Performance Tests
Using Disk Speed Test from Blackmagicdesign, and connected to a 2013 MacBook Pro via USB 3.0, our tests produced an average write speed of 141.6 MB/s and an average read speed of 149.2 MB/s.
Final Thoughts
WD continue to be the leader in hard drives providing higher capacity and faster drives all the time. And including additional software like WD Drive Utilities and WD Security just adds to the value.
WD Drive Utilities is very useful for monitoring the health of your hard drive – it is worth taking the time to run tests, if for no other reason than to give you some peace of mind. Hard drives do fail, so it’s best to know if you have a problem early.
And WD Security is an excellent addition and makes encrypting the drive and its contests with 256-bit hardware-based encryption as simple as clicking a button.
If you plan on taking the drive out of your home or office then encryption is a must, and even if you are not planning on taking it outside, if the contests of the drive have any importance (such as personal emails, photos, files, etc.) then you really should encrypt the drive. It’s very quick and easy and frankly there is no reason not to do it.
The drive itself is a made from shiny black plastic, so it does scratch quite easily, and also pick up dust and fingerprints, but that shouldn’t cause you any real problems. It is thinner than previous WD external drives too.
And whilst we reviewed the 3TB version, there is also a 2TB one too if you don’t need as much storage, although I would recommend going for the maximum capacity possible – let’s be honest, it’s not like you wont use the space eventually.
All in all, if you are looking for a high capacity external drive for your Mac, and you want the added protection of easy to use encryption then you should definitely take a look at the WD My Book for Mac.
The 3TB My Book for Mac is available now priced at £119.99, but as usual look around for the best price.
