Topic: Reliable & Sturdy Portable External HD - Any Recommendations?

[Caeli]

After my old Maxtor external broke out of nowhere, I now find myself in need of a new external.
I've asked a few of my tech-savvy friends to help me out, but I figure I can probably also find more opinions here, so I thought I would ask. :)

I've done a little research, and these are the three that I'm currently deciding between. If you have suggestions for which one would best suit my needs, please feel free to state your opinions.

[ 1 ] Iomega eGo USB 2.0 320GB Rugged Portable Hard Drive
[ 2 ] Seagate FreeAgent Desktop 500 GB 3.5-Inch USB 2.0 External Hard Drive
[ 3 ] Western Digital My Passport Essential 320GB USB 2.0 Portable Hard Drive

General Requirements:

• Reliability is a must. I've heard good things about Iomega, Western Digital, and Seagate (FreeAgent), and want to stick with these three brands, unless you have personal experience with the product yourself.
• I want something slim and sleek, that I can easily carry in a laptop bag or in my backpack.
• Sturdy - something that won't die off if it gets bumped around a bit. As a student, I'll be carrying this around a lot.
• Something that looks cool. Silly requirement, I know, but it's not impossible.

Technical Stuff:

• Fast media transfer. I deal with a lot of media-related programs and files (videos and music), so I'm probably look for a 7500-RPM or 5200-RPM drive.
• USB-powered. Mostly for convenience, and preferably a drive that can be powered through just one USB-port.
• Lots of HD space. I would prefer 500GB, but 320GB will also be fine.
• I said portable in the title, but it is also not an absolute requirement, especially if the desktop external is sturdy.
• A good price. I'm not exceptionally rich, and I'm limiting to my budget to $200 at the absolute maximum. I would prefer not to spend over $150 if at all possible, and if it's under $100, I'll be ecstatic.
  
  Any help you can give me would be very appreciated. :)
  
  Thank you!

[Vekseid]

I'm not terribly familiar with Iomega right now. As things currently stand, WD has a somewhat better reputation in customer service terms than Seagate, so if something goes wrong with your drive (it can happen, usually does so early on) you have a much better recourse.

[Lilias]

I have both a 250GB Seagate desktop and a pocket-sized 120GB WD. I prefer the little one, mainly because it's faster. The price quoted there is very good, so I suggest you go for it.

[Caeli]

I'm not terribly familiar with Iomega right now. As things currently stand, WD has a somewhat better reputation in customer service terms than Seagate, so if something goes wrong with your drive (it can happen, usually does so early on) you have a much better recourse.

That wasn't mentioned in my list of requirements, but that's definitely good to know. *nods* Thanks, Veks.

I have both a 250GB Seagate desktop and a pocket-sized 120GB WD. I prefer the little one, mainly because it's faster. The price quoted there is very good, so I suggest you go for it.

Hmm. That's probably worth looking into - I've heard good things about their customer service, and the drive seems to have a lot of good reviews. Thanks, Lilias. :)