This review must be started by addressing the UI and software, because most of the negative reviews are software related. The default Seagate UI and software definetely leaves alot to be desired on the iPad and iPhone. However, there are several third party apps which work much better than the Seagate Software and connect to the Satellite as a DLNA server, thus the clunky browser interface is eliminated. Even the third party apps will not organize and sort music like the iOS Native Music App, but work well enough. Worst case, you play an entire album and then you have to select another one or you can create folders which could act as playlists. While a little bit inconvenient, having 500GB of wireless storage space for my iOS devices is well worth it.
I have streamed 720P movies with no problem once so ever on both my iPhone and iPad. Even with a dual stream of music going to my wife's iPhone and a 720P movie streaming to my iPad at the same time, I experienced no delays or quality degradation in the movie. With the new firmware upgrade I believe you can now stream to up to 8 devices simulataneously, although if you are streaming HD Movies it is recommended to stay at a maximum of three devices. On top of the quality of the video while streaming, the Satellite acts as a true "router" and I have been about 65 feet from it with no delay or lag in the streaming.
The USB 3.0 data transfer is extremely fast and I achieved a pretty consistent 200MB/Sec, while this is way off from the USB 3.0 hypothetical speeds, this is 8x improvement from any USB 2.0 device that I have used. There is also a $20 adapter which can be purchased to utilize FireWire 800 mainly geared at Apple Users. Also for Apple Users is included software (which you will be prompted to install upon plugging into a Mac) to interface this NTFS formatted hard drive with the Fat 32 only Mac OS. So essentially you can plug it into PC or Mac and it will work seamlessly.
The Satellite is a reliable wireless storage solution for your iOS devices, but equally important to me is that it acts as a reliable WiFi Router. Portable multiplayer iOS Gaming is possible with the Satellite and works really well for this. I recently travelled to Africa on a business trip and used the Satellite to set up a Multi Player iOS gaming session with three other iPads and it worked flawlessly. I had an Apple Airport Express on the shopping list, but no need now as the Seagates WiFi Network works great. It also worked to link up two laptops for Flight Simulator X and did so without any issues.
My only real issue is the battery life when watching movies, but quite honestly I dont really use it while on longer international flights as my iPad has enough space to hold a couple of movies for the flight and more than enough battery power. Once I get to my destination I just plug it in turn it on and stream away.
Given the Satellites solid performance streaming just about anything and its ability to act as a real Wi-Fi Router, the $200 I paid seems to me to be a steal and now it is priced at $175. I guess the biggest con would be the lack of organization for music lovers who want an iTunes inspired music interface fresh with album art and playlists. If you need more than about 3.5 to 4 hours of video streaming on battery power then this may not work for you either. For everyone else who has an iOS, Mac OS, or Windows Wi-Fi capable device then the Seagate Satellite is definetely worth the money.
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This item: Seagate GoFlex Satellite Mobile Wireless Storage 500 GB USB 3.0 External Hard Drive STBF500101 Black
$175.99
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This Item  Seagate GoFlex Satellite Mobile Wireless Storage 500 GB USB 3.0 External Hard Drive STBF500101 Black | Recommendations  |  |  |  |  | |
| Price | $175.99 | $184.24 | $181.99 | -20% $119.99 List: $149.99 | $99.99 | -8% $119.99 List: $129.99 |
| Delivery | Get it Oct 22 - 24 | — | — | Get it as soon as Tuesday, Oct 22 | Get it as soon as Tuesday, Oct 22 | Get it as soon as Monday, Oct 21 |
| Customer Ratings | ||||||
| Sold By | Item In Stock | HDD Shop | AILUO-US | Amazon.com | Amazon.com | Amazon.com |
| storage capacity | 500 GB | 2 TB | 10 TB | 2 TB | 1 TB | 5 TB |
| hardware interface | usb | firewire 800 | sata 6 0 gb | usb3.2 gen 2, usb c | solid state drive | usb3.0 a |
| compatible devices | Tablet | Desktop | Laptop, Desktop, Gaming Console | Laptop | Windows 10 (1809 or later), Windows 11, iOS 15 or later, Android 10 or later, macOS Monterey 12 and newer | Desktop, Gaming Console |
| form factor | Portable | 3.5-inch | 3.5-inch | Portable | 0 | Portable |
