ADATA DashDrive Air AE800

In the last couple of months, we’ve examined  a number of ADATA’s external hard drives.
The DashDrive Air AE800 is a 500GB  external hard drive and much more. Nearby  Wi-Fi devices can wirelessly access files on  the AE800, effectively making it a portable  server that can stream video, audio, images,  and documents to Android, iOS, Linux, and  Windows devices. It can also function as a  power bank for your mobile devices, thanks  to its 5,200mAh battery and USB port. Lastly,  the AE800 works as a Wi-Fi hotspot. This  feature is ideal for sharing connectivity at any  establishment that charges for Internet service  on a per device basis.

The most interesting feature of the AE800  is its ability to wirelessly stream and share files This is especially useful when you consider  how an extra 500GB of capacity could be  used to supplement the local storage available  to your Android or iOS devices. This way,  you’re able to travel with large digital media  collections and reduce the reliance on cloud  services for media and remote file access.
Even better, you’ll have reliable access to the  files stored on the AE800, ideal for locations  where you can’t depend on Wi-Fi access or  cellular connectivity.
With video, the AE800 supports up to  1080p streaming for as many as three users  and 720p for a maximum of five users. File  support varies by mobile OS, but in general,  both the Android and iOS apps (download  the DashDrive Air Elite app) support the most popular formats with photo, video, music, and  document formats. For instance, the M4A,  MP3, and WAV audio formats are supported  for both iOS and Android. The AE800  supports 802.11/b/g/n and can deliver data at  up to 300Mbps. PCs can wirelessly access the  AE800 by joining the external drive’s wireless  network. When plugged into a PC (using the  included Micro-USB to USB cable), you’ll be  able to access files via the external hard drive’s  USB 3.0 port.
The AE800’s power bank function is  simple to use. Just plug your USB-powered  device into the unit’s standard USB port.
ADATA indicates that the Li-Polymer battery  should provide two full charges for most  smartphones. You can’t, however, use the  power bank and wireless transfer capabilities  at the same time.
When functioning as a wireless hotspot, the  AE800 can share an Internet connection with  up to eight devices. You can secure the AE800  with a WPA or WPA2 password to protect  against unauthorized access.
We tested the DashDrive Air using  SiSoftware Sandra 2014 Lite’s storage tests.
We connected the external hard drive to our  motherboard’s USB 3.0 port. In the Physical  Disk test, the portable hard drive produced  a read speed of 89.65MBps second, and we  saw a random access time of 13.57ms. We  also ran the File System I/O benchmark,  which tests the drive for transfer speeds with  different file sizes. In the 64KB files test, we  saw a read performance of 26.34MBps and  a write performance of 28.15MBps. Moving  up to the 16MB files test, the AE800  produced a read speed of 62.79MBps and a  write speed of 64.12MBps.
If you’re a traveler and need an easy way  to share data and/or recharge your mobile  devices, the DashDrive Air AE800 is a good  investment. The wireless hotspot capability  could also save you some money if a hotel  charges you for every device you connect  to the Internet. What more could you want  from an external hard drive?