Suggestions for an external hard drive?

2008-11-26 18:48:34

#1

Home: Section.80; +447|7113|Seattle, Washington, USA

I'm looking to ask for an external hard drive for Christmas, because I'm just about out of space on my internal one. I'm trying to pick out a specific one myself (from Newegg) rather than leave it up to chance. I don't really know what to look for though. I want one that has >100GB, and preferably under about $140 MAX (less than that would be nice). I've been looking at HDs like this one and this one, but I've read about problems with external HDs overheating after several hours of use (which is a problem, since I would probably be putting all of media files on there) and slowing down the computer during use.

Any suggestions? Thanks for tips in advance.

2008-11-26 18:50:09

#2

Gooners: Wiki Contributor; +2,700|6898

Mmm, I finally filled my 320 GB, and I need one too.

Maybe look at the Seagate Freeagent, because it has an esata port
that what i had in the 320GB and i love it, cept it gets a little hot

2008-11-26 18:53:16

#3

AussieReaper: ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°); +5,761|6419|what

The problems with over heating would only come about if you decided to transfer a whole 100gb at once of data and don't pause every so often to let it cool down. It's almost winter where you are anyway so probable cold at the moment? Just make sure it's in a cool place and don't over use it.

As for normal use watching your movies, etc it shouldn't over heat in normal circumstances at all.

2008-11-26 19:06:59

#4

OxenBreeder: Member; +46|6031|KTRI

I bought a Seagate 500gb external from Office Max about 2 months ago for 89.99. Don't know if you have an Office Max or Office Depot, Circuit City or Best Buy near you, but externals are cheap nowadays.

It's a Free Agent desktop, don't recall the exact specs on it though ( model #, rpm, etc.)

I've been quiet happy with it so far, plus you can't beat Seagates 5 year warranty.

Last edited by OxenBreeder (2008-11-26 19:09:44)

2008-11-26 19:12:08

#5

Cheez: Herman is a warmaphrodite; +1,027|6704|King Of The Islands

750GB Samsung + eSATA case.

My state was founded by Batman. Your opinion is invalid.

2008-11-26 19:13:32

#6

Gooners: Wiki Contributor; +2,700|6898

Cheez wrote:
750GB Samsung + eSATA case.

Preferably under 140 dollars. It's not really practical in terms of portability, because u need the Enclosure + Drive.

2008-11-26 19:15:14

#7

Miggle: FUCK UBISOFT; +1,411|7008|FUCK UBISOFT

I have a WD My Passport 320gb and I love it.

2008-11-26 19:17:16

#8

jaymz9350: Member; +54|6843

well first off do you want a 2.5" drive like the ones you posted or a 3.5" drive. You will get more space for your dollar with a 3.5" drive.

For the same price as those 2 you could get this 640 drive http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a … 6822136295

or there are others in your price range up to about 750 gig also.

Last edited by jaymz9350 (2008-11-26 19:18:10)

2008-11-26 19:18:57

#9

Gooners: Wiki Contributor; +2,700|6898

jaymz9350 wrote:
well first off do you want a 2.5" drive like the ones you posted or a 3.5" drive. You will get more space for your dollar with a 3.5" drive.

For the same price as those 2 you could get this 640 drive http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a … 6822136295

or there are others in your price range up to about 750 gig also.

Wow Good Deal

2008-11-26 19:28:58

#10

Gooners: Wiki Contributor; +2,700|6898

Also Make sure you look at the Seagate FreeAgent Pro, not just the freeagent, because the pro comes with an esata port which is

2008-11-26 19:31:37

#11

Uzique: dasein.; +2,865|6736

I have 2x 500Gb Western Digital MyBooks (with Firewire/eSata, not only USB)- they're pretty nicely priced and come in a huge range of sizes.

I also run a WD Blue 500Gb SATA drive in an eSata enclosure (IcyBox) but as already stated, it's not really a cost-effective option- more performance based.

No complaints about the hard-drives overheating / slowing down the computer during use. Connect via Firewire/eSata for best performance, and make sure your power management options are set-up properly to stop the drive from going into a power-saving state whilst inactive. They're great solutions for storing your media in a portable and separate space to your Master internal drive.

_{libertarian benefit collector - anti-academic super-intellectual}. _{http://mixlr.com/the-little-phrase/}

2008-11-26 19:32:31

#12

Winston_Churchill: Bazinga!; +521|7005|Toronto | Canada

Miggle wrote:
I have a WD My Passport 320gb and I love it.

Same, its almost full though - I need a new one soon

2008-11-26 19:37:02

#13

Cheez: Herman is a warmaphrodite; +1,027|6704|King Of The Islands

Gooners wrote:
Cheez wrote:
750GB Samsung + eSATA case.
Preferably under 140 dollars. It's not really practical in terms of portability, because u need the Enclosure + Drive.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a … 6822152100
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a … 6817145167
$113.98

/has

because u need the Enclosure + Drive.

