Review: HP SimpleSave 2TB External Drive vs Rebit SaveMe

Written by Jonathan Yaniv Saturday, 06 February 2010 01:39

Manufacturer: HP

Part Number: AU809AA#ABA

Price at Review: $249.99

Overall Rating: 3.5/5

If you have had your computer crash, or had a data corruption, you know how important that data really is. That is why I always suggest to back up your files, daily, if not hourly. A lot of people think that backing up is a really frustrating and intimidating job. HP’s SimpleSave 2TB drive isn’t bad, but it could be better. It is supposed to make backup easy, which it does, but getting those files, is a hassle. Accessing backed up files on the HP SimpleSave was an easy task for me, but might be complex for basic users, as the folder structure is very deep to get to what you really want. With the Rebit, you click the computer you want to access the backup of, and it’s just like looking at your drive. No recovery software is included with the HP SimpleSave so you cannot recover your system from the device in a possible system crash. The Rebit SaveMe, however allows you to quickly and easily restore your entire system by placing the recovery disk into your machine, and booting of it, it will ask you if you want to restore your system from the files on the Rebit SaveMe, and it will do all the hard work for you. The software doesn’t do any imaging, which is so unfortunate. This is why I really suggest the Rebit for simplicity and features.

Regarding looks, it’s aesthetics is what HP does best, and you see it with the HP SimpleSave as well. HP Simplesave, is sleek and stylish. Black shiny face with a shiny piano finish. Another nice thing is that it provides ventilation. It has holes for ventilation and cooling of the drive on the top of the chassis.

Regarding speed, yes it was fast. 12063 backed up on HP Simplesave in about 15 minutes upon launch of the HP SimpleSave software. Rebit was a bit slower, since it creates a history of files, and then an image, the HP SimpleSave just copies it over, and creates a very complex and confusing folder structure to find your files.

HP SimpleSave weighs quite a bit more than the Rebit SaveMe. HP SimpleSave is basically a chassis, offering enough air space to fit another 2TB drive in it. Good for airflow, but a lot heavier cause of this.

Overall, I give the HP SimpleSave 2TB external drive a 3.5/5. HP focuses too much on design, rather than ease-of-use and functionality. It does the job, but it doesn’t do carbon-copy imaging, nor is it compatible on the mac, and folder structure is not simple for the average user. If you are looking for a simplistic, easy-to-use and cost affordable backup solution, I highly suggest the Rebit SaveMe.