The days of the phonograph and typewriters have come and gone. VHS tapes are passé and cassette tapes are outmoded. Today is the time of computers. However, computerized media storage is yet to be perfected. Making back-ups of media files is something many are practicing since your computer might suddenly decide to crash or else a virus might destroy all your files

At the moment, there are many types of storage media devices for backing up files that are available in the market. Each type of media storage device has its own benefits and limitations.

Floppy disks come in all sizes. For a time, they were the most popular storage media devices that are available. Diskettes were widely-used for backing-up files. However, a single floppy disk can only store a maximum of 200MB. This is definitely not enough when you want to make back-ups of all the media files in your computer. Another problem with floppy disks is their vulnerability. These media storage devices are very sensitive to dust, condensation and extreme temperatures. A slight contact with magnetic fields can also wipe out the entire contents of a floppy disk. There are also not a lot of personal computers now that have floppy disk drives because they are not popularly used anymore.

Compact disks are a type of optical disk. These media storage devices are currently widely-used for backing up files. Compact disks can store back-up text document, photo, audio, or video files. What is great about compact disks is the fact that there are recordable CDs and rewritable CDs. Recordable CDs can only be used once, meaning media files stored in this device cannot be altered or deleted after the files are burned. On the other hand, media files stores in rewritable CDs can be altered and deleted, and new files can be stored. The normal CD can store up to 700MB worth of media files.

External hard drives can also be considered as a storage media device. There are many people who use external hard drives for backing up files from their computers. The difference between external hard drives and fixed hard drives is that a user can disconnect his external hard drive easily from his computer and attach it to another. This kind of media storage device is beneficial because you can back-up a lot of media files using this. You can store 20GB, 30GB, 40GB, 60GB or more worth of media files using this storage media device.

Universal Serial Bus or USB devices are also great storage media devices for backing up files. What's great about this kind of media storage device is that you need not press the eject button in any computer drive. All you need to do is to plug your USB to your computer's USB port and you can store back-up files instantly. Another great feature of the USB is its portability. A typical USB is about two to three inches long and weighs less than a pen. Using this media storage device, you can access, store and back-up your media files in a flash.