Works well and doesnt look bad, the only problem with it is the constant flashing of the white light on the front when in use.

Stick a tiny bit of blu-tac on the light if its distracting

NewChaos666, there are some companies out there that should be able to recover your lost pictures. (maybe a bit of complaining to Maxtor and they might be able to sort something out for you?)

Anyway, the drive I have received seems reliable so far, and was great price for the GB.

Great price for the GB's you're getting.
To be honest, more memory than you probably need!

I bought this in may for my wifes birthday
she used it to back-up her entire pc before system restoring it....
yesterday, it died....
it has stuff that cant ever replaced such as baby photos of my son when he was born, financial details, artworks she has made etc... none of this can ever be replaced, we are both gobsmacked...
we thought this would be a safe piece of kit for our pcs, and were thinking about buying a bigger one.
that wont be happening now!
i now have to navigate through their very confusing website to find a solution...
i'll let you know how it goes.
not a happy customer.

fantastic speed, usability etc etc.
my only star reducing gripe is the bright white light that flashes when the drive is being accessed.
can be a little offputting.

but still 4 stars none the less

Bought this just after Christmas to back up files and keep my Macbook clean and tidy.

Was awesome up to the point where the power pack failed. Not the first time a Maxtor drive has been supplied with crap power packs as my mates died not to long before mine.

Took me a while to navigate the terrible Maxtor/Seagate web site to try and get another one. I ended up phoning and spending an hour explaining what had happened. Not the easiest thing when the advisers first language wasn't English!

Never the less a week later it came in the post. I'll just have to see how long this one lasts.

This is only about £15 more than the lowest-priced 500 gb drive. yet its 50% bigger!. It has a one-touch button for backing up files, a 5 year warrantry, and runs very quietly. you can also programme its activity .All cables and software are supplied ,including euro and uk power plugs. The only thing which stopped me giving 5 stars is the shape, which is like a vertical wedge.