I received this My Passport WD Hard Drive as a gift around 6 months ago. At first I wasn't sure that I would use it or need it since I already had another large Hard Drive that I used for Time Machine back ups on my MacBook Pro and general backing up of data. I soon realised though that the benefit of this Hard Drive is it's extremely portable!

The unit itself is deceptively small in size for a hard drive with 1 TB of storage space. My previous hard drive is at least 4 or 5 times the size and has significantly less memory. The My Passport Essential is smaller than a CD case in breadth and width, though slightly thicker in depth. It is really extremely sleek and portable, although I wouldn't quite say it was pocket-sized (unless you are used to having very full pockets!).

Connecting and using the My Passport really couldn't be easier. You just plug it in via the provided USB cable and you're away. I thought there might be some extra formatting required with my Mac but that wasn't the case and I was able to use it straight away. The USB cable provided is fully adequate but very short, so that's something to keep in mind.

I particularly like to use the Passport when I am travelling, it's light and easy to take in my laptop bag and allows me to back up any important files I make on the road. This seems especially important to me given the probably slightly higher risk of something going wrong with your laptop (getting knocked, dropped, wet etc) when you're travelling compared to when you're just working from home or the office.

I have had absolutely no problem with crashing, corruption or any other file problems since I got this hard drive. That being said I do have a friend who dropped hers onto a table - just a very short distance - and was shocked to find it was completely destroyed and all files had been lost. I guess it's best to assume that the drive is fragile, despite it's apparently robust build, and make sure you treat it with care. I always try to have two back ups anyway.