Transcend StoreJet 25M3 Review and Teardown!

This is a guest post by Marvin Gabriel, author and owner of Shopzada PH. He creates quality product reviews for affordable products online. As well as tutorials, tips and tricks for a better online shopping experience.

We’ve all heard horror stories of people losing their files because of a faulty hard drive. Arguably, all mechanical hard drives are the same physically and that they are all susceptible to damage from accidental drops, mishandling and stuff like that. So choosing the best, most durable hard drive with shockproof protection is a must. Today, we are going to review and take a look inside the Transcend StoreJet 25M3, a military grade shockproof portable hard drive.

MY EARLY BREAKDOWN

Pros: Military Grade Shockproof, Affordable, One button backup and reconnect
Cons: Bulkier than most modern portable hard drives

KEY FEATURES

Military-grade shock resistance*
SuperSpeed USB 3.1 Gen 1 compliant
Advanced three-stage shock protection system
Durable anti-shock rubber outer case
Advanced internal hard drive suspension system
Slim form factor for greater convenience and portability (SJ25M3G)
Quick Reconnect Button – safely re-enable the removed hard drive without unplugging and reinsertion
One Touch Auto-Backup button**
256-bit AES file & folder encryption**
Exclusive Transcend Elite data management software

**Transcend Elite software is required to use this feature.

Transcend StoreJet 25M3 SPECIFICATIONS

Dimensions M3 / M3B / M3E: 129.5mm x 82.4mm x 20.4mm (5.10″ x 3.24″ x 0.80″)
M3G: 129.5mm x 80.8mm x 16.1mm (5.10″ x 3.18″ x 0.63″)
Weight M3 500GB & M3 / M3B / M3E 1TB: 216g (7.62 oz)
M3 / M3B / M3E 2TB: 230g (8.11 oz)
M3G 1TB & 2TB: 185g (6.53 oz)
Storage Media 2.5″ SATA HDD
Connection Interface USB 3.1 Gen 1 (backward compatible with USB 2.0)
Operating Voltage USB DC 5V
Operating Temperature 5°C (41°F)~55°C (131°F)
Power Saving Mode 10 mins
Certificates CE, FCC, BSMI
Note *Based on U.S. military drop-test standards MIL-STD-810G 516.6. Transcend is not responsible for data recovery due to improper usage.

FULL REVIEW

Design and Construction

In terms of design, the Transcend StoreJet 25M3 boasts a smooth and slick profile. A rubber enclosure covers the whole hard drive with the exception of the top part. It feels good in the hands and although it’s smooth, it provides a nice grippy feel that gives you confidence that this bad boy isn’t going anywhere.

In front we have the USB port which is a SuperSpeed USB 3.1 Gen 1 compliant so it will take full advantage of the speed of the hard drive inside. We’ll take a look inside later to check what specific model and brand the hard drive inside is.

At the back, we have the capacity and serial number information as well as where this hard drive was made from.

On paper, the Transcend StoreJet 25M3 should weigh around 216g but as per my testing, it’s around 220g which I think is fine and negligible at this rate. I was just curious so I tested it out myself.

Now, let’s proceed and take a look inside the Transcend StoreJet 25M3 and see the structure that helped it secure the U.S. military drop-test standards MIL-STD-810G 516.6. which is for shock proof.

TEARDOWN

The first layer of protection is the smooth rubber enclosure. When you remove the enclosure by just pulling it on one side, it reveals the second layer of protection which is the hard case.

Opening the hard case requires the removal of three screws, 2 on the top and 1 on the bottom. Once the screws are removed, you need to peel off the warranty stickers on each side and start prying the side of the case until it pops off. I highly discourage you to do this on your own hard drive because it will definitely void your warranty.

After opening the hard case we are greeted by the third layer of protection which is another rubber enclosure that surrounds the edges of the hard drive. It doesn’t cover the entire hard drive providing a little bit of breathing space to dissipate heat coming from the hard drive prolonging its lifespan. Speaking of the hard drive, we have a 1 terabyte Western Digital 5400RPM 8Mb SATA 6 Gb/s hard drive inside.

TRANSCEND SOFTWARE

The Transcend StoreJet 25M3 comes with its own applications that you can use for recovering deleted files, low-level formatting, encrypting files, syncing bookmarks and scheduling backup.

Speaking of back up, it has a one-touch backup button that doubles as a quick reconnect button as well. So if you safely remove the hard drive from windows and planning on reconnecting it again in the future, you don’t have to remove the cable, you just simply push the button and it will automatically reconnect.

VERDICT

WILL I RECOMMEND THIS? Yes

First of all, I apologize for the lack of drop test and speed test on this review because this particular hard drive has all of my important backup files inside and dropping this is not a very good idea. Also, it’s already a couple of years old so doing a speed benchmark on this would not be fair as well.

With that out of the way, the Transcend StoreJet 25M3 is really a reliable portable storage device. As I’ve mentioned, I’ve had this for a couple of years now and it’s working fine without any hiccups. I love the fact that I can have the confidence to rely on this hard drive for my most important files. I also don’t have to be super careful with handling it during traveling and stuff like that because I know it’s durable enough to withstand a couple of bumps here and there.

A quick disclaimer though as the hard drive inside is a mechanical hard drive. It has moving parts on it that is subject for its own wear and tear. With that being said, this being shockproof can’t save it from being faulty at some point in the future. So there’s that.

With this being a military grade shockproof hard drive, I think this device is a good value for money. So much that I also got another Transcend StoreJet shockproof hard drive in the form of its brother, the Transcend StoreJet 25H3 which boasts a more rugged look.

CHECK OUT THE TRANSCEND STOREJET 25H3!

I would like to thank Sir Jullian of UtterlyRandomTechie.com for allowing me to share this article with you guys and I highly suggest you also check out my review and teardown of the Transcend Storejet 25H3 on my blog to learn more about the 25H3 and how it compares to the 25M3.