What External Hard Drives Are Best For Backup Photos & Videos On-the-go

After the camera and lens, one of the most important pieces of equipment in a photographer’s bag is the hard drive. But not only professionals but as well as anyone looking to keep their family memories safe should look for a good external HDD for photo backup. 

The external hard drive is where you store all your photos, therefore, it must be reliable and secure. 

With so many hard drives on the market, it can be difficult to determine which one is right for you. But, when you have a goal, you can determine what to look for when purchasing a hard drive and compare some of the best ones on the market for photographers. 

Three main things to consider when buying an HDD for photo backup: 

• Capacity
• Speed
• Price
• Compatibility
• Usability
• Reliability

External hard drive for photo backups specifications and requirements 

Capacity is how much data the hard drive can store. This is important to consider because you want to make sure you have enough space for all your photos. 

Speed is how fast the hard drive can read and write data. This is important because you want to be able to access your photos quickly and easily. Not to mention the time for the backups.

Price is also an important consideration. Hard drives can range in price from less than a hundred dollars to nearly a thousand dollars. It is important to find a hard drive that fits your budget and meets your needs. 

Compatibility with your computer or camera. Most hard drives will work with both Windows and Mac computers, but it is always best to check before you buy. Otherwise, you’ll need to format the external hard drive.

Usability and interface are other points to look at when buying a hard drive to back up your photos. Look for a hard drive that comes with easy-to-use software and a user-friendly interface. 

Reliability comes at last but is as important as the other hard drive information to look at. You want to make sure the hard drive is durable. You can accidentally drop your external hard drive, or it can get water damaged, so you want to make sure the one you buy is tough enough to withstand some bumps and bruises. 

Best external hard drives for photos to buy

Now that you know what to look for in an external hard drive for photo backup, let’s take a look at some of the best ones on the market for photographs. 

Professional photographers need to store large photo files. They also require an HDD resistant to falls and with high transfer speed.

But, if you are looking for a safe place to keep a photo backup, then the best device for you can be simpler.

LaCie d2 Professional checks for these requirements. It has read speeds up to 240MB/s, and storage capacity from 4TB to up to 14TB. The bad news is it costs more than other external HDDs.

WD Elements Desktop is a good option for photo backup. However, it’s not portable. Your photos will be safe on it, and you can access your files fast since its speed range is 185Mb/s. As you can see, it’s not as fast as other options available, making it not a good choice for professional photographers. The good part is that it works for most budgets and has a capacity from 4TB to up to 18TB.

*Bonus: Samsung T7 Shield is an external SSD that works for photo backup and professional photographers. It has a high speed of 1050 Mbps for reading and writing and has extra protection with its rubber case. It’s resistant to most falls (up to 8 feet) and has dust and water protection.

TL; DR: When choosing a hard drive, it is important to consider your needs and find one that meets those needs. If you’re a professional or if you want a safe place to keep your travel photos and family memories, you require different HDDs. One has to be fast, the other requires more storage space. Define your goal and then find the best HDD for photo backup.

Contact SalvageData 24/7 for photo recovery services. No matter your HDD damage, our experts can restore your memories.