
The word “lots” is probably best to sum up the number of external hard drives we’ve seen over the years, so at this point it takes something special to jump out at us. Luckily, OWC is always up to the challenge, this time with the introduction of its Mercury Elite Pro Mini ($100-$970) drives. These guys hold a whole lot more than their tiny bodies would make you think.
The drives range anywhere from 250GB to 1.5TB in 5400RPM models, 320GB to 750GB in 7200RPM, and even come in 60GB to 480GB SSD versions. Each has a quad interface with four ports: two FireWire 800, a USB 2.0, and eSATA. And they’re bus-powered, so there’s no need to worry about carrying around an extra power cord in your bag; there are also $75-$85 conversion external enclosures that let you supply your own hard drive. If you’re looking for a small and cost-effective storage solution, well, you’ve just found it.