Customer reviews from Western Digital
Western Digital - WD Elements 8TB USB 3.0 Desktop External Hard Drive WDBWLG0080HBK-NESN - Black
Average customer rating
3.9
(21 Reviews)
Rating breakdown 21 reviews
5 Stars
12
4 Stars
2
3 Stars
3
2 Stars
0
1 Star
4
56%of customers recommend this product.
(
5 out of
9)
Customer Reviews for Western Digital - WD Elements 8TB USB 3.0 Desktop External Hard Drive WDBWLG0080HBK-NESN - Black
Posted by: Ruben T
Verified Purchase:Yes
The drive is nice for the price and meets my needs but transfer speeds are slow. Info states that using usb 3.0 transfer speeds up to 5GB/s are possible. I am not getting anywhere near those speeds. I have a Dell XPS 15 9500 with 32GB of RAM and two SSDs with a total of 3TB of memory. My 1TB ssd is dedicated to the operating system and the 2TB ssd is for everything else. My thunderport USB-C ports are supposed to be capable of up to 10 GB/s transfer. Since the element didn't come with a usb-c cable I had to buy one. The cable I bought is rated the same as the Elements at 5 gb/s. When transfering files from a sandisk extreme pro sdxc card I am only getting 85 mb/s. When transfering directly from my internal ssd or an external sandisk extreme ssd I get transfer speeds of 200 mb/s.
Written by a customer while visiting Western Digital
Customer Rating
1
Waste of money
on June 22, 2025
Posted by: matthasapoopywddrive
Unit died just after one year. Drive fails to recognize any devices.
No, I would not recommend this to a friend.
Response from Western DigitalBy SM OLS Team, July 31, 2025
Hi, We apologize for the inconvenience caused to you. We recommend that you try connecting the drive to another computer using a different cable and USB ports. If drive creates same issue with another computer then open a ticket with the error screenshots if any at https://support-en.wd.com/app/askweb our technical team will contact you as soon as possible and resolve your issue.
Written by a customer while visiting Western Digital
Customer Rating
1
WD Elements 8tb DO NOT BUY. STAY AWAY!
on September 29, 2023
Posted by: jimmy2cans
This drive is cheap. Do not rely on it. Suddenly it does not show up on my 2022 mac OS 13.2.1 I've lost some critical data and boy am I sorry I went cheap. What a mistake. DO NOT BUY THIS DRIVE!!!!!
No, I would not recommend this to a friend.
Response from Western DigitalBy SM OLS, SM OLS, October 4, 2023
Hello,
We are sorry to hear about your user experience with WD Elements Desktop Drive and appreciate your time providing this review and bringing this matter to our attention.
We do apologize if you are having any issues with your drive. We would recommend reaching out to our Technical Support team, as we would be glad to assist you with any troubleshooting options or possible warranty that the drive may have.
We would request you to open a support ticket with brief query and possible errors screenshots. Please refer to the link mentioned:https://support-en.wd.com/app/ask/session/
All our products must pass our stringent quality standards before leaving our factory to be free from defects in materials and craftsmanship. We stand behind our products throughout the device's factory warranty period. You can contact us directly via phone to address any questions or concerns to ensure good overall user experience.
Need Help? Please see our "'Contact Us" page for information.
We are sorry to hear about your user experience with WD Elements Desktop Drive and appreciate your time providing this review and bringing this matter to our attention.
We do apologize if you are having any issues with your drive. We would recommend reaching out to our Technical Support team, as we would be glad to assist you with any troubleshooting options or possible warranty that the drive may have.
We would request you to open a support ticket with brief query and possible errors screenshots. Please refer to the link mentioned:https://support-en.wd.com/app/ask/session/
All our products must pass our stringent quality standards before leaving our factory to be free from defects in materials and craftsmanship. We stand behind our products throughout the device's factory warranty period. You can contact us directly via phone to address any questions or concerns to ensure good overall user experience.
Need Help? Please see our "'Contact Us" page for information.
Written by a customer while visiting Western Digital
Posted by: MssW
Verified Purchase:Yes
Device was very easy to use. The price was very good for the number of TB.
I would recommend this to a friend!
Written by a customer while visiting Western Digital
Customer Rating
1
Constantly SLEEPS! Takes FOREVER to "wake up!"
on June 24, 2021
Posted by: BWX232
Goes to SLEEP constantly and then any time you need to reboot PC, it has to SLOWLY wake up, which takes about 20 seconds, then PC will reboot, but then it instantly GOES TO SLEEP again before computer reboots! Then you wait another 20 seconds for drive to SLOWLY spin up and wake up, then windows will boot finally. Without drive hooked up my PC will reboot in about 10 seconds because I have a fast SSD boot drive. It also does this all the time while I am using the PC. Go to move files to this USB drive and it takes it's sweet time to wake up. Go to use a toolbar on the taskbar, windows waits till this ridiculous drive to "wake up" before it will open the toolbar. It's absolutely ridiculous and there's no way I have found to fix it. I bought a 6TB version for me Mom's PC and that doesn't happen with that drive so it's not all of these drives, but this 8TB is slow and useless. It's like I have a new PC when i disconnect this slow parasite USB drive. The actual transfer speed is fine, it's hooked up to USB 3. The thing just constantly sleeps and takes forever to spin up.
