Western Digital My Passport Essential 1TB USB 2.0 Portable External Hard Drive - Black

New Software and USB cables
WD SmartWare update: We've been shipping our new My Book and My Passport drives with WD SmartWare software for a few months now. During that time we've been listening to our customers. As a result of the feedback, we've developed some improvements to the software. You can now hide the Virtual CD (VCD) if you wish, or exit WD SmartWare from the Windows system tray. If you prefer not to use WD SmartWare at all then we have enhanced the ability to opt-out.

USB cable connection: WD has increased the retention force specification on all our Micro USB cables and we are offering free replacement cables to consumers that have reported an issue via customer service.

My Passport Essential SE – maximum capacity, maximum style
The world's most popular portable drive now features maximum capacity to store all your favourite videos, music, photos and important files, and as it's still sleek and compact, you can load it up and take it with you anywhere. Only a few millimetres thicker to accommodate our highest capacity mobile drives, there's still plenty of room for all your stuff. Smaller and smarter than ever, the My Passport Essential SE features automatic, continuous backup software and password protection.

Plug-and-play portable storage
Powered directly from the USB port on your computer, no separate power supply is needed, though an optional cable is available for the few computers that limit power from the USB port. Featuring a USB 2.0 interface for maximum flexibility the My Passport drive will make data transfer and backup a smooth and easy experience, and there's even a My Passport model formatted specially for Macs, available in 320GB and 500GB capacities.

WD is an expert in portable storage, so they designed a smaller, high-quality integrated USB hard drive inside this stylish package, making it a great choice for portable data storage. It also features WD SmartWare software that acts as a visual control centre for all your data, plus password protection security and 256-bit hardware-based encryption.

Password protection, WD Smartware software and plenty of digital storage. View larger.

WD SmartWare - see your life safe in one place
Protect your data automatically and relax in the knowledge that your data is secure. Automatic, continuous backup will instantly make a second copy whenever you add or change a file. Visual backup displays your content in categories and shows the progress of your backup, letting you see your backup as it happens.

Lost files can be brought back effortlessly with the WD SmartWare software, allowing you to retrieve your valuable data to its original location whether you've lost all your data or just overwritten an important file. What's more, you can customise your backup, set your drive's security, run diagnostics, manage the power settings and more from the WD SmartWare control centre, as well as gaining peace of mind knowing that your data is protected from unauthorised access or theft with password protection and 256-bit hardware-based encryption.

WD SmartWare's visual control centre lets you backup, retrieve and secure your files. View larger.

Backup software you'll really use – five great reasons to love it
1. It's easy - Data backup can be a chore, but it's your family photos, your movies, your music - your life - and it's important to protect it. So we made WD SmartWare extra easy because we really want you to use it.

2. You can see your life safe in one place - See your content displayed in easy to understand categories like movies and photos. Watch the progress of your backup as it happens with the instant-feedback colour bars - now you can truly be sure that all your stuff is backed up. A unique visual interface lets you see the drives connected to your computer, and WD SmartWare will automatically scan your computer and find all of your personal files, including e-mail.

Content category gauges show how much information you have to be backed up in each category, and you can even mouse over a category to see a file count. Clicking 'Run Backup' will automatically start WD SmartWare backing up your files, with the category gauges changing colour during the process to show you the backup as it happens. When finished, you'll see a status screen and information about your backup. You only have to do this once - after the first backup your files will be backed up automatically every time you change or add a file.

3. It's always on the job - WD SmartWare is always watching your computer, so when you change a file and save it, create new files, add new pictures, movies, or songs, WD SmartWare will instantly back them up.

4. You can bring back lost files effortlessly - If you ever accidentally delete an important file, or need to get an earlier version of a file, you can find and retrieve it in seconds with this easy-to-use interface. You can restore files and folders by categories (such as photos, music and video), find a lost file with the search function or go back in time to retrieve an older version of a file.

5. You're in control - WD SmartWare software is also a control centre for your external drives. From it you can customise your backup, set drive security, run diagnostics, manage the power settings and more.

WD SmartWare update: We've been shipping our new My Book and My Passport drives with WD SmartWare software for a few months now. During that time we've been listening to our customers. As a result of the feedback, we've developed some improvements to the software. You can now hide the Virtual CD (VCD) if you wish, or exit WD SmartWare from the Windows system tray. If you prefer not to use WD SmartWare at all then we have enhanced the ability to opt-out.

For the same great functionality with additional features including capacity gauge and USB dock, check out the My Passport Elite range from Western Digital.

