CHF89.95 CHF89.95/1TB
WD Elements Portable
1 TB
Questions about WD Elements Portable
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Hello, I can also confirm this. The hard drive wobbles in the housing and that should not be the case in my opinion. It looks like a faulty production. I will return it to Digitec today.
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Not necessarily, with WD and other vendors you canot be sure that WD is using SATA drives in USB enclosures. If you have bad luck you will notice after opening the case that the vendor used a USB board on the HD and then you are really out of luck. The only company you can trust on buying external 2.5 inch USB crives is Seagate, every 5 TB external USB drive is using the Seagate Barracuda 5TB disks, you can remove the case and then use this Seagate disk in a NAS and if you use 2.5 inch drives with 5TB size in your NAS you would also save a lot of energy and weight also.
Unfortunately not. Or rather, if so, then only with limitations and additional hardware:
1. The power supply problem
The WD Elements Portable does not have its own power supply, but draws all its power via the USB port. Most Android devices cannot provide enough power.
Solution: A USB-C hub with additional power supply (Power Delivery) is usually required to operate the hard drive stably.
2. The file system
From the factory, the WD Elements Portable is formatted in NTFS for Windows PCs. Standard Android can usually only read, but not write to, NTFS hard drives.
Solution: You would have to format it as exFAT.
3. The connection
The hard drive comes with an old USB-A cable (Micro-B to USB-A). To connect it to a modern smartphone, you absolutely need a USB-OTG adapter (USB-A to USB-C) or the appropriate direct cable.
Solution: Buy a different cable.
Conclusion: If you reformat the hard drive to exFAT and your smartphone provides enough power (or you use a USB hub with power supply), you can transfer data directly via a file manager app. But that's only in theory.
For direct, uncomplicated use with a smartphone without a power outlet, external SSDs (e.g., SanDisk Extreme or Samsung T7) are much better suited, as they consume very little power.
Galaxus
1 month ago
Yes, but it may need to be reformatted for macOS. The drive is listed as Windows compatible, and Mac compatibility may vary depending on configuration and system; reformatting may be required to use it properly on a Mac.
It connects via USB-A and uses a 2.5" format, so it can be plugged into a Mac with the right port or a suitable adapter.
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I was able to do a search and unfortunately could not find an external hard drive with native APFS format, so you would actually have to format it. Here is a guide on how to do this: https://support.apple.com/de-ch...
2 months ago
No, it seems to be formatted for Windows.
Galaxus
3 months ago
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The hard drive is formatted in NTFS format by default, not in exFAT. However, you can easily reformat it to exFAT yourself in order to use it with Mac and Windows.
exFAT is the ideal format for your requirements as it is supported by both operating systems and allows files larger than 4 GB. On the Mac, you can perform the formatting using the hard disk utility, on Windows using the Explorer with a right-click on the hard disk and the formatting option. After reformatting to exFAT, you can use the hard drive with both systems without any problems.
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Yes, you can use the WD Elements Portable (with USB-A cable) on a PC with USB-C, you just need the appropriate adapter or an alternative cable.
Galaxus
4 months ago
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Yes, you need to format the new hard drive on the iMac. It is formatted in NTFS by default, which macOS does not fully support. Use Disk Utility and select ExFAT or APFS for compatibility.
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5 months ago
Yes, it is compatible with Windows 11. The drive is plug-and-play with Windows 10+ per official specifications, so it works directly via USB without needing special software.
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11 months ago
The approximate write rate of the external hard drive for TimeMachine backups on a Mac is usually around 80 to 120 MB/s, depending on the specific conditions and the fragmentation of the hard drive. This speed is typical for USB 3.0 connections and mechanical hard drives.
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Galaxus
12 months ago
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Yes, you can format the external hard drive with exFAT. The exFAT format is often recommended if you want to use the hard drive with both Windows and Mac, as it supports files larger than 4 GB and is compatible with both operating systems. Formatting to exFAT can be done with tools such as the MiniTool Partition Wizard, as Windows' own tools sometimes have limitations. There are no restrictions or loss of warranty by formatting to exFAT on this hard drive.
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12 months ago
The external hard drive is compatible with Windows 11 as it is officially designed for Windows 10 and higher (Windows 10+). Reformatting may be required for other operating systems, but plug-and-play support is expected for Windows 11. However, compatibility may vary depending on hardware configuration.
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Galaxus
1 year ago
The product is generally compatible with Apple devices, but may require formatting for use with macOS. It uses USB 3.0, which works on Macs, but requires an adapter on newer models without a USB-A port.
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Galaxus
1 year ago
You cannot connect the hard drive directly to a USB-C port with the supplied cable, as the cable has a USB-A connector.
You will need an adapter or a USB-A to USB-C cable to establish the connection.
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Yes, the interface is USB-A.
Galaxus
1 year ago
This external hard drive is compatible with Macs after reformulation. By default, it is formatted in NTFS, which is not supported by Macs. To use it on a Mac, you need to reformat it to a compatible format such as ExFAT or APFS via the disk utility.
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Which external hard drive should I buy for Mac and PC at the same time?
Galaxus
1 year ago
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The Western Digital "Elements (2TB)" external hard drive is compatible with a MacBook Pro, but it requires a USB 3.0 connection. Since recent MacBook Pros only have USB-C ports, you'll need a USB-C to USB-A adapter to connect it.
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Is there one that I can use for both systems without having to format it?
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I believe an exFAT formatted disc can be read on Windows and Mac. NTFS only works on Windows.
Galaxus
1 year ago
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Yes, the connection cable is included with the WD Elements 5 TB external hard drive with the manufacturer no. WDBU6Y0050BBK-WESN. A SuperSpeed USB-A cable (5 Gbit/s) is included in the scope of delivery.
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If you do not have a USB-A socket available, you can also use another cable, such as this one:
Ugreen USB-C - USB Micro B (1 m, USB 3.2 Gen 1)
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