There's nothing more terrifying than losing data, namely footage of a film you painstakingly shot. (I'm a survivor myself -- I lost half of a film once.) This is why we take protective measures to ensure this doesn't happen to us. However, the process of backing up your data to the cloud is a long one, and if you're trying to move a lot of it in a short amount of time, Amazon might have something that can help.
It's called Snowball, and it quickly, inexpensively, and securely transfers large amounts of data into and out of AWS. It's big, rugged, and ugly as hell, but it's tamper and weather-resistant, stores up to 50TB, and can withstand a 6 G jolt.
Here's what Amazon had to say about their storage device on their blog:
The new Snowball appliance is purpose-built for efficient data storage and transfer. It is rugged enough to withstand a 6 G jolt, and (at 50 lbs) light enough for one person to carry. It is entirely self-contained, with 110 Volt power and a 10 GB network connection on the back and an E Ink display/control panel on the front. It is weather-resistant and serves as its own shipping container; it can go from your mail room to your data center and back again with no packing or unpacking hassle to slow things down. In addition to being physically rugged and tamper-resistant, AWS Snowball detects tampering attempts.
So, how does this thing work? Basically, you rent a Snowball from Amazon for $200 (they don't make them available to purchase), load it up with your data, then send it back to them to be ingested. (All that back and forth -- now you understand why Amazon chose functionality over aesthetics.) The Snowball is even its own shipping container -- no need for packaging. In fact, you can literally just hand it over to whichever shipping service you're using. The ingestion takes no more than a day. (Yeah -- a day.)
Professionals from all types of industries will find this thing useful, but filmmakers will especially appreciate being able to back up -- essentially their entire film -- in a single day. And for a reasonable price.
I grew up in a Trekkie household, and my parents loved watching all the shows and the movies. I think part of that is that the show and movies came out in their formative years and then stayed with them and always had something new for them as well.
That's what great franchises do, they grow with the fans and stay relevant in their lives.
So today, I wanted to go over the chronological order of Star Trek movies, so we can see how they shaped generations.
Let's dive in.
The 'Star Trek' Movies in Chronological Order
Before we dig into all the titles, here's a cheat sheet for you to see all the movies in chronological order.
Star Trek: The Motion Picture
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan
Star Trek III: The Search for Spock
Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home
Star Trek V: The Final Frontier
Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country
Star Trek: Generations
Star Trek: First Contact
Star Trek: Insurrection
Star Trek: Nemesis
Star Trek
Star Trek Into Darkness
Star Trek Beyond
Star Trek: Section 31 (2025)
1. 'Star Trek: The Motion Picture' (1979)
Plot: A mysterious object is on a path of destruction towards Earth. Admiral Kirk retakes command of the newly refitted USS Enterprise to intercept it and learn its origins.
Cast: William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, Nichelle Nichols, George Takei, Walter Koenig, James Doohan
Director: Robert Wise
2. 'Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan' (1982)
Plot: Khan, a genetically engineered superhuman from Kirk's past, seeks revenge after being marooned for years. He steals a powerful device called Genesis and targets Kirk and the Enterprise.
Cast: William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, Nichelle Nichols, George Takei, Walter Koenig, James Doohan, Ricardo Montalban
Director: Nicholas Meyer
3. 'Star Trek III: The Search for Spock' (1984)
Plot: Following Spock's death in the previous film, Kirk and his crew defy Starfleet orders to recover Spock's body and return it to his home planet Vulcan, where his soul may be reunited with his body.
Cast: William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, Nichelle Nichols, George Takei, Walter Koenig, James Doohan, Christopher Lloyd
Director: Leonard Nimoy
4. 'Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home' (1986)
Plot: To save Earth from an alien probe that is disrupting the planet's atmosphere, Kirk and his crew travel back in time to 1986 San Francisco to retrieve humpback whales, the only creatures who can communicate with the probe.
Cast: William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, Nichelle Nichols, George Takei, Walter Koenig, James Doohan, Catherine Hicks
Director: Leonard Nimoy
5. 'Star Trek V: The Final Frontier' (1989)
Plot: A crazy Vulcan, Spock's half brother, threatens the stability of the galaxy.
