Home > Consumer Reviews > LaCie Little Disk 320 GB FW 400 / USB 2.0 Hard Drive, design by Sam Hecht

After doing a little research, I settled on the Lacie Little Disk because I wanted a drive with Firewire for my MacBook. I also own a LaCie 80GB mobile external hard drive designed by FA Porsche which has given me years of trouble free use but the capacity is on the low side by today's standards.

Portable hard drives nowadays are pretty generic when it comes to performance and capacity so I find the distinguishing features are the type of connectivity offered and product design. It's amazing how few Mac friendly portable hard drives there are in the market and even the ones which say they are for Mac have drawbacks. One case in point is Western Digital's My Passport Studio portable drive - it needs to be connected via a supplied hybrid Firewire/ USB cable. Lose it and you're stuffed. Sure you can use USB only portable drives but performance is not as good as Firewire.

The LaCie comes out on top here thanks to an integrated USB cable and not one but two Firewire ports. The second port is to provide a connection for additional power (cable supplied) but I have found that connecting the drive directly to my MacBook via Firewire works fine. I presume 2x FireWire also means it would be possible to daisy chain the drive which is another bonus.

Where I have deducted one star is the design. A glossy piano black plastic casing? What were LaCie and Sam Hecht thinking?! While I agree the design looks great, it is not very practical and the plastic case will get scratched and scuffed in no time - not good if like me you like to keep your stuff looking pristine. Finally, I am a bit disappointed that the footprint of the Little Disk is slightly larger than the older Porsche designed drive. I know they have a lower capacity model which is really small but I would have expected that they could keep this new range of high capacity portable drives the same size as the Porsche range.

Overall I am happy with my LaCie Little Disk and would recommend it especially to Mac owners who are looking for additional storage on the go.

As I got more and more sweaty-palmed as my laptop drive filled up, I looked for a fast, compact external drive which would travel well. The Little Disk 250GB is a classy little unit with a pull-out USB connector (but I tend to use the Firewire connection more frequently.) A beautifully designed drive, it more than doubles my laptop's capacity.

I've used some of the 'designer' LaCie hard drives for a few years. Hard drives are so cheap these days, the only thing really separating them is the design of the case, so why not get one that looks good on your desk? I bought this hard drive so my wife can make backup clones of her black Macbook. The retractable USB cable is fantastic, the drive is bus-powered so you don't have to ever hunt for any cables. Performance is what you'd expect from a drive of these specs, so we're very satisfied with the purchase.

I'm quite taken with the portability and size (320GB!) of this hard drive. I'm always on the go with work and need to bring all my files with me. I also love to have my media (including music, movies and TV shows) with me in case I want to watch or exchange with friends. Transfer speeds are above average and very solid. It's easy to plug in and get going with no hassle and you get a choice of a built in USB (VERY CONVENIENT) or firewire. It works flawlessly and quickly with my iTunes and streams great with my Apple TV. It's the best portable hard drive around.

This was one of the best purchases I have made in quite a while. The FireWire capability let me create a bootable backup disk for my Mac. This was not possible with only a USB type HD. And it doesn't require additional power. The FireWire port supplies all the power necessary. No software was required either to get up and running. And no kinks whatsoever.

So this was the perfect purchase for me.