Portable SSDs are essentially boring gadgets that allow you to store and access your files faster than regular portable hard drives, while they have the advantage of smaller form factors and less power. More damaged when you drop it, few devices help you get more organized with file backup and management, this is where Synology, a company that primarily manufactures NAS servers, sees approx. empty that it could fill with years of experience in hardware and software solutions, and the end product was the Synology BeeDrive.
The BeeDrive is a cute little device with a discrete matte black finish, I’m glad it doesn’t have any glossy or rubbery surfaces because I hate to see it smudged. The device is only 65mm wide and weighs 42g, ideal for stowing in a pocket if you want to, the drive has a white LED activity indicator and a USB-C port that offers transfer speeds of up to 10Gbps.
BeeDrive achieved sequential read speeds of up to 832 MB/s and sequential write speeds of 881 MB/s when I ran speed tests on the AS SSD benchmark, which is quite fast for a compact device. As such and ideal for video editing or game storage drives.
However, BeeDrive isn’t all about file storage and fast storage speeds, but rather it’s more of a backup hub, and you’ll need the BeeDrive app installed on your computer to enjoy file backup feature set.
At the time of this writing, the BeeDrive Desktop app is only available for Windows computers, and Synology will release a later version of macOS.
Once you’ve installed the BeeDrive app, it will ask you to register or sign in to your Synology account and you’ll be presented with three options to start backing up your files – Backup your computer , File Sync and Mobile Backup.
Computer Backup is quite easy to understand, this feature allows you to select the folder or drive on your computer that you want to backup to BeeDrive, the backup will run as soon as you connect BeeDrive to your computer and when you add files new to the folder you selected for backup.
As for File Sync, it works similar to Desktop Backup but lets you choose how you want your files to be synced between your computer and BeeDrive, you can replace BeeDrive’s files with session version of your computer or vice versa, and this feature is useful if you tend to work on different computers because you can set up different folders and sync directions.
Best of all, what makes both Desktop Backup and File Sync really powerful compared to conventional backup solutions is the File Versioning feature, which essentially stores up to 5 versions of the same file. in a hidden folder on your BeeDrive and allows you to restore them when you need them.
For instance, if you accidentally delete multiple slides in a Powerpoint file stored on your computer’s local folder, you can quickly restore the file by right-clicking it and clicking Browse Versions. first, you will be shown up to 5 recent versions of the same file with timestamps and simply select the version you want to restore.
Speaking of issues, you can recover accidentally deleted files on your computer’s local storage from BeeDrive if you enable the Store Deleted Files option on the Computer Backup feature, which is a feature. Pretty neat feature if you tend to mess things up.
Mobile Backup is where things get really fun, it allows you to backup your phone’s photo albums over WiFi to BeeDrive and works a lot like DS Photo on Synology’s NAS server, which you’ll need download the BeeDrive mobile app on the Google Play Store or Apple App Store, then use the app to scan the QR code when prompted on your computer screen and when connected to the same WiFi network, the mobile app BeeDrive motion will back up your phone’s photos to BeeDrive easily.
Besides, the BeeDrive mobile app has the ability to convert HEIC files to JPG for iPhone users when you back up photos to BeeDrive, something that Synology has been very thoughtful to do.
Probably the most powerful feature in the BeeDrive app is BeeDrop, which basically works like AirDrop and lets you send files, photos and camera snapshots to BeeDrive, which I personally use a lot. when I don’t want to mess with the cables.
Synology BeeDrive comes in storage capacities of 1TB and 2TB, it retails for RM829 and RM1429 respectively, it’s quite expensive if you consider it a mere storage device, but if you really appreciate the features With no need to invest in a NAS server or sign up for monthly cloud storage, let alone deal with complex configurations, BeeDrive is an attractive option and I just wish the software features BeeDrive offers. Synology offers higher storage capacity.
Synology BeeDrive can be purchased at Lazada and Shopee.
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