Consider these things when shopping for a hard drive storage case.
Are you a professional photographer with more than a decade’s worth of work to keep track of? Maybe you’re an education administrator struggling to find a way to archive student records at your school? While both professions are very different the struggle remains the same: how do you organize and archive all that data in a cost effective way?
You need a hard drive storage case that will suit your lifestyle, budget, and most importantly, keep your data safe. There are many different kinds of hard drive accessories and hard drive cases to choose from, but in order to effectively weed through them all you need to know what qualities to look for. Consider these factors while you shop.
Material
What kind of material should you look for in a hard drive storage case? You’ll want to purchase a storage container that will prevent electrostatic shock. Storage cases made of anti-static plastic or anti-static foam are both great options.
Size
How much data do you have to store and how many external hard drives do you need to safely archive in order to access them later? A good hard drive storage case for an active professional should accommodate around 18-24 hard drives.
Shock Prevention
There are two different kinds of shocks you want to avoid when it comes to hard drive storage: electrostatic shock and physical shock. Either one could seriously damage any data you have stored on your hard drive so a good hard drive storage case should prevent both.
Organization
When you have a million different hard drives laying around, not only is storage important, but organization is too. If a professional photographer, for example, wants to be able to access photos they took three years ago to show to a potential client, that whole process will be a lot easier if they can quickly figure out where those photos are located and get them off the hard drive without any hiccups. Make sure whatever hard drive storage case you’re considering makes organization simple and easy. You’ll thank yourself later!
Mobility
If you need to move your archived hard drive data frequently, make sure to consider the mobility of any hard drive storage case you’re considering purchasing. ProStorage, for example, can easily slip into the drawers of an average-sized file cabinet or office storage box but it can also be moved and relocated quite easily since it’s made of lightweight anti-static foam. If you foresee the need to move your storage container frequently, pay attention to weight and dimensions.
Cost
More likely than not, you’re shopping on a budget. And if you need to purchase several different hard drive storage cases to house all your hard drives, you should choose a case that gives you the most bang for your buck. External hard drive enclosures range anywhere from $20 to $5,000 and beyond. If you run an IT company, you may want to pursue the more high end storage options. But if you’re looking to store and archive family photos and documents, chances are, you probably don’t want to spend thousands.