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WHAT THIS ISThis is a 500GB (465 GB formatted) hard drive, battery pack, web server, and wifi access point packed into a compact unit. It's intended to hold your media library and and stream it to your iPad (or other device).PACKAGEBeside the actual device, there are two tiny chargers in the package (wall and car, both with an usb socket, no attached cables), and two USB cables (USB3.0 and USB-power). Why the two cables, one should ask? The thing is, once the device is hooked to a PC with the USB3.0 cable, it goes into drive mode and shuts off the WiFi! If you want to charge/power it while streaming a movie, you need to use the USB power cable.There is no printed manual - just a Quick Start guide. The actual documentation is on the drive and online, in the form of professionally produced video clips. I happen to like those - they're helpful, short, and a huge step up from the badly translated manuals so common these days.SETUPOnce connected via the USB3.0 cable, the drive registered itself under my WinXP PC without further ado. There is a setup.exe file on the drive, which prompted me to enter some personal data, but didn't seem to do anything other than registering the device with Seagate and guiding me to the video clips. You could probably skip this and double-click on <drive>:\Getting_Started\Getting_Started_Video.html.FILLING THE DRIVEThe most straightforward way to populate the drive from Windows is to just copy the files over. With USB3.0, this happens at 70MB/sec (or 4GB/min) at first, but things slow down as the drive fills up: after copying a 383GB library, my write speed is now at 47MB/sec (or 2.7 GB/min) - still faster than USB2 transfer speeds!The other way to populate the drive is to use the Seagate Media Sync software (free download from their website). This looks like a simple backup program (pick folders, file types, sync time, etc.) which will probably work allright for most people. Personally, I've decided not to use it because I can come up with a command- line that does more (thank you robocopy!), but again, I think that most people will appreciate the auto sync.STREAMING MEDIAOnce the device is disconnected from the PC, it goes into WiFi mode. On any wireless machine, you can then connect to the network (it's unprotected and named 'GoFlex Satellite') and type in a random web page - the tiny web server will redirect it to its own page. Alternatively, if you use an iPad, you can download a small app from Apple's store, which does basically the same thing as the web interface, except it's a little smoother, especially for pictures. Either way, the first thing you'll want to do is set a wireless (WAP) password; otherwise, some clown in your neighborhood might, locking you out.The GUI (web and/or app) exhibits a major annoyance: the menu items Videos, Photos, Music, and Documents all present files on the drive as a flat list! So, my Videos folder looks like this: "01 33.m4v, 01 A Tale Of Two Cities.m4v, 01 Alaska Special.m4v, 01 Alone.m4v"... you get the idea. There's no thumbnail, and the only sort options are alphabetical or by date. This, of course, wins no friends in a population that is using iTunes, Smart Playlists, and the like! Luckily, there is also a Folder view, so you can navigate the filesystem, which, while a little underwhelming, works 'ok' for movies, shows, and pictures (especially via ipad app: you can swipe or play a slideshow). For music, books, and even PDFs it's a lost cause though - you'll be much better up syncing those files to the iPad and employ the excellent Apple apps.Video playback is buttery smooth. I was quite surprised at the number of reviewers for whom this didn't work, but I suspect that their viewing device of choice might be at fault? I copied original iTunes purchased (DRM- protected) files to the Seagate, and they played flawlessly on my 1st-gen iPad; including the HiDef files.Battery life is a bit below the spec: after a few load/drain cycles, I measured the total streaming time at 4:10 hrs; that was with the Satellite being inches away from the iPad.THE VERDICTI agree with all the reviewers that are outraged by the flat, barely sortable lists in the Videos, Photos, Music, and Documents tabs, and I subtract 1 star for this shortcoming. But aside from that, it works ok for videos and pictures in the "Folders" view. Sure, in an ideal world, the storage would just be seamlessly added to the iPad's memory, and we would enjoy a 500GB iPod and book reader. But that isn't allowed in Apple's walled garden (not judging, just sayin' that these are factors probably out of Seagate's realm).So, for what it is, I like this device. It keeps the movies and photos off my iPad even at home, and will be a compact travel companion. I say 3.5 stars, and I'm rounding up to 4 because (a) math and (b) I feel this fine unit is a tad underappreciated.
