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External 500gb hard drives
tali
Posts: 709 Forumite
in Techie Stuff
Noticed external 500GB HDs can be had for £50 - but has anyone spotted cheaper 500gb? - or most cheapest per GB ?- i assume this makes them the cheapest form of storage?
Are there any features that are essential on HDs ? - on /off switch is one i hear mentioned?
Are there any features that are essential on HDs ? - on /off switch is one i hear mentioned?
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Comments
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There are two factors worthy of particular note.
1. There are 2 different types of external drives:a) 2.5 " and 3.5". The 2.5" are proper portable external drives in that they are powered through the 'bus' or usb port so you don't need a plug point ie mains power. The 3.5" ARE mains powered. So if for example you were going on a long train journey and the train did not have a power source but you wanted to back up your work as you travelled, then you need a 2.5" which you would plug into any USB port of your computer. If you are using it as a backup device eg in an office or at home and would not use it 'on the move' then get a 3.5". The reason I say this is that price per Gb is dearer for the 2.5" than the 3.5" irrespective of manufacturer.
2. There are two sorts of cooling systems inside. The older ones have a fan just like your computer so the whole device tends to be bigger and heavier oh yes, and noisier!!.The other system is cooled by conduction by being made of a material that conducts the heat away to the outside. I have it on good authority that the heat conducting system is better! You might like to get a range of opinions on this but the way I had it explained to me made sense.
If you go for a true 'portable' ie a 2.5" there is not that much variation in price but you can currently get 320Gb for about £60.
A downside to the 2.5" is that the maximum size available is less ie no 1Tb yet available in 2.5" but IS in 3.5".
Good luck!:rotfl:0 -
If you go for the CHEAPEST options, its almost guaranteed to break down after time as they use inferior components
Go for a good make (Western Digital, Hitachi, Seagate etc):idea:0 -
I dare to suggest no-one was saying go for the cheapest but this being a moneysaving site, the suggestion was find the best price! Manufacturer choice is down to opinion really;)0
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You can still get good priced 'decent' hard drives
But sure, if you think buying some cheap nasty make is better in the long run then go ahead and suggest it............:idea:0 -
Gosh, let's try again shall we?
If you care to READ my post (you did actually read it I assume, not just jump in?), then you might see, assuming English is your mother tongue, that all I was saying is there is a difference in the price per Gb in the 3.5" and the 2.5" and if you shop around, there is some variation in what prices are being charged so you can actually pay a better price for the same item, NOT BUY A CHEAPER PRODUCT.:eek:
I do hope this makes sense to you now.
If you'd like a lesson or two in English comprehension, just let me know, I'd be happy to help.:rotfl:
Hope this is all sorted now?0 -
flossy_splodge wrote: »
There are two factors worthy of particular note.
1. There are 2 different types of external drives:a) 2.5 " and 3.5". The 2.5" are proper portable external drives in that they are powered through the 'bus' or usb port so you don't need a plug point ie mains power. The 3.5" ARE mains powered. So if for example you were going on a long train journey and the train did not have a power source but you wanted to back up your work as you travelled, then you need a 2.5" which you would plug into any USB port of your computer. If you are using it as a backup device eg in an office or at home and would not use it 'on the move' then get a 3.5". The reason I say this is that price per Gb is dearer for the 2.5" than the 3.5" irrespective of manufacturer.
2. There are two sorts of cooling systems inside. The older ones have a fan just like your computer so the whole device tends to be bigger and heavier oh yes, and noisier!!.The other system is cooled by conduction by being made of a material that conducts the heat away to the outside. I have it on good authority that the heat conducting system is better! You might like to get a range of opinions on this but the way I had it explained to me made sense.
If you go for a true 'portable' ie a 2.5" there is not that much variation in price but you can currently get 320Gb for about £60.
A downside to the 2.5" is that the maximum size available is less ie no 1Tb yet available in 2.5" but IS in 3.5".
Good luck!:rotfl:flossy_splodge wrote: »
Gosh, let's try again shall we?
If you care to READ my post (you did actually read it I assume, not just jump in?), then you might see, assuming English is your mother tongue, that all I was saying is there is a difference in the price per Gb in the 3.5" and the 2.5" and if you shop around, there is some variation in what prices are being charged so you can actually pay a better price for the same item, NOT BUY A CHEAPER PRODUCT.:eek:
I do hope this makes sense to you now.
If you'd like a lesson or two in English comprehension, just let me know, I'd be happy to help.:rotfl:
Hope this is all sorted now?
What would actually have helped greatly the English comprehension - for aliEnRIK, me and everyone else for whom English is their mother tongue - when battling through your dire original posting would have been if you had not compressed it to the point of illiteracy.
Before you start offering to dispense lessons in grammar to anyone else, you would benefit considerably from taking one or two yourself, upon the subjects of punctuation and capitalisation and of how to space paragraphs and construct brackets coherently.
By the way, 2.5" USB drives in external enclosures often need to use two USB ports (in conjunction with a Y-lead), not one. The power from a single USB port can be insufficient if the enclosure is not connected to mains electricity or another external power source.
That's an important consideration if you are using a laptop that is not liberally equipped with USB ports.
Tali,
An on/off switch is definitely desirable on any external hard drive.
So is the option of connecting external power to a 2.5" drive enclosure.
It's also best to follow aliEnRIK's sensible advice and stick with the leading brands. Obviously it's nice to acquire a hard drive cheaply but - given the importance of what you are going to store on it - it would be unwise to risk buying one from a source that may be selling counterfeits inexpensively. That would prove to be a seriously false economy!
Don't laugh at banana republics. :rotfl:
As a result of how you voted in the last three General Elections,
you'd now be better off living in one.
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flossy_splodge wrote: »Gosh, let's try again shall we?
If you care to READ my post (you did actually read it I assume, not just jump in?), then you might see, assuming English is your mother tongue, that all I was saying is there is a difference in the price per Gb in the 3.5" and the 2.5" and if you shop around, there is some variation in what prices are being charged so you can actually pay a better price for the same item, NOT BUY A CHEAPER PRODUCT.:eek:
I do hope this makes sense to you now.
If you'd like a lesson or two in English comprehension, just let me know, I'd be happy to help.:rotfl:
Hope this is all sorted now?
What a complete !!!!.0 -
flossy_splodge wrote: »Gosh, let's try again shall we?
If you care to READ my post (you did actually read it I assume, not just jump in?), then you might see, assuming English is your mother tongue, that all I was saying is there is a difference in the price per Gb in the 3.5" and the 2.5" and if you shop around, there is some variation in what prices are being charged so you can actually pay a better price for the same item, NOT BUY A CHEAPER PRODUCT.:eek:
I do hope this makes sense to you now.
If you'd like a lesson or two in English comprehension, just let me know, I'd be happy to help.:rotfl:
Hope this is all sorted now?
yeah sure
Lets have that 'English comprehension' lesson please...........:idea:0 -
...but has anyone spotted cheaper 500gb? - or most cheapest per GB ?- i assume this makes them the cheapest form of storage?
Maxtor DM 22 500GB - £41. Obviously, internal drives will always be cheaper than external drives. I don't really see what this thread is getting at, but then again I can't be bothered to read it in full. 0 -
The cheapest I have found is £53.94..
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