Customer Reviews

LaCie Little Disk 500 GB USB 2.0 Portable Hard Drive, Design by Sam Hecht 301841

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

This HD drive works very well. The only problem I have that it requires more power than normal USB port can supply. So I have to use two of my USB ports on my MacBookPro. One port is used to supply power other to connect to USB. I tried to use only one USB port, but drive would mount and then dismount. It was unworkable.
After LaCie tech support explained power problem everything works fine.

I had high hopes for this portable drive. The form factor is great, and the pull-out USB cable is a nice touch. It mounted easily on my MacBook Pro and did not need the included power cable. Backup speeds were great and the drive was totally silent. Guess they don't have a fan built in.

Which is why I suspect this drive is a bust. It was reliably backing up my MBP using Time Machine every hour yesterday morning and then started making a clicking noise as I sat there. I unmounted the drive and removed it from the USB port so that it would stop making noise and then replugged it in---the power light came on but the drive wouldn't mount. Same thing if I used the other USB port and even the included USB power adapted. Nothing.

I'm having the drive replaced for a second try, but I'm not optimistic. I've never seen a hard drive die after only two days of use. Reading online forums, it seems that this drive has issues, and one possible reason is the lack of a fan. I'm wondering if the only way to keep this drive alive is to not run frequent backups, and keep it off until one needs to run a backup. Not optimal, of course. The sad thing is that I chose LaCie after finding other drives unreliable (dying after 1-2 years max). I suspect LaCie isn't any different, and may be worse. Anyone else finding issues with this drive model?

UPDATE 12/11/08: Well, after six months of only occasional use, the replacement died as well. LaCie is offering to service or replace it under warranty. Why would I do that? This is clearly a defective product, period. I wouldn't trust my data to it. I'm going to get a replacement drive from Western Digital, which seems to be more reliable. Good luck trying to call tech support---I'm not holding my breath. I want a refund. This is a very defective product---DON'T PURCHASE UNLESS YOU DON"T CARE ABOUT YOUR DATA. Sorry to scream, but I'm angry.

This drive, with a few caveats, is one of the best external storage purchases I have ever made. It is lightweight, fast, and imminently portable. Since it is bus powered, there is one fewer adaptor to carry around - however - this does not always work. On older computers, it is often necessary to have two free USB ports (one for power, one for data). A minor annoyance, and less of a problem on newer computers. The built-in USB cable is also a bit fragile, so be careful pulling it out to use. Neither of these issues would prevent me from recommending this drive, and I intend to buy a second one for a total of 1 TB of portable (and quite fashionable) storage!

Often times I need to offload my media shoots in the field. Whether video, voice/music recordings, or RAW camera image, this 500GB drive is an excellent companion to my laptop. It's small footprint makes it easy to transport, and it's low price makes it much more affordable than carrying around spare flash media. Additionally, this clever design includes a built-in USB cable which makes it the most practical portable on the market today.

Unfortunately those things that make it practical also make it weak. It's small footprint and low price have meant certain material compromises. For instance ... I've had to add silicon bumpers as feet to absorb travel shock. It has a very narrow tolerance for absorbing any impact on it's own. Furthermore, the voltage seems finicky on my new MBP (Mac Book Pro). The drive requires an additional power adapter if I plug it into a passive USB hub -- like a keyboard attached to the laptop -- or a third party hub. Fortunately, it has a power plug to help with this thirst -- an advantage over some of the other competing portable hard drive products.

LaCie was not very helpful publishing information as to what external power adapter was required. However, they will gladly sell you one. I've had success using a 120-240vAC 50/60Hz to 5vDC 2 amp adapter -- but your voltage may vary. This caveat may be unnecessary if you will have a spare USB port on your computer.

In summary, this small drive is a cost-effective bridge to get your data in and out of the field from or to a safer storage device. As long as it isn't treated as primary backup or storage, and you're willing to trade performance and reliability for it's small size and low cost -- this is the right device for the right price. Treat it like you would any consumable. If this concerns you, you may wish to invest in a design that uses aluminum fins as a heat sink, has greater shock absorption, and perhaps even faster throughput -- like firewire 1394a/1394b. Weigh the cost of this drive against the cost of the 500GB of data you plan to put on it -- and you won't go wrong.

Very useful and compact portable hard drive.

Pros:
- 500 GB in 2.5" form factor
- no external power source needed
- pretty silent
- stylish ;)

Cons:
- relatively slow (5400 RPM) - significant when transfering big or lots of files.
- integrated USB cable is pretty short and limited (on the other hand there at least is one so you don't need extra cables necessarily at all)

All in all, I warmly recommend this one. Can't really have better at the moment.

The drive works fine, and mostly everything backs up with ease thanks to the one-step La Cie Software. Curious thing though: every time the computer turns on, the software kicks into gear with a big window on the display, saying it is backing up hundreds of files. Problem is: the drive isn't even attached. We have to cancel the routine, and it is a tad annoying.

As it says on the tin, the LaCie 500 Little Drive is a portable 500G 2.5inch disk. Mine is the USB2.0/FireWire400 version.

The disk is formatted as FAT-32 for Mac/PC compatibility out of the box, but comes with a utility on the disk that reformats the disk to NTFS with 2K sectors. There's an optional TurboUSB executable program that acts as a driver that aims to improve the performance of the drive. I cannot confirm that it improves the performance, but I use it as a matter of course.

The device is covered in black plastic that will look awful when scratched. It's also supplied with a cloth pouch that is of much lower quality that those provided in previous models (as designed by Porsche).

The connectors are odd. First, there's a FireWire400 hub, which is very welcome as I use a Mac Mini that only has one FireWire400 port. But rather than providing a USB port, it has a very short USB cable that I'm sure will break over time. It also comes with a USB extension.

Now, I had no ends of problems with the USB extension cable as the connectors are low quality. The drive continued to disconnect/reconnect, but the problem was solved once I filed the offending extension in the trash. The problem then is the drive is suspended in the air by the very short main cable. However it works well.

I like the large capacity, small size, and apparent reliability of the drive.

I dislike the scratchy material used for the cover, the silly plastic clip at the rear of the drive, the poor quality extension USB cable, the need for a user-mode driver, the USB cable attached to the drive, and the conspicuous blue LED.

Unfortunately, it's a case of triumph of design over function.

Very nice drive. Works flawlessly with macbook pro. Integrated USB 2.0 cable. I don't like the removable protective cap because it is little annoying to take it on and off all the time. I like Freecom ToughDrives, but price put me off.

I bought this to use with my G4 PowerBook (PowerPC) and was disappointed to find that when I connected it to the USB port, it wouldn't mount and simply beeped at me uselessly. It turns out with some older Mac laptops don't supply enough bus power via the USB port to power the drive (although mine isn't THAT old).

I have used other bus-powered devices with my laptop (iPod, Wacom tablet), so I had not expected to have this issue -- and there was no real indication of this issue on LaCie's website. The only way I was able to get it to work was by plugging the "USB power-sharing cable" up to an iPod wall-charger brick. This pretty much defeats the purpose of having a "portable" drive, as bus power was one of the main reasons I purchased it.

I have had good luck with LaCie drives in the past, so this was extremely disappointing for me. I haven't tried customer service yet, but I'm crossing my fingers in hope that they'll let me return this thing.

Works great. You only need one usb with a newer (2 years) computer. comes with a cable for 2 usb powers if needed. has an extension for the built in usb. Best portable usb drive on the market, and the best priced too!