You can grab the WD My Book 18TB external desktop drive for only $280.50, saving you almost $260. Note that you will have to send a storage drive (SSD, HDD, internal or external, working or dead, it doesn't matter). Scroll to the end of the article to know how the recycling process works and how to grab 15% off. If you decide not to follow that route you will pay the normal price of $330 which is still a $210 discount off the retail price. It is one of the best storage deals we've seen in 2022.
So let's crunch some numbers. $280.50 (including free shipping and a 4-year warranty instead of three for a limited time) equals $15.58 per TB. It's not as cheap as our best cloud storage provider - IDrive charges $3.98 for 10TB - but at least with a local storage backup, you can move huge amounts of data around quickly.
If that wasn't good enough, this drive is even cheaper than any internal hard disk drive that WD has. In fact it is likely that WD uses a more expensive internal drive (most likely the WD Red Pro NAS Drive) which costs a whopping $420 by themselves.
No surprise therefore that some clever clogs have resorted to breaking open these external hard drives and removed the storage device inside for other uses. The WD Book 18TB has a USB 3.2 Gen 1 connection, which isn't the fastest but still faster than most broadband connection. As always though, do remember to follow the 3-2-1 rule for file backups. 3 copies, 2 storage types, 1 copy offsite.
Outside the US? Check out today's best W My book deals in your region down below.
18TB storage at cheapest ever price
WD 15% discount trick
A little-known scheme from Western Digital allows you to save up to 15% off your next purchase from the company’s online store (provided you spend $50 or more).
In a nutshell, send over an old external or internal SSD or hard disk drive for recycling (doesn’t matter if it is in working order) and you'll get a coupon code via email in return.
The entire process takes about two weeks and is described in further detail on this page. If you are willing to jump through the hoops, you can grab yourself an amazing bargain - just make sure you read all the T&Cs.
