advice please on buying an external hard drive

happyhappyshopper

Hi there,

Im thinking about buying an external hard drive for my Dell pc, and am hoping i could get some buying advice on here?

My CD/DVD drive packed up a while ago, and ive never got around to sourcing a replacement - mainly because im not very techy but also because i keep thinking about just getting a replacement pc for my 5 year old Dell.

Im thinking though that i could get by for now with an external drive, until i replace the computer later in the year or next year. Would an external hard drive allow me to load the software for my new printer (which i cant currently install), and also load software if i decide on a wireless network at home? Also, im thinking ahead to how to get my itunes songs off my current computer and on to a new pc, when the time comes - would i be able to transfer stored itunes tracks this way?

I imagine Which? magazine or Which? computing magazine will have tested external hard drives - does anyone know what their Best Buys are, or can anyone recommend a good quality but affordable hard drive to purchase? Also, am i right in thinking that some external drives 'mirror' and can produce two copies of what files are on your computer.

Sorry to be dense here, but any buying advice would be gratefully received.

Thanks!

isofa

This crops up weekly on this forum, so do a search for "external drive", as no-one will want to re-post all their advice over and over again...

Various recommendations, I personally have had good service from WD MyBook and Passport drives, but there are various good ones.

You can install applications, iTunes song libraries, documents, photos etc any files you wish on an External drive, but the operating system, main applications installed etc, will need to stay on your local "C" drive, including printer drivers.