Lacie Rikki USB 3.0 review

LaCie’s Rikiki portable hard disks are very sleek, with tiny proportions and solid aluminium construction. This latest external hard drive continues the design trend, but also supports USB3 for faster file transfers.

Over USB3, the Rikiki performed very well in our demanding file-transfer tests. Large files were written at a fast 78.2MB/s and read at an even faster 83.2MB/s. Smaller files were slower, but 47.1MB/s writes and 44.19MB/s reads are still higher than even the fastest USB2 models. For a 5,400RPM disk, these are very impressive speeds.

LaCie has included the very useful Genie backup assistant software for protecting your documents. You can schedule whole system backups, or update your most important files more regularly through the friendly interface. Like most bundled backup programs, you need the software to restore your files. The Rikiki also comes with 10GB of free online storage, which is a useful addition.

The Rikiki USB 3.0 isnt much more expensive than a USB disk, yet has double the performance. The bundled software suite makes the £69 price even more attractive. At just 13p per gigabyte, the Rikiki is remarkably good value. It’s a Best Buy.