harddrives and storage

SSD and HDD: Two acronyms you’ll frequently see during discussions of computers and their specs. What’s the difference between the two, which one is better and why is SSD showing up more frequently these days? In this post, I’ll tackle those questions and provide the details you need to make an informed choice when it comes time to choose between the two computer storage options.

Many of us have more data than we know what to do with. Digital photos, digital movies, MP3s and old school stuff like documents and spreadsheets can start to take up a lot of space on your PC. On your smartphone or tablet, it’s even worse —a lot of those photos get snapped on a smartphone and with limited storage, it doesn’t take long to fill them up. Cloud storage is always an option, but then you’re at the mercy of the provider and there may be charges associated with the service. Western Digital offers a compelling alternative —a “personal cloud”— with its My Cloud series of network hard drives. I tested a 3TB My Cloud drive and came away convinced that this is the best thing to happen to hard drives since USB.  

Is your computer or laptop feeling a little sluggish lately? One of the best upgrades available for adding a whole new level of performance to a PC is to replace its hard drive with a solid state drive. SSD capacities continue to increase even as prices fall, so adding new life to your older PC is easier than ever.

The Seagate FireCuda Gaming Dock has already proved its worth for PC gaming, but would it make sense to have one on your desktop for everyday use?

What do you get the PC or Mac user who has everything? Storage! Even in the days of cheap cloud storage, nothing beats having all your data—pictures, videos, files and music—available quickly and on demand. And no-one ever has too much storage. I’ve put together a list of great, storage-themed gift options.

Satechi is showcasing several new computer accessories at CES 2023, including a hub, a charger, and an SSD enclosure.

If you've been thinking your computer is getting a little laggy, don't think about buying a new one until you check out my tips for how to speed up an old computer.

   Chances are you have a handful of SD and microSD memory cards kicking around in a drawer or installed in a variety of devices. And chances are they’re pretty low capacity, like 4GB or maybe 16GB. That was plenty of storage a few years ago, but now? Not so much. High capacity SD cards like Lexar’s new 200GB microSD card are becoming much more common. But when do you actually need a really big SD memory card?

 As you build an impressive collection of movies, music and photos, digital storage space becomes a priority. Does the WD My Cloud EX2 Ultra NAS provide enough room for your current needs, and enough expansion space for your 4K video future? What about ease of configuration and use? 

   Is your computer crawling along at a snail’s pace when you boot it up? Avoid the aggravation, save yourself some time, and try these tips to bring your machine back up to speed.