Best Backup For Macbook Pro 2018
Does this sound similar to you?
You thought you had enough disk space when you originally bought your MacBook Pro, but soon you realized that storage is being filled up quicker than you can clear old files.
Or maybe you already had an external drive to help extend your MacBook’s storage, but now it’s either outdated, too slow, or experiencing issues.
- So we are always on the way to look for a best way to backup our data. For MacBook Pro users, obviously, a preferred way is to backup MacBook Pro to iCloud. However, for fresh MacBook Pro users, even those who have MacBook Pro for a long time, how to backup MacBook Pro is still troublesome.
- The complete, easy guide to backing up your Mac You know about Time Machine, but there are other ways to back up your Mac. Here's how to pick the best backup method for you.
For example, a local backup should really have some kind of versioning, a clone needs to be easily bootable, and so on. Best Backup Software for Macs. Now that we've discussed what to look for in Mac backup software, let’s look at the apps. Here are my picks for the best Mac backup software for 2018: 1. Step 4: Filter the scanning results and find the deleted files, and click Preview to make sure it's not damaged or corrupted. Step 5: Select the data that needs to be recovered and then click Recover to confirm. Restore our files to MacBook Pro with Time Machine backup. The best situation is that the files are deleted from Mac hard drive but we got a backup on external hard drive.
We may be in the age of cloud computing and remotely stored files, but it’s always helpful to have a portable hard drive you can count on both for file backups and to work off as needed.
In this buying guide, we’ll help you pick the best external drive for your MacBook Pro so you can access all your files without sacrificing speed or performance.
Quick Summary
Here’s a brief overview of our recommendations depending on your specific needs and preferences:
- The 10TB G-DRIVE Desktop External Hard Drive will give you enough volume and lightning speed for a traditional drive, and comes pre-formatted for Mac.
- If you need instant cross-platform compatibility, and an array of color choices, you’ll be covered with the Seagate Backup Plus Slim 2TB.
- Known for being rough on your electronics? The Silicon Power 1TB Drive is rugged and durable, with water resistance in addition to quick read and write speeds.
- If you prefer a modern speedy solid-state drive, the Glyph Atom RAID 1TB SSD is sure to meet expectations in terms of speed and durability.
Do I Need An External Drive for My Mac?
External drives are a worthwhile investment for more than just power users, but it can be hard to determine if you need one or not. Consider this:
- Do you regularly work with large files such as videos and edited images, or run other creative files such as video games?
- Is your MacBook Pro running slower due to being overburdened with files?
- Have you ever wanted to backup your Mac just in case of any data disaster?
- Are you using a cloud storage or online backup service but fear of security and reliability issues from the provider?
- Are old files being stored on your computer because you occasionally reference them but can’t completely delete them?
Answering yes to any of the above scenario questions is a fairly good indicator that an external hard drive would benefit you.
On the other hand, an external hard drive is probably not the best option for for those of you who only have a small volume of unimportant files to save, which might be better served by using a cloud storage program like Dropbox or Google Drive or by offloading their old files onto a large USB flash drive.
Best External Drive for MacBook: What to Look For in 2020?
Storage Capacity
If you’re purchasing an external hard drive, it’s because you need the space on your MacBook, so it doesn’t make sense to cut corners on how much exterior space you purchase. However, it’s still important to consider exactly how much space you need. Consider how quickly you create large files (such as photo imports) and if you plan on keeping them in a long or short term to decide your actual need.
Formatting
While many newer drives come formatted to work on both Mac and PC, it’s best not to choose one that is single-system compatible as it will limit the drive’s versatility (though you could manually format an external drive for both PC and Mac compatibility, it’s an extra effort and requires you to be a bit geeky). For added convenience, you should look for drives that come pre-formatted for Mac, which means you don’t have to install a special program and do it yourself.
HDD or SSD
There are several kinds of external drives based on the electronics that make them work. An HDD is the traditional spinning disk of data, whereas an SSD is newer technology that has no moving parts and store information inside the electronic components. An HHD, or Hybrid Hard Drive, uses a combination of these methods. Both have their own advantages and disadvantages when it comes to speed, durability, price, and information safety, so make sure you know which you prefer.
The Best External Drives for MacBook Pro in 2020: Our Picks
Kindly note that the products chosen below are mainly based on our personal preferences and the guidelines as shown above. They are by no means made in the order below.
1. G-Technology 10TB G-DRIVE USB-C Desktop External Hard Drive
This speedy HDD drive offers a huge chunk of storage at an uncommonly high RPM. It will stand up to daily use in editing and media programs and connects to your computer via USB-C so you can take full advantage of its specs.
Pros:
- If you have set up Apple Time Machine, this drive will be ready for easy file backup so you won’t be waiting for your files to read or write. Also, it comes with a great amount of storage space.