Response from Western DigitalBy SM OLS Team, July 13, 2021
Hi BWX232,
We are sorry to hear about your experience with WD Elements Desktop drive and appreciate your time providing this review and bringing this matter to our attention.
Please be informed that if an external drive is disconnecting repeatedly or if it's going to sleep then the possible reason for the same could be the inadequate power supply. Please make sure that the power adapter is connected directly to a wall socket and not to any power extension. If the issue still persists, then we would recommend to try and change the power adapter of your WD Elements Desktop drive.
The best practice is to run the extended test on the drive using Data Lifeguard Diagnostics for Windows or First Aid using Disk Utility on a Mac computer when a drive does not perform as expected or is behaving abnormally. Please refer to the WD support page and follow the instructions to perform an extended test using Data Lifeguard Diagnostics or First Aid using Disk Utility on Mac.
"Testing a drive for problems using Data Lifeguard Diagnostics for Windows":
Search for knowledge base article: 6226
"How to test a drive for defects or problems on a Mac":
Search for knowledge base article: 14800
If the test result is inconclusive or failed, you can create an RMA through the WD support website and replace the drive, if it is under warranty.
"How to Get an RMA to Replace a Defective Product, Obtain a Power Supply, or USB Cable for a WD Product":
Search for knowledge base article: 10336
We would like to work with you directly to help discover the root cause of the drive's abnormal behavior. This way, we can provide the best possible resolution and improve your experience with Western Digital. Please contact us via the phone provided below. We'd be happy to help.
Need Help? Please see our "'Contact Us" page for information
We are sorry to hear about your experience with WD Elements Desktop drive and appreciate your time providing this review and bringing this matter to our attention.
Please be informed that if an external drive is disconnecting repeatedly or if it's going to sleep then the possible reason for the same could be the inadequate power supply. Please make sure that the power adapter is connected directly to a wall socket and not to any power extension. If the issue still persists, then we would recommend to try and change the power adapter of your WD Elements Desktop drive.
The best practice is to run the extended test on the drive using Data Lifeguard Diagnostics for Windows or First Aid using Disk Utility on a Mac computer when a drive does not perform as expected or is behaving abnormally. Please refer to the WD support page and follow the instructions to perform an extended test using Data Lifeguard Diagnostics or First Aid using Disk Utility on Mac.
"Testing a drive for problems using Data Lifeguard Diagnostics for Windows":
Search for knowledge base article: 6226
"How to test a drive for defects or problems on a Mac":
Search for knowledge base article: 14800
If the test result is inconclusive or failed, you can create an RMA through the WD support website and replace the drive, if it is under warranty.
"How to Get an RMA to Replace a Defective Product, Obtain a Power Supply, or USB Cable for a WD Product":
Search for knowledge base article: 10336
We would like to work with you directly to help discover the root cause of the drive's abnormal behavior. This way, we can provide the best possible resolution and improve your experience with Western Digital. Please contact us via the phone provided below. We'd be happy to help.
Need Help? Please see our "'Contact Us" page for information
Written by a customer while visiting Western Digital
Posted by: Roger
Verified Purchase:Yes
Very Happy with this unit. It was to replace a failing External drivethat was significantly smaller in memory, but the same physical size. Price Point was excellent, and perfrmance is pleasing!
Written by a customer while visiting Western Digital
Posted by: Rui X.
Verified Purchase:Yes
High disk temperature and noise level than older models with 8TB helium drives inside
Response from Western DigitalBy SM OLS Team, July 22, 2021
Hi Rui X.,
We are sorry to hear about your experience with WD Elements Desktop Hard Drive and appreciate your time providing this review and bringing this matter to our attention.
Please know that the external drive makes noise during normal drive operation. The type and volume of noise are dependent on whether the is drive performing a read/write operation or idle with the heads parked. The environment where the drive is functioning may also influence noise. It is important to recognize which noises indicate trouble or normal drive operation. If the drive is not getting an uninterrupted power supply from the computer then it could cause the drive to make noise. Please refer to the WD support page to know more.
"How To Tell If The Noise or Sound An Internal Drive Makes is Normal":
Search for knowledge base article: 16309
"A Western Digital hard drive makes a repeated clicking noise every 5 seconds":
Search for knowledge base article: 14842
The best practice is to run diagnostics with WD Drive Utilities when a drive does not perform as expected or is behaving abnormally. We recommend avoiding USB hubs for external hard drives and therefore connect the drive directly to a USB 3.0 port on the computer. Please refer to the WD support page to know more.
