Mobile Wireless Storage with the Seagate GoFlex Satellite {Review}

Although I may tease my mom about not being able to keep up with technology (the woman needs step-by-step instructions to turn on our television), I'm really not one to talk.

I tend to know how to use my computer, phone and iPad in the most basic ways... but when it comes to advancements or figuring out something new, it often takes me quite a few instances of trial and error before I feel like I actually know what I'm doing.

Therefore, when I'm introduced to a product that is complicated and sophisticated, yet is plenty easy to use and can quickly solve previous problems that I've encountered, then I know that it's one that I need to have around. Most recently, that has been the Seagate GoFlex Satellite.

The world's first hard drive designed to stream movies, music and photos to iOS and Android tablets and smartphones wirelessly, the Seagate GoFlex Satellite alleviates the issue that all of us have experienced at some point or another: not enough memory.

When I first began downloading tunes, movies and apps to my iPhone and iPad, I never thought that I would run out of storage space. But with devices coming with only so many GB of storage, it's only a matter of time before I had to start deleting apps and removing other content. How was I going to decide what I had to get rid of so that I could have room for enough items to keep my kids occupied on our next road trip?

Thanks to the built-in battery, Wi-Fi hotspot and 500GB hard disk in the GoFlex Satellite, bringing our media collection with us is no longer a problem.

As I pulled the various pieces out of the box, I was happy to see that the GoFlex Satellite came with everything needed to use this portable device at home or on the go.

As well as the hard drive itself (which measures in at a small 4.72" x 3.46" x 1.26" and weighs only around half a pound), Seagate included a USB 3.0 USM adapter with detachable USB 3.0 cable, a compact wall adapter with retractable pins, a compact car charger, and a USB to DC cable.

Thanks to the easy to follow instructions, it wasn't hard for me to remove the rear panel from the GoFlex Satellite, connect the USB cable, and plug the entire thing into my PC (there are a few installation instructions specific to a Mac as well).

Once connected, it also isn't difficult to copy media files onto the Satellite, as it's as simple as clicking and dragging or copying and pasting, due to the drive showing up as a mass storage device. Files are separated into four categories — Videos, Photos, Music and Documents — and new items are automatically sorted accordingly.

After you have transferred your information to the GoFlex Satellite (it can hold up to 300 movies!) you're just about ready to power up the drive, select it from the list of available wireless devices for your phone or iPad, and you are set to access all of your data!

Not only does the Seagate GoFlex Satellite allow users to take all of the data with them when going to and from work, its compact portability and large storage size makes it essential for business travelers.

Instead of choosing only a select number of documents or movies to have on your iPad (so as to not use up all of the memory), suddenly your entire library of music, videos and more can be transported in something not much larger than your phone.

However, even better for families, the Satellite's ability to wirelessly send movies, music and other content to any nearby Wi-Fi enabled device makes it a must-have for traveling. That means that on your next trip, your toddler can enjoy Barney, your first grader can watch Tangled and Mom and Dad can watch... well, pretty much anything that isn't animated!

In total, the Satellite can stream a single movie to up to eight different devices (within a range of 150 feet) or it can stream up to three different movies to three different mobile devices simultaneously.

The two LEDs on the top of the device easily display when the Wi-Fi is connected and the status of the battery, and the power switch on the side is simple enough for even a child to use.

In the time that the Seagate GoFlex Satellite has been here, I've been impressed overall at just how easy it is to use and the complete convenience of having it around. As a user of multiple iOS devices, I'm sure I'm not the first one to wish that they had a memory card slot to make it possible to add more storage — but this device does the trick!

Whether you simply need more space on your tablet or you are looking for an easy way to stream your photos, music and movies wirelessly, this small, lightweight device provides just as much space as a laptop in a much more portable package. Retailing for $199 (currently $167 on Amazon), the Seagate GoFlex Satellite isn't cheap, but has shown that it is a one-of-a-kind hard drive that will be your go-to product for your next road trip.

Find out much more about this and all of Seagate's innovative products by visiting Seagate.com and connecting with them on Facebook and Twitter.

Other than the GoFlex Satellite that I was provided by Seagate to facilitate my review, I was not compensated or enticed to do this review in any way. This review is solely my honest opinion of this product.