Discussion Forums > Technology
External HDD Suggestions/Tips
EmptyMemory:
Hey, I've never bought an external hard drive before. Now seems like a good time as any as my laptop has run out of space. Any suggestions regarding which one I should buy, how I should take care of it, accessories, purchasing it online/offline, etc?
datora:
.
Buy your own external case and buy the drive(s) you put in it. You will know your exact components.
Decide if you want USB 2 or USB 3, or maybe eSATA.
How much storage do you want? How large an external do you want to manage? What's your budget?
What is your intended, primary use? Very important question. Speed? Large capacity? Storage? Torrenting?
For example, if small and speed is of essence, get a Seagate 750 GB SSD/hybrid drive in 2.5" form factor and put it in a USB 3.0 or eSATA 6.0 GB/sec enclosure.
If you just need to put files onto the drive and playback audio/video, a USB 2 is good enough to stream media playback, even though it will be slow to move large amount onto and off of it.
I use an enclosure that holds two drives. Often I have 2 x 2TB drives in it for massive storage solution. Other times I swap drives around and (like now) it has a decent performance/reliable 750 GB drive in one of the slots that's used to run torrents.
Really Good Idea to make sure it's located on a UPS to protect your data. Also, make sure you keep it cool. The enclosure I rely on for torrenting has a fan built in and it stays icy cold.
Please answer a few questions so we can provide more targeted advice.
» Technology » Need help choosing a UPS (plus general UPS tips)
» Technology » 4 TB external storage solution
kitamesume:
buy one without an external brick, the advantages would be less hassle and more power efficient since they use 2.5" drives inside them.
find out which capacity has the best price per gb ratio, on my case 1TB drives have the best price per capacity since it goes under 1$ per GB. also decide which brand you trust.
EmptyMemory:
Wow, thanks for the detail you guys!
--- Quote from: datora on May 20, 2012, 05:19:11 AM ---.
Buy your own external case and buy the drive(s) you put in it. You will know your exact components.
Decide if you want USB 2 or USB 3, or maybe eSATA.
USB 3, mind you I don't know what eSATA is.
How much storage do you want? How large an external do you want to manage? What's your budget?
I was thinking around 4TBish. My budget is around $200. The dimensions for your Rosewill seemed okay. (click to show/hide)7.85" x 4.9" x 2.96"
What is your intended, primary use? Very important question. Speed? Large capacity? Storage? Torrenting?
Well, I plan to throw a backup of my non-media files on there, and put any anime I'm not seeding on there too.
If I'm watching videos from the HDD, do I need speed? I'd probably like speed though so I can move things to and from my computer.
For example, if small and speed is of essence, get a Seagate 750 GB SSD/hybrid drive in 2.5" form factor and put it in a USB 3.0 or eSATA 6.0 GB/sec enclosure.
If you just need to put files onto the drive and playback audio/video, a USB 2 is good enough to stream media playback, even though it will be slow to move large amount onto and off of it.
I use an enclosure that holds two drives. Often I have 2 x 2TB drives in it for massive storage solution. Other times I swap drives around and (like now) it has a decent performance/reliable 750 GB drive in one of the slots that's used to run torrents.
Really Good Idea to make sure it's located on a UPS to protect your data. Also, make sure you keep it cool. The enclosure I rely on for torrenting has a fan built in and it stays icy cold.
How does a UPS protect data? Does discontinuing power to a HDD harm it or something?
Please answer a few questions so we can provide more targeted advice.
» Technology » Need help choosing a UPS (plus general UPS tips)
» Technology » 4 TB external storage solution
--- End quote ---
--- Quote from: kitamesume on May 20, 2012, 05:33:54 AM ---buy one without an external brick, the advantages would be less hassle and more power efficient since they use 2.5" drives inside them.
What's an external brick? I tried Google-ing it, didn't help.
find out which capacity has the best price per gb ratio, on my case 1TB drives have the best price per capacity since it goes under 1$ per GB. also decide which brand you trust.
I have no familiarity with brands here whatsoever. :s
--- End quote ---
FlyinPenguin:
It depends on what you expect out of it. Do you want ultra portability or performance?
I personally prefer ultra portability so I use 2.5" external hard drives. They usually don't require an external power source and are extremely compact. I have two that fit perfectly in the pockets of my laptop case. They lack the the transfer speeds of a 3.5" drive but for media storage they are perfect. Transfer times may initially be somewhat slow but in terms of playback they work perfect. I playback 1080p video from them all the time with no issues. Both of mine are USB 3.0 but I only have 2.0 on my laptop, they still stream perfect though.
I have both a 1TB Western Digital and 1TB Toshiba and both work flawlessly. I haven't had them long enough to comment on reliability.
All total, I have 2.5TB storage for my laptop. Not too shabby 8)
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