"Setting up and using WD Security and WD Drive Utilities":
Search for knowledge base article:13880
We would like to follow up with you to help discover the root cause of your drive’s abnormal behavior. We suggest you contact our Support team by phone to ensure an overall good experience with Western Digital. We'd be happy to help.
Need Help? Please see our "'Contact Us" page for information
We are sorry to hear about your experience with WD Elements Desktop Hard Drive and appreciate your time providing this review and bringing this matter to our attention.
Please know that the external drive makes noise during normal drive operation. The type and volume of noise are dependent on whether the is drive performing a read/write operation or idle with the heads parked. The environment where the drive is functioning may also influence noise. It is important to recognize which noises indicate trouble or normal drive operation. If the drive is not getting an uninterrupted power supply from the computer then it could cause the drive to make noise. Please refer to the WD support page to know more.
"How To Tell If The Noise or Sound An Internal Drive Makes is Normal":
Search for knowledge base article: 16309
"A Western Digital hard drive makes a repeated clicking noise every 5 seconds":
Search for knowledge base article: 14842
The best practice is to run diagnostics with WD Drive Utilities when a drive does not perform as expected or is behaving abnormally. We recommend avoiding USB hubs for external hard drives and therefore connect the drive directly to a USB 3.0 port on the computer. Please refer to the WD support page to know more.
"Setting up and using WD Security and WD Drive Utilities":
Search for knowledge base article:13880
We would like to follow up with you to help discover the root cause of your drive’s abnormal behavior. We suggest you contact our Support team by phone to ensure an overall good experience with Western Digital. We'd be happy to help.
Need Help? Please see our "'Contact Us" page for information
Written by a customer while visiting Western Digital
Posted by: ehuelga
Verified Purchase:Yes
Quiet, easy setup (macOS user), but crushingly slow. Moving 4TB took almost 24 hours.
Response from Western DigitalBy SM OLS, October 21, 2022
Hello,
We regret to learn that your WD Elements Desktop Hard Drive is not performing as expected.
Slow performance can be caused due to several factors like computer configuration, multiple applications running on the computer while trying to access or backup the data, fragmented disk which may also result in slow computer disk read capability, the total amount of data on a disk and the relative size of each file, encrypted backup or scanning of each file by anti-virus installed in the computer or USB port of the computer with which the drive is connected etc.
Stopping applications and software that use CPU and memory, keeping all the files in a single directory instead spreading them in multiple directories, connecting the drive directly to the USB 3.0 port of the computer and avoiding the USB hub while using the drive, etc. are the recommended steps to enhance the performance of the drive.
As a troubleshooting step, please ensure that the Hard Drive is connected directly on the USB 3.0 port of the computer and the files which you are attempting to copy are not in use by any other program of the computer.
Furthermore, you can also refer to the link suggested below and check for the Theoretical USB Interface Speeds to find out the theoretical speed given by different USB port types.
"Theoretical USB Interface Speeds":
https://support-en.wd.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/5043
All our products must pass our stringent quality standards before leaving our factory to be free from defects in materials and craftsmanship. We stand behind our products throughout the device's factory warranty period. Please contact us via the phone with reference to the review to ensure an overall good experience with Western Digital.
Need Help? Please see our "'Contact Us" page for information.
We regret to learn that your WD Elements Desktop Hard Drive is not performing as expected.
Slow performance can be caused due to several factors like computer configuration, multiple applications running on the computer while trying to access or backup the data, fragmented disk which may also result in slow computer disk read capability, the total amount of data on a disk and the relative size of each file, encrypted backup or scanning of each file by anti-virus installed in the computer or USB port of the computer with which the drive is connected etc.
Stopping applications and software that use CPU and memory, keeping all the files in a single directory instead spreading them in multiple directories, connecting the drive directly to the USB 3.0 port of the computer and avoiding the USB hub while using the drive, etc. are the recommended steps to enhance the performance of the drive.
As a troubleshooting step, please ensure that the Hard Drive is connected directly on the USB 3.0 port of the computer and the files which you are attempting to copy are not in use by any other program of the computer.
Furthermore, you can also refer to the link suggested below and check for the Theoretical USB Interface Speeds to find out the theoretical speed given by different USB port types.
"Theoretical USB Interface Speeds":
https://support-en.wd.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/5043
All our products must pass our stringent quality standards before leaving our factory to be free from defects in materials and craftsmanship. We stand behind our products throughout the device's factory warranty period. Please contact us via the phone with reference to the review to ensure an overall good experience with Western Digital.
Need Help? Please see our "'Contact Us" page for information.
Written by a customer while visiting Western Digital