We've previously explored the risks that portable hard drives face. In a perfect world, users would avoid any impact or fall, but gravity is persistent and betrays at the worst moment. The market's response comes in models like the Silicon Power Armor A80, with an aluminum exterior, a silicone gel layer, shock resistance under the MIL-STD-810 standard, and protection against liquids.
Few things are as traumatic for computer users as losing information. Waking up to the unsettling 'clack, clack, clack!' of a failing hard drive is something I wouldn't wish on anyone, but we can't control their mechanical nature. Hard drives break, and our first line of defense should always be a good backup system. However, there are options that offer above-average protection, especially when it comes to portable units. That brings us to Silicon Power, a brand that has gained much traction thanks to its affordable SSDs. This time, we're dealing with one of its most popular portable hard drives, the Silicon Power Armor A80.
Silicon Power Armor A80: Built to Survive (Almost) Everything
The Silicon Power Armor A80 measures 139.5 x 94 x 18.1 mm, ensuring complete portability. The manufacturer highlights an aluminum exterior, a silicone gel layer for additional cushioning, adoption of the MIL-STD-810F standard for shock resistance up to three meters, IPX7 rating for dust and liquid protection (up to one meter of depth for 30 minutes), and a first-generation USB 3.1 interface that is, of course, backward compatible.
The Silicon Power Armor A80 is available in three capacities: 500 GB, 1 TB, and 2 TB. The company typically chooses Samsung hard drives, with a speed of 5,400 RPM and 8 MB of cache. For data encryption, Silicon Power offers its SP Widget application, which provides AES 256-bit encryption, but there's always the option to use alternatives. The 1 TB version is on sale, while you'll pay an average of 100 euros for the 2 TB drive. The warranty is three years.
