Digital Trends

Western Digital Passport (250GB) October 1st, 2007 | by Josh Norem

Features and Design


The Passport chassis has evolved from a slab of elongated rubber into a smaller shell with a hard, glossy exterior. We think the new design is a big improvement over the old rubber shell, as the drive now looks cool and sleek. The unit we received for review is white, but we think the black version is the cat’s meow.

The drive has just a single blue light to show the drive is plugged in, and aside from that there is just a single USB port that lies behind a small, rubber flap. The flap prevents dust from getting into the USB port when the drive is not in use.

A USB cable is included and it’s very short (about seven inches or so). We actually like the short cable, and prefer it over the unnecessarily long cables we have found with other USB drives. It’s also important to note the USB cable has just a single port, unlike the Y cables with two USB ports that are sold with most of these drives. The Y cable is a necessity on older computers because a single USB port doesn’t output enough power, so you need the second cable to power the drive. If you have an older computer, WD sells an optional Y cable for $10 USD on its website.

WD shipped us the drive in a neat hard-shell case, which is optional ($25 USD). The enclosure includes an elastic strap to keep the drive secure during travel. It’s a great idea to offer a case, but it’s too bad it’s not included with the drive.

WD offers a swank hard-shell carrying case for the Passport as an option and we highly recommend it

An elastic strap keeps the drive secure inside the carrying case.

In terms of size, it’s a very small drive that easily fits into the palm of your hand. If you compare it to the recently reviewed Maxtor One Touch 4 Mini, you’ll see the two are comparable in size.

The Maxtor OneTouch 4 Mini (left) and WD Passport (right)

Software Bundle

Every backup drive needs backup software, and WD’s solution is named WD Sync.
The software lets you sync folders between your computer and the drive, so you always have a backup on the drive in case something happens to your PC’s hard drive. It also lets you bring your web browser’s bookmarks, and Outlook email, to any PC, and you can even have your desktop wallpaper on whatever computer you connect to as well.

In addition to the features just mention, the WD Passport also lets you initiate a “secure” browsing environment on whatever computer you plug it into, so you could theoretically plug it into a coffee shop PC, surf the net, and then disconnect, and nobody would know what you did (except your conscience).