You put the drive in the enclosure

My state was founded by Batman. Your opinion is invalid.

2008-11-26 21:03:22

#14

Freezer7Pro: I don't come here a lot anymore.; +1,447|6463|Winland

Get a passport, they're awesome. AWESOME.

The idea of any hi-fi system is to reproduce the source material as faithfully as possible, and to deliberately add distortion to everything you hear (due to amplifier deficiencies) because it sounds 'nice' is simply not high fidelity. If that is what you want to hear then there is no problem with that, but by adding so much additional material (by way of harmonics and intermodulation) you have a tailored sound system, not a hi-fi. - Rod Elliot, ESP

2008-11-26 22:12:17

#15

Home: Section.80; +447|7113|Seattle, Washington, USA

Gooners wrote:
jaymz9350 wrote:
well first off do you want a 2.5" drive like the ones you posted or a 3.5" drive. You will get more space for your dollar with a 3.5" drive.

For the same price as those 2 you could get this 640 drive http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a … 6822136295

or there are others in your price range up to about 750 gig also.
Wow Good Deal :/

Size is pretty much a non-issue. Gooners, I can't tell with the :/ , are you being sarcastic or is that really a good deal? Looks good to me but obviously I don't know much about these.

Thanks for the tips to everyone else too, I'm actually thinking so far I'll go with the link jaymz posted. Also, no eSata, from what I can tell no e/SATA ports in the ol' lappy, so USB is preferable.

2008-11-26 22:13:51

#16

Uzique: dasein.; +2,865|6736

Home wrote:
Gooners wrote:
jaymz9350 wrote:
well first off do you want a 2.5" drive like the ones you posted or a 3.5" drive. You will get more space for your dollar with a 3.5" drive.

For the same price as those 2 you could get this 640 drive http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a … 6822136295

or there are others in your price range up to about 750 gig also.
Wow Good Deal
Size is pretty much a non-issue. Gooners, I can't tell with the , are you being sarcastic or is that really a good deal? Looks good to me but obviously I don't know much about these.

Thanks for the tips to everyone else too, I'm actually thinking so far I'll go with the link jaymz posted. Also, no eSata, from what I can tell no e/SATA ports in the ol' lappy, so USB is preferable.

FireWire? Another (better) alternative to USB. Also strange that your laptop doesn't have an eSata! Almost an essential considering the low-capacity of most stock-laptop hard-drives!

Last edited by Uzique (2008-11-26 22:14:11)

_{libertarian benefit collector - anti-academic super-intellectual}. _{http://mixlr.com/the-little-phrase/}

2008-11-26 22:22:11

#17

Home: Section.80; +447|7113|Seattle, Washington, USA

Uzique wrote:
Home wrote:
Gooners wrote:

Wow Good Deal
Size is pretty much a non-issue. Gooners, I can't tell with the , are you being sarcastic or is that really a good deal? Looks good to me but obviously I don't know much about these.

Thanks for the tips to everyone else too, I'm actually thinking so far I'll go with the link jaymz posted. Also, no eSata, from what I can tell no e/SATA ports in the ol' lappy, so USB is preferable.
FireWire? Another (better) alternative to USB. Also strange that your laptop doesn't have an eSata! Almost an essential considering the low-capacity of most stock-laptop hard-drives!

I could be wrong, but it doesn't look like I have either an eSata or a firewire port. Is there something wrong with using USB, or is it just better to use eSata or firewire?

2008-11-26 22:32:45

#18

Uzique: dasein.; +2,865|6736

USB doesn't transfer data as fast as eSata or Firewire, quite simply. Plus there are just some practical considerations... almost every peripheral and external device is USB-interfaced as it is, you may as well try and make use of available fast-transfer speeds when connecting 500Gb of data to your machine! Generally speaking external-drives with eSata/Firewire cost a fraction-more than their USB-only versions- but it's worth it if you're going to be frequently backing up large chunks of media.

Edit: You "could be wrong"? The eSata port is a thinnish rectangular port, I don't know if you have one easily available but take a look at a desktop PC motherboard- they normally always come with 1-2 by default. As another small help (?), the standard colour code for eSata ports is red- if your laptop/desktop has a colour-coded set-up .

Last edited by Uzique (2008-11-26 22:34:28)

_{libertarian benefit collector - anti-academic super-intellectual}. _{http://mixlr.com/the-little-phrase/}

2008-11-26 22:33:16

#19

Freezer7Pro: I don't come here a lot anymore.; +1,447|6463|Winland

Uzique wrote:
Home wrote:
Gooners wrote:

Wow Good Deal
Size is pretty much a non-issue. Gooners, I can't tell with the , are you being sarcastic or is that really a good deal? Looks good to me but obviously I don't know much about these.

