Unless otherwise indicated, all the PC drives mentioned here are compatible with Windows but can be formatted for a Mac. But a lot of the time they'll be designated as working with a specific platform out of the box and sometimes come with backup software that's platform-specific. Most of the options on this list of the best external hard drive models will work across platforms - whether you have a Windows PC, Mac computer, PlayStation or Xbox - so long as the drives are correctly formatted for the right platform. Solid-state drives, on the other hand, don't have moving parts, which gives them up to four times faster read and write speed, but they cost a lot more per gigabyte. Prices have dropped significantly in the last few years, with even the high-capacity, state of the art, all-around best external hard drive models tipping the scales at 5TB but costing just over $100.

There are also a huge number of high-quality hard drives and solid-state drives, too, making it easy to find the right one for your needs and budget.Ī traditional hard drive or mechanical drive that uses 'old' hard drive technology, with mechanical platters and a moving read-write head to access data, is adequate for most people, thanks to speedier USB-C and USB 3.0 (as well as 3.1/3.2) interfaces.

The PS5 and Xbox Series X can't run games off external drives, but transferring the games between the two is fast and efficient. Managing that storage space can be a huge pain in the butt, so the more storage you have the less you'll need to do that. That makes expandable storage a necessity if you want to store a decent chunk of your library at any one time. I forget if the original blade is 64GB or 128GB on a 2017 Fusion.Games are large these days, and they're only getting larger. When you consider that the least expensive 2TB external is $600, it makes sense to consider replacing that tiny blade in your iMac. Anything else is slower than your 2017 iMac (USB 3.2 etc.). The only 2 externals I can recommend for booting are true Thunderbolt 3.

Installation runs around $75–$100 here in the Silicon Valley (it doesn't take 20 minutes + data transfer for an experienced tech). You can have the two configured as a monster, all solid state fusion drive or as separate drives. Then, if you need more storage, install a SATA III SSD in the remaining space, 1, 2, 4 or 8TB. The OWC Aura Pro X2 has the correct pin-out but costs $85 more. Hi Kurt, since you have a Fusion drive the best performance really is opening it up, replacing the internal SSD with a fast NVMe 3 x4 blade like the 970 EVO.

Best ssd for imac 2017