Cons:
- The disk is pre-formatted for Mac, you won’t be able to use your files on a secondary computer such as a Windows PC unless you reformat it to NTFS file system.
2. Seagate Backup Plus Slim 2TB
Available in four different sizes, this hard drive from trusted brand Seagate comes in several colors. Approximately the size of your phone, it packs a punch for its size and is very portable.
Pros:
- It can be used on both Mac and PC without reformatting. Also, it offers fast connection via USB and weighs about 5 ounces.
Cons:
- Largest TB size option is not compatible with Mac.
3. Silicon Power 1TB Rugged Armor A60
An extremely versatile and sturdy drive, this model is compatible with more than just your MacBook. It’s water resistant, with read and write speeds at the standard 120 mbps.
Pros:
- It can be used with several gaming consoles and Apple Time Machine in addition to your Mac.
- It’s also durable and available with the modern USB-C which is especially useful if you’re using the newest MacBook Pro.
Cons:
- It appears somewhat unprofessional, also the drive is a bit on the heavy side as it weighs around 8 ounces.
4. Glyph Atom RAID 1TB External Solid State Drive
Available with USB and USB-C connections and pre-formatted for Mac, this SSD from well-known brand Glyph provides extremely fast speeds that will support your casual and power use. It looks clean and functions beautifully.
Pros:
- It comes pre-formatted for Mac with easy reformats for PC or cross-platform compatibility, significantly faster than comparable drives from Samsung and other brands, available in several colors and two connection types.
Cons:
Best Backup For Macbook Pro 2018 Version
- It’s the heaviest drive on our list at 11 ounces, and a bit on the pricey side as well.
Useful Tips & Resources
Picking a hard drive can be difficult, especially if you aren’t sure whether you need one. One way to help decide is to try a cloud storage platform such as Google Drive or Dropbox before you decide to buy an external drive. Both platforms are free to start with and they offer terabyte storage options for paying customers and using one may help you decide if you need more constant access to your files or simply a place to store them.
If you know you want an external drive but aren’t sure what storage type you need (HDD or SSD), perhaps this guide from PCWorld will help you decide which best fits your requirements.
Also, It’s worth noting that some external drives available on the market are formatted for PC only, but you can reformat it to Mac OS Extended, or for cross-platform compatibility (with NTFS) if you need to use your external drive for your MacBook Pro and a PC as well. This tutorial is definitely worth checking out:
Final Words
Regardless of your final choice of external drive, having one will definitely improve your workflow and computer performance. You’ll be able to use your files more effectively and improve your MacBook’s performance. Which external drive have you used in the past or are considering purchasing? Let us know.
Your Mac would certainly have important documents, files, favourite videos and other data. Having a copy of them updated on another location will help you in cases of data disaster like Mac crash, formatting, OS re-installation etc. For most of us mac data backup solution is just time Machine! But, that’s not enough. There are many backup solutions that are much more efficient than Time Machine. Cloud storage, bootable clone and many more. Here are few of the best Backup solutions for Mac in 2018.
Time Machine
As we all know, this is one of the best backup solution for Mac. It is built into Mac and is an offline backup. You just have to turn on Time Machine and connect external hard drive. Once you set it up, and forget it, Time Machine will keep updating the backup automatically as per the scheduled data & time. So, your backup will be updated, you can easily recover data in cases of data loss.
However, it’s just an offline backup and hence doesn’t offer complete data security.
Best Backup For Macbook Pro 2018 Deals
iCloud
iCloud is the cloud storage backup solution offered to Mac users by Apple itself. It lets you store all your data – documents, photos, videos, excel sheets and other important data. Apple offers 5GB of free storage of iCloud. If required, you can upgrade the iCloud storage. To set up iCloud storage, you need to sign-in with your Apple account with Apple ID and password. You can select the plan required and set-up backup.
Drop box
Drop box is a great place where, you can store your important data securely. It offers a quick backup option that your files will be updated as soon as you create them or save the edits – data will be backed up right away. It offers – 2GB of storage space for free and the later will be charged as per the plan. However, just for $9.99 month you cab avail storage space of terabytes.
Google One
This is a cloud platform enabled solution and is more secure form of backing up your important data. It is the rebranded version of Google Drive. Though it’s quite similar to Drop Box and is a great choice for backing up important data on Mac it lacks some backup features.
However, on the pricing front, it suits everyone’s pocket. The subscription plans offered are 15GB free, $1.99/month for 100GB, $2.99/month for 200GB, more options. This can be a better option compared to Drop box in terms of pricing
These are some of the options available. You will get many such options. Research more on the goods and bad’s and then decide. Time Machine you don’t have an option to reject. However its good option, even though you lose data, you still have chances of recovering data after time machine failure on Mac computers like MacBook pro, iMac or others. Nevertheless, Online / cloud backups adds in more security. Just try the free storage spaces offered and then plan for subscriptions.