New Software and USB cables
WD SmartWare update: We've been shipping our new My Book and My Passport drives with WD SmartWare software for a few months now. During that time we've been listening to our customers. As a result of the feedback, we've developed some improvements to the software. You can now hide the Virtual CD (VCD) if you wish, or exit WD SmartWare from the Windows system tray. If you prefer not to use WD SmartWare at all then we have enhanced the ability to opt-out.

USB cable connection: WD has increased the retention force specification on all our Micro USB cables and we are offering free replacement cables to consumers that have reported an issue via customer service.

My Passport Essential SE – maximum capacity, maximum style
The world's most popular portable drive now features maximum capacity to store all your favourite videos, music, photos and important files, and as it's still sleek and compact, you can load it up and take it with you anywhere. Only a few millimetres thicker to accommodate our highest capacity mobile drives, there's still plenty of room for all your stuff. Smaller and smarter than ever, the My Passport Essential SE features automatic, continuous backup software and password protection.

Plug-and-play portable storage
Powered directly from the USB port on your computer, no separate power supply is needed, though an optional cable is available for the few computers that limit power from the USB port. Featuring a USB 2.0 interface for maximum flexibility the My Passport drive will make data transfer and backup a smooth and easy experience, and there's even a My Passport model formatted specially for Macs, available in 320GB and 500GB capacities.

WD is an expert in portable storage, so they designed a smaller, high-quality integrated USB hard drive inside this stylish package, making it a great choice for portable data storage. It also features WD SmartWare software that acts as a visual control centre for all your data, plus password protection security and 256-bit hardware-based encryption.

Password protection, WD Smartware software and plenty of digital storage. View larger.

WD SmartWare - see your life safe in one place
Protect your data automatically and relax in the knowledge that your data is secure. Automatic, continuous backup will instantly make a second copy whenever you add or change a file. Visual backup displays your content in categories and shows the progress of your backup, letting you see your backup as it happens.

Lost files can be brought back effortlessly with the WD SmartWare software, allowing you to retrieve your valuable data to its original location whether you've lost all your data or just overwritten an important file. What's more, you can customise your backup, set your drive's security, run diagnostics, manage the power settings and more from the WD SmartWare control centre, as well as gaining peace of mind knowing that your data is protected from unauthorised access or theft with password protection and 256-bit hardware-based encryption.

WD SmartWare's visual control centre lets you backup, retrieve and secure your files. View larger.

Backup software you'll really use – five great reasons to love it
1. It's easy - Data backup can be a chore, but it's your family photos, your movies, your music - your life - and it's important to protect it. So we made WD SmartWare extra easy because we really want you to use it.

2. You can see your life safe in one place - See your content displayed in easy to understand categories like movies and photos. Watch the progress of your backup as it happens with the instant-feedback colour bars - now you can truly be sure that all your stuff is backed up. A unique visual interface lets you see the drives connected to your computer, and WD SmartWare will automatically scan your computer and find all of your personal files, including e-mail.

Content category gauges show how much information you have to be backed up in each category, and you can even mouse over a category to see a file count. Clicking 'Run Backup' will automatically start WD SmartWare backing up your files, with the category gauges changing colour during the process to show you the backup as it happens. When finished, you'll see a status screen and information about your backup. You only have to do this once - after the first backup your files will be backed up automatically every time you change or add a file.

3. It's always on the job - WD SmartWare is always watching your computer, so when you change a file and save it, create new files, add new pictures, movies, or songs, WD SmartWare will instantly back them up.

4. You can bring back lost files effortlessly - If you ever accidentally delete an important file, or need to get an earlier version of a file, you can find and retrieve it in seconds with this easy-to-use interface. You can restore files and folders by categories (such as photos, music and video), find a lost file with the search function or go back in time to retrieve an older version of a file.

5. You're in control - WD SmartWare software is also a control centre for your external drives. From it you can customise your backup, set drive security, run diagnostics, manage the power settings and more.

WD SmartWare update: We've been shipping our new My Book and My Passport drives with WD SmartWare software for a few months now. During that time we've been listening to our customers. As a result of the feedback, we've developed some improvements to the software. You can now hide the Virtual CD (VCD) if you wish, or exit WD SmartWare from the Windows system tray. If you prefer not to use WD SmartWare at all then we have enhanced the ability to opt-out.

For the same great functionality with additional features including capacity gauge and USB dock, check out the My Passport Elite range from Western Digital.