I was advised by Bell to return the Hard Drive as incompatable. Works fine now but the 6141 can only access one channel at a time and any attempts at viewing a second channel at the same time is met with a warning that the recording will stop.

Turned my DVR into a PVR. Only problem records only 1 show at a time and you can’t watch different channel while recording. Only view recorded items. Quick shipping

I have used Verbatim drives in the past and they were very good. The new ones are even better than y previous drives. Verbatim also provides an extremely good warranty. I highly recommend these drives.

I used this hard drive to store movies that I recorded on my Bell pvr. It is the only portable drive that I was able to find that has the required specs of 7200 rpm and 2 gigs or less. It works perfectly and was easy to install. I estimate that it should hold over 500 HD movies.