Chromebooks suffer from similar limitations as other laptops, depending on the configuration of the model you choose, which means you might need one of these great external hard drives or SSDs. Sometimes you may run out of storage space. If you’re unable to replace the solid-state drive (SSD), you’ll need to look at an external storage solution. We’ve rounded up a few for your Chromebook.
Great Value Storage
Western Digital My Passport
Staff pick
The WD My Passport isn’t the most attractive portable storage device you can buy, nor does it have many bells and whistles as other options, but what this external drive does offer is incredible value. It’s an HDD, so it’s not quite as speedy as an SSD, but it does offer plenty of room to store all your digital stuff.
- From $42 at Amazon From $52 at Best Buy
Rugged Performance
ADATA SD600Q
When you need some external storage that can take a hit or few, this rugged SD600Q drive from ADATA is what you require. This thing can fall for up to 1.22 meters and meets the U.S. Military MIL-STD-810G 516.6 standard. It’s tough. You can choose capacities up to 1TB.
- From $40 at Amazon From $40 at Newegg
Bulky Capacity
Western Digital My Book
The Passport by Western Digital is a portable drive while the Book is more of a bulky unit for desk use. What you do get is tons of storage, ranging from just 3TB all the way up to 12TB (that’s 12,000GB). Because it’s a full HDD you need an external power source from an outlet, restricting portable use.
- From $80 at Amazon From $90 at Best Buy
DIY SSD
Western Digital Blue SSD
If you’d rather go it alone and use an SSD yourself with an enclosure, go right ahead with this WD Blue SSD. All you need is an external SSD enclosure and you can connect this great value drive to your Chromebook and enjoy more space to use.
- From $49 at Amazon From $65 at Best Buy
Handy Companion
SanDisk Extreme Portable SSD
This Extreme SSD from SanDisk comes in sizes between 250GB and 2TB and is specifically designed for you to carry it around with your Chromebook. The cut-out in the top corner can even allow the SSD to be hooked up to a bag and USB Type-C ensures compatibility with latest devices.
- From $85 at Amazon From $90 at Best Buy
Making a storage suggestion
There’s no wrong choice when it comes to choosing a hard drive or SSD for your Chromebook. It all depends on how you use your laptop, what type of storage you seek, and how much capacity you require. Now that a lot of us are working from home, some portable, affordable storage might be more important that ever.
Samsung’s portable SSD offers solid transfer speeds, but if you want something that offers a little more value, the Western Digital My Passport is a great runner-up that sacrifices a little in performance. You could also go down the DIY route and use an internal SSD like the WD Blue with an enclosure.
