The bad: The GoFlex Ultra's USB 3. 0 performance could be better and also the drive doesn't include a USB 3. 0 add-in card for computers which don't yet have this connection.
The bottom line: Even with the somewhat low USB 3. 0 performance, the GoFlex Ultra still makes an excellent portable external hard drive for those who need to expand their computer's storage.
Review:
The FreeAgent GoFlex Ultra-portable is definitely an upgrade to Seagate's excellent FreeAgent GoFlex Pro that increases the storage add up to 1. 5TB, making it the largest single-volume portable external hard drive up to now. The drive is also the first in the GoFlex family that facilitates USB 3. 0 out of the box. Other than that, the generate shares Seagate's GoFlex family's superflexible detachable adapter design, allowing it to instantly change the kinds of connections it supports.
The GoFlex Ultra disappointed us a bit with it's comparatively low USB 3. 0 performance, unfortunately, though it was still truly fast... Expand full review
The FreeAgent GoFlex Ultra-portable is an upgrade to Seagate's excellent FreeAgent GoFlex Pro that boosts the storage amount to 1. 5TB, making it the largest single-volume portable external hard disk to date. The drive is also the first in the GoFlex loved ones that supports USB 3. 0 out of the box. Other than which, the drive shares Seagate's GoFlex family's superflexible detachable adapter design, allowing it to instantly change the kinds of connections it supports.
The GoFlex Ultra disappointed us a bit with it's comparatively low USB 3. 0 performance, unfortunately, though it was still really fast within our tests. However, even with this shortcoming, at around $250 for 1. 5TB, it's still among the best portable external hard drives on the market.
The GoFlex Ultra comes in the very same physical shape, size, and color as the GoFlex Pro. On the within, however, it has two major improvements. First, it comes with 1. 5TB associated with storage, while the GoFlex Pro has just 1TB. And second, out from the box, the Ultra includes a USB 3. 0 adapter. Even though GoFlex Professional also supports USB 3. 0, it comes with USB 2. 0, and you will need to pay another $40 or so to upgrade it to USB 3. 0.
Like all drives within the GoFlex family, the Ultra comes in two parts: the hard drive and also the adapter. The hard drive is basically just a 2. 5-inch internal hard disk housed in a plastic chassis. On one side, the drive's housing includes a small opening to reveal the internal hard drive's standard SATA female connection. The adapter part has a male SATA connector and a mini-USB 3. 0 interface. These two parts can be snapped onto each other and fit tightly to create the GoFlex external hard drive. The drive comes with just one mini-USB 3. 0 cable television, which serves both as a data and power cable.
With this versatile design, the drive can support connection types other than USB 3. 0 by simply using other adapters, though these, unfortunately, cost extra. However, as USB 3. 0 currently may be the fastest peripheral connection for external hard drives and is backward compatible along with USB 2. 0, it's unlikely that you'll need to buy other adapters. Nevertheless, if you bought eSATA or FireWire adapters to use with the prior GoFlex Pro drives, you can use them with the GoFlex Ultra, as well.
We really love the innovative, flexible design; it means you can use the hard drives and the adapters interchangeably if you have multiple GoFlex portable drives in the house. Or you can use only one drive with multiple adapters, which is an ideal scenario for an environment with multiple computers that have various kinds of peripheral connections. For example, you can use a USB 3. 0 adapter with one computer along with a FireWire adapter with another. You then can conveniently move the hard-drive part around and leave the adapters attached to their respective computers all the time.
Another great thing about this design is the fact that these adapters may also be used with any internal 2. 5-inch SATA hard drives, even those not produced by Seagate. This makes the GoFlex Ultra a great investment, especially for people who work often with laptop internal hard drives.
Features
The GoFlex Ultra drive is preformatted while using NTFS file system (Windows), but it comes with a software driver which allows Macs to read and write to NTFS. This is similar to the FreeAgent Pro's case and allows the drive to be used between the two platforms and never have to use FAT32, which limits the maximum file size to less than 4GB (unsuitable with regard to storing high-def content).
Seagate boasts the GoFlex Ultra-portable as a perfect companion towards the its networked media player, the GoFlex TV, as it can store as much as 60 high-definition movies. And as to prove this, the company even partnered with Paramount Pictures to incorporate 21 movie titles preloaded on the drive. These are popular titles for example: "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, " "Star Trek, " "Ghost, inch "Shooter, " "G. I. Joe, " and so on. Unfortunately, these movies aren't free, and you'll need to purchase and activate them before you can play them back utilizing a computer or the GoFlex TV.
