Reviewed by Johnny McNair

 

Backing up your computer is just as important as locking your car’s doors, yet still many people don’t even thing of it until it’s too late. If something goes wrong with your PC’s hard drive, data recovery is extremely expensive and in most cases precious information you have on your drive may never be able to be recovered. Whether you’re dealing with important business documents, school reports, or something personal such as family photos, backing up data should always be something that is often, and if it’s high priority, every day. There are plenty of online virtual sites that will store your info for a monthly fee, but let’s face it actual hardware is always better and safer. A product such as the ClickFree HD701 Automatic Backup Drive by the Storage Appliance Corp, is just the ticket, providing an easy and simple storage solution that is so simple that it sells itself.

 

 

 

INSIDE THE BOX

 

-120GB ClickFree HD701 hard drive

 

– Dual head USB data cable

 

– Instruction manual

 

REQUIREMENTS

 

Computer running Microsoft Windows Vista, Windows XP, or Windows 2000, Available USB port (2.0)

 

HARDWARE AND PERFORMANCE

 

The hard drive is small, measuring 4.52 x 0.67 x 2.99 inches and weighing only 6.35 ounces, making it easily transportable, whether it is inside a briefcase or the pocket of your jacket. Packing a capacity of 120, gigs it’s more than enough for all your spreadsheets and work documents, giving you plenty of space for more important things like all the music you’ve downloaded.

 

The selling point of the ClickFree is that anyone can do it from a MIT graduate to a soccer mom, and the only tools required is two fingers. Here are the steps:

 

Step 1 – Plug ClickFree into the USB port of your PC.

 

Sep 2 – All data from your PC is automatically backed up onto the hard drive.

 

That’s it. Finished.

 

The actual software is installed on the hard drive itself so, as soon as it’s plugged into a computer it will immediately begin to back-up the data. As the backup occurs, a small interface appears on your monitor to show you the process, and once it’s done, and you unplug the drive, the interface is gone. The ClickFree does not require a power source, using the computer itself to draw power, so if a single USB port does not supply enough to run it, the provided dual-headed USB cable jacked into two ports on your computer should do the trick. In the event that this is still not enough power (even though it should be), you can purchase a power adaptor and plug it into the device.

 

For those who don’t want everything backup, you can change the drive’s settings to specify only the data you want to transfer onto the drive. This is done after you do a first time back-up on your PC, then allowing you to go into the options settings and tinker with how you want ClickFree to back-up stuff for future use. Obviously the amount of time it takes to transfer data depends on what type of files you’re backing-up. Simple documents are backed-up in a snap, but large sized photos, music or video files will take a bit longer, just as it would on any other external device.

 

The ClickFree can act as the external backup for one computer, or can be used for up to ten different PC’s by using the internal name of the computer to give it an ID. This all depends on how much space remains on the drive, because unless you’re only dealing with Word, Power Point or Excel files, you may run out of room real fast trying to squeeze info from 10 PC’s onto a single 120GB drive.

 

Being that all the software is on the ClickFree external drive itself, and you never actually need to install anything on your PC, any time you need to perform a new task, you will have to unplug and re-plug the drive back in to get the drive up and running again. This is a minor issue, but some may find it to be limiting.

 

The two main things that knock off some points for the ClickFree is that with a capacity of only 120GB, things are going to get crowded pretty fast in this day of heavy data. Yes there is also a 160GB version available (Model HD801), but still that is not enough for the heavy hitters such as myself who can bring 250GB to its knees easily. The next problem spot is that this device is only for Windows users (XP, 2000, Vista), so Mac folks like me are left out in the cold. Most external drives on the market cater to both PC and Mac operating systems, and this is something that should be included if another version of the ClickFree device is released.

 

ClickFree also offers a backup DVD disc that allows you to save all your photos safely and conveniently using the same easy process, but with no hard drive needed. You just stick the ClickFree disc into your PC’s DVD writer drive and all the software is already installed on the disc itself. The backup will begin automatically, finding all the pictures on your PC’s hard drive, and presto it’s done. The ClickFree backup DVDs come in a three-pack with a trio of 4.5GB DVD+R’s that can store up to 2,000 photos per disc, and work just as they say.

 

BOTTOM LINE

 

The ClickFree HD701 Automatic Backup Drive does exactly what it says on the box without any complications. If you’re looking for a simple idiot-proof way to back-up your PC files with no hassle whatsoever, then this is the device for you. If you’re a storage junkie, the limited 120GB size will make you go elsewhere, and if you’re a Mac person, forget it. The ClickFree is recommended for its ease of use, particularly for those who hate tinkering with back-up devices, which prevents them from doing it regularly. For those looking for a simple back-up solution, the ClickFree will do the job.

 

SCORES (Out of 5):

 

Hardware: 4.0

Ease of Use: 4.5

Performance: 4.0

Bottom Line: 4.0