Thanks for the tips to everyone else too, I'm actually thinking so far I'll go with the link jaymz posted. Also, no eSata, from what I can tell no e/SATA ports in the ol' lappy, so USB is preferable.
FireWire? Another (better) alternative to USB. Also strange that your laptop doesn't have an eSata! Almost an essential considering the low-capacity of most stock-laptop hard-drives!

Nothing has eSATA, especially not laptops.

The idea of any hi-fi system is to reproduce the source material as faithfully as possible, and to deliberately add distortion to everything you hear (due to amplifier deficiencies) because it sounds 'nice' is simply not high fidelity. If that is what you want to hear then there is no problem with that, but by adding so much additional material (by way of harmonics and intermodulation) you have a tailored sound system, not a hi-fi. - Rod Elliot, ESP

2008-11-26 22:36:19

#20

Uzique: dasein.; +2,865|6736

Freezer7Pro wrote:
Uzique wrote:
Home wrote:

Size is pretty much a non-issue. Gooners, I can't tell with the , are you being sarcastic or is that really a good deal? Looks good to me but obviously I don't know much about these.

Thanks for the tips to everyone else too, I'm actually thinking so far I'll go with the link jaymz posted. Also, no eSata, from what I can tell no e/SATA ports in the ol' lappy, so USB is preferable.
FireWire? Another (better) alternative to USB. Also strange that your laptop doesn't have an eSata! Almost an essential considering the low-capacity of most stock-laptop hard-drives!
Nothing has eSATA, especially not laptops.

Err what are you talking about? My laptop is a fairly mid-range Vaio and came with eSata as standard, wasn't even a 'special' feature worth highlighting. When you're purchasing a laptop with- for example - a 160Gb internal hard-drive, you're going to want the ability to easily-add bonus SATA storage! I've only had 2 laptops in the last 2-3 years but both have had eSata/Firewire capability.

_{libertarian benefit collector - anti-academic super-intellectual}. _{http://mixlr.com/the-little-phrase/}

2008-11-26 22:57:09

#21

Home: Section.80; +447|7113|Seattle, Washington, USA

Uzique wrote:
USB doesn't transfer data as fast as eSata or Firewire, quite simply. Plus there are just some practical considerations... almost every peripheral and external device is USB-interfaced as it is, you may as well try and make use of available fast-transfer speeds when connecting 500Gb of data to your machine! Generally speaking external-drives with eSata/Firewire cost a fraction-more than their USB-only versions- but it's worth it if you're going to be frequently backing up large chunks of media.

Edit: You "could be wrong"? The eSata port is a thinnish rectangular port, I don't know if you have one easily available but take a look at a desktop PC motherboard- they normally always come with 1-2 by default. As another small help (?), the standard colour code for eSata ports is red- if your laptop/desktop has a colour-coded set-up .

Only colored ports I have on the laptop are pink, blue, and dark green.

Does USB transfer data fast enough, say, to be able to listen to music or play a movie off of the external HD with minimal lag/delay? I'm not too worried about backing up large chunks of media.

2008-11-26 23:04:13

#22

Uzique: dasein.; +2,865|6736

USB will perform all tasks perfectly well, yes. It's simply a matter of 'Would you like to transfer 100Gb of media in 15 minutes or in 5?'

_{Times aren't accurate, but you get my point}

A USB-only device will do fine, just get an eSata/Firewire if the option is open to you... why turn down an upgrade? :p. I still find it shocking that your laptop has neither an eSata or a Firewire port!

Firewire: Picture
eSata: Picture

_{libertarian benefit collector - anti-academic super-intellectual}. _{http://mixlr.com/the-little-phrase/}

2008-11-27 00:08:18

#23

Home: Section.80; +447|7113|Seattle, Washington, USA

Ahhh, it does have a firewire port! Haha, thanks for the pics. No eSata though.

2008-11-27 00:20:48

#24

Uzique: dasein.; +2,865|6736

FireWire and eSata are more or less comparable.... I would definitely recommend getting an external drive with FireWire support even if you won't use the extra eSata capability. FireWire transfer speeds whup the arse of USB2.0!

_{libertarian benefit collector - anti-academic super-intellectual}. _{http://mixlr.com/the-little-phrase/}

2008-11-27 03:37:22

#25

Swope: Member; +55|6435|Germany

Freezer7Pro wrote:
Get a passport, they're awesome. AWESOME.

This

I have one myself it's really that

BF2S Forums Suggestions for an external hard drive?

Cheez wrote:

jaymz9350 wrote:

Miggle wrote:

Gooners wrote:

Cheez wrote:

Gooners wrote:

jaymz9350 wrote:

Home wrote:

Gooners wrote:

jaymz9350 wrote:

Uzique wrote:

Home wrote:

Gooners wrote:

Uzique wrote:

Home wrote:

Gooners wrote:

Freezer7Pro wrote:

Uzique wrote:

Home wrote:

Uzique wrote:

Freezer7Pro wrote:

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