Cast: William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, Nichelle Nichols, George Takei, Walter Koenig, James Doohan, Laurence Luckinbill
Director: William Shatner
6. 'Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country' (1991)
Plot: Kirk and the Enterprise crew are tasked with escorting a Klingon delegation to Earth for peace talks, but a conspiracy threatens to derail the negotiations and ignite war between the Federation and the Klingon Empire.
Cast: William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, Nichelle Nichols, George Takei, Walter Koenig, James Doohan, Christopher Plummer
Director: Nicholas Meyer
7. 'Star Trek: Generations' (1994)
Plot: Captains Picard and Kirk meet in a timeless realm called the Nexus, where they must stop a villain who wants to enter the Nexus and alter history.
Cast: Patrick Stewart, William Shatner, Jonathan Frakes, Brent Spiner, LeVar Burton, Michael Dorn, Gates McFadden, Marina Sirtis, Malcolm McDowell
Director: David Carson
8. 'Star Trek: First Contact' (1996)
Plot: The Borg launch a devastating attack on Earth. Captain Picard and the Enterprise-E must travel back in time to prevent the Borg from altering history and conquering Earth.
Cast: Patrick Stewart, Jonathan Frakes, Brent Spiner, LeVar Burton, Michael Dorn, Gates McFadden, Marina Sirtis, Alfre Woodard, James Cromwell
Director: Jonathan Frakes
9. 'Star Trek: Insurrection' (1998)
Plot: Picard and the Enterprise crew uncover a conspiracy involving Starfleet and a race called the Son'a who want to exploit a planet with unique properties that can reverse aging.
Cast: Patrick Stewart, Jonathan Frakes, Brent Spiner, LeVar Burton, Michael Dorn, Gates McFadden, Marina Sirtis, F. Murray Abraham, Donna Murphy
Director: Jonathan Frakes
10. 'Star Trek: Nemesis' (2002)
Plot: The Enterprise crew faces a new threat in the form of a clone of Captain Picard, who leads the Romulan Star Empire in a plot to destroy the Federation.
Cast: Patrick Stewart, Jonathan Frakes, Brent Spiner, LeVar Burton, Michael Dorn, Gates McFadden, Marina Sirtis, Tom Hardy
Director: Stuart Baird
11. 'Star Trek' (2009)
Plot: This reboot introduces a new timeline and younger versions of the original series characters. Kirk and Spock must work together to stop a Romulan from the future who is seeking revenge and threatening to destroy Vulcan.
Cast: Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Karl Urban, Zoe Saldana, Anton Yelchin, Simon Pegg, John Cho, Eric Bana, Leonard Nimoy
Director: J.J. Abrams
12. 'Star Trek Into Darkness' (2013)
Plot: Kirk and the Enterprise crew face a mysterious and powerful terrorist named John Harrison, who has a personal vendetta against Starfleet.
Cast: Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Karl Urban, Zoe Saldana, Anton Yelchin, Simon Pegg, John Cho, Benedict Cumberbatch
Director: J.J. Abrams
13. 'Star Trek Beyond' (2016)
Plot: Stranded on a hostile planet after a surprise attack, Kirk, Spock, and the Enterprise crew must face a new alien enemy and find a way to escape.
Cast: Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Karl Urban, Zoe Saldana, Anton Yelchin, Simon Pegg, John Cho, Idris Elba, Sofia Boutella
Director: Justin Lin
14. 'Star Trek: Section 31' (2025)
Plot: Former Emperor Philippa Georgiou, from the Mirror Universe, joins Section 31, a clandestine organization within Starfleet that operates in the shadows to protect the Federation. She'll be forced to confront her past actions while undertaking a new mission.
Cast: Michelle Yeoh (reprising her role as Philippa Georgiou), along with some new faces like Kacey Rohl, and Humberly González.
Director: Olatunde Osunsanmi
Summing Up
What are your favorite Star Trek movies, and did you grow up watching them in order? For me, my favorites are probably First Contact and The Voyage Home, but I'm open to hearing other opinions.
