WD 5TB My Passport Ultra, Blue, Portable External Hard Drive, backup software with defense against ransomware, and password protection, USB-C and USB 3.1 - WDBFTM0050BBL-WESN

This product is used to store large data files on both Fedora-33 and Rocky-8 linux systems. They are moved between the two systems allowing machine based access. The NTFS file system just needed to be configured in /etc/fstab, the blkid gave the device location, and then the mount command allowed access to the device so that it acted like any other. They are inexpensive enough that three devices are now attached to the same linux box giving multiple terrabytes of storage. The USB-C connection with adapter gives a quick change between the USB ports of the Rocky Linux USB-A 3.0 ports and the fedora-33 USB-C ports, allowing portable connection to each computer. Access speeds seem higher with the 5T USB-C than with the USB-A devices (e.g. the non Ultra version of the 5T drive).I keep the cable attached to the device at all times. Experience with others has taught me that the connection to the device is direct to the circuit board, so this procedure keeps the connects to a minimum. I do not tug or flex the attaching cables. Three are operated horizontally and one is operated vertically. There does not seem to be any difference in performance between vertical or horizontal operation.Longevity - I have both the 1T and 4T versions which I purchased almost 10 years ago which I use to store pictures (1T) and data files (4T). I started purchasing 5T drives in 2017 and 2018, and again in 2022. All but the 1T device are continually used daily and have had no issues.

Hooked right into my Macbook Pro no issues right from the start. Easy to use, easy to retrieve from. I do a YouTube Travel channel and it has a lot of storage so my macbook doesn't get full' If there is a complaint it would be in the drop down menu to eject the disk: the 'erase this disk' is the the option directly below the 'eject this disk'. Luckily there is a double check option for erase.

Using it for Time Machine backup on Mac. Excellent. Good quantity of storage. USB C connection is a very welcome feature Looks good. So far has worked perfectly.

A fast, compact drive powered by its USB-C connector. A solidly built cable is included plus a USB-A converter. There's a single activity LED near the connector.Write performance on a USB-C 3.1 host interface was decent, with 1MB sequential writes running at 112MiB/s, but dropping to 94MiB/s presumably along the slower (outer) parts of the spinning disk.Linux/BSD people, here's how the drive showed up for me:WD My Passport 260D 2007 Fixed Direct Access SPC-4 SCSI device1907697MB (3906963456 512 byte sectors)Note the enclosure shows up as a separate device, BSD sees it as:ses1: WD SES Device 2007 Fixed Enclosure Services SPC-4 SCSI deviceses1: SES DeviceUSB-C is a selling point for me despite some skeptical reviewers here. It isn't meant to be faster, necessarily, that's a function of the interfaces on each end. But it's always a more robust & simpler connector. It lasts long than microUSB (by design) and doesn't need to be flipped back and forth repeatedly until it finally fits. I generally won't buy a device with an older USB connector unless there's no option. USB-C all the way.A great little drive, and nice-looking too. I might wish it were SSD or that the LED was on the front, but otherwise no complaints.

Ordered a 5TB drive, received a 5MB (4.9MB) drive in a box labelled 5 TB. Based on the number of positive reviews for this product, I wrongfully assumed this issue had been resolved. (Shame on Amazon for continuing to market this product.) Spent several minutes using Disk Utility to verify the drive I received only has 4.9MB of storage, NOT the 5TB I purchased for a whopping $179.00+ tax. Complete waste of my time during a work day.Am returning the drive and will be purchasing another SanDisk Professional G-Drive ArmorATD because the Seagate drives I own are unreliable and dismount without notice – usually when I am in the middle of a project, which guarantees all of my changes and new work are lost.For those who are interested, I use Mac compatible, reliable external drives with a decent lifespan and transfer speed. Plug and play is a plus, not a must. I will re-format exFAT drives like the SanDisk Pro G-Drive ArmorADT. Functional cable that comes with the drive is also a must. Western Digital is notorious for shipping drives with defective cables.I decided to give this drive a try based on positive reviews posted by Amazon purchasers and a review in MacWorld (they certainly missed the mark). This product was a complete waste of my time and money. Don't be duped! Save your money and skip this external drive.If you want a great reliable external drive with a good transfer speed (that doesn't significantly degrade as the drive fills) and good lifespan (mine are 5 yrs and counting), buy the SanDisk Professional G-Drive ArmorATD. The G-Drive is a bit spendy, but they are ruggedized drives, unlike Seagate, the WD My Passport Ultra and many other brands – and you won't go thru the stupid crap I just experienced with this WD My Passport Ultra drive that only had 4.9MB of storage space. SHEESH ...The SanDisk Pro G-Drive offers VARIETY with 5 drive sizes: 1TB, 2TB, 4TB, 5TB and 6TB. They are RELIABLE and come with a good quality cable (unlike Western Digital). Note: the SanDisk is formatted to exFAT, so you will need to re-format using Disk Utility – but that's a breeze and only takes a few minutes.Save yourself time, hassle and aggravation ... avoid this drive and buy a SanDisk Pro G-Drive ArmorADT.