External Hard Drives...

[MinionZombie]

Okay, so I'm thinking again about getting another external HDD - either 750gb or 1tb.

Everytime you see reviews of them it's either all excellent or all poor, or a collection of BOTH ends of the spectrum - so wtf am I supposed to believe?!

Only ones that have made any impression are Seagate FreeAgent, and Western Digital, so basically, I need your thoughts and opinions.

Which makes are best?

Any personal horror stories with them?

Any personal success stories with them?

[acealive1]

you cant go wrong with western digital. they're the most stable hard drives i've ever seen. mine has survived surges amongst other things

[AcesandEights]

So weird that you asked this, MZ, because I've been thinking of asking the same question on here the last few weeks, but just hadn't gotten around to it. I was even pricing externals today whole out, so I'll be keeping an eye on this thread.

[MinionZombie]

See this is the thing, I've heard good things about Western Digital, but then equally you hear horror stories of the USB leads f*cking up, or the drives clicking into death, or something like that and you never quite know what to make of it:

1) What did these people do to their drives, if anything, to eff them up?
2) Did they just get a dud one one from the factory - there are after all failure rates for everything, but they're within the vast minority usually.
3) Are the complainers more likely to post than the championers?

A confusing business really. I've got both a Seagate and a Western Digital already, but am thinking of 'doing a Neil' and having a 'Helm's Deep drive' so-to-speak.

[Andy]

but am thinking of 'doing a Neil' and having a 'Helm's Deep drive' so-to-speak.

:eek: were you going to get that in this country?


oohhhhh hang on..


your talkin about hard drives? oh never mind..

[acealive1]

See this is the thing, I've heard good things about Western Digital, but then equally you hear horror stories of the USB leads f*cking up, or the drives clicking into death, or something like that and you never quite know what to make of it:

1) What did these people do to their drives, if anything, to eff them up?
2) Did they just get a dud one one from the factory - there are after all failure rates for everything, but they're within the vast minority usually.
3) Are the complainers more likely to post than the championers?

A confusing business really. I've got both a Seagate and a Western Digital already, but am thinking of 'doing a Neil' and having a 'Helm's Deep drive' so-to-speak.









honestly, if mine has survived surges and nothing is wrong with it, then the people who screwed their usb ports up most likely did something ur not supposed to do to it. like intentional harm. but when i got my hard drive (internal) it was only like $50 for an 80gig

[MinionZombie]

I was also reading some wank from somebody going on about theirs crashed totally and the company said "yeah we'll retrieve your data - for $800" ... is it just me or does that sound like retardation? :rockbrow:

Especially when there's such things as warranties ... and common sense.

[3pidemiC]

I've been working with external hdds for a handful of years now. The failure rate that I've seen is the same as normal hdds. External hard drives are never a fullproof way to backup data. External hdds can fail. But really it's all about luck. Just make sure that they stay somewhat cool and you don't drop them. I've been using one (custom made - purchase an enclosure and a internal hdd) and it's worked for almost two years without issue.

As far a brands go I would stick to Western Digital or Seagate.

[lullubelle]

I got myself an Iomega, inexpensive, good quality and is compatible with all OS, pretty good

[EvilNed]

I also think custom made ones are the way to go if you want to get one that will stay around. I've had several, and internal Harddrives in custom encasing always last longer as they have less useless wiring going on.

[MinionZombie]

What's all this custom casing shenanegans?

[EvilNed]

Well, simply put. Its better to buy an internal harddrive, and then make a custom external harddrive by putting that in a simple external harddrive casing you buy seperately, without all the flashing lights and cool designs. Try finding one made from a simple, sturdy design.

[MaximusIncredulous]

Well, simply put. Its better to buy an internal harddrive, and then make a custom external harddrive by putting that in a simple external harddrive casing you buy seperately, without all the flashing lights and cool designs. Try finding one made from a simple, sturdy design.

Do you have a brand/model recommendation? Wouldn't mind taking a look at these myself.

[acealive1]

Do you have a brand/model recommendation? Wouldn't mind taking a look at these myself.



for the case or the hard drive??

[MaximusIncredulous]

for the case or the hard drive??

Case.

[3pidemiC]

Here's a whole list of'em:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&DEPA=0&Order=BESTMATCH&Description=enclosure&x=0&y=0

I would suggest getting one that has some sort of ventallation (you don't want it completely enclosed with no way for the heat to escape or a fan on it. The most common killer of hard drives is heat.

[EvilNed]

for the case or the hard drive??

The very first AMS case on the site posted above looks pretty good. It has ventilation, and none of those stupid, silly blue flashing lights.

[MinionZombie]

Hmmm, this IS rather intriguing.

So you buy an internal one, and then just slot it into one of these thingies, and bob's your uncle?

What are the benefits over traditional external HDDs?

Any difference between internal and external drives that would mean a benefit of externally casing a drive intended for internal use?

I also take it that it's nice and simple for a computer idiot like me to put together and get going nice and simply?

Also - would it work like normal externals, which essentially work like a giant flash drive which just opens up an explorer window?

[3pidemiC]

Hmmm, this IS rather intriguing.

So you buy an internal one, and then just slot it into one of these thingies, and bob's your uncle?

Yep.


What are the benefits over traditional external HDDs?

Usually you can get a better deal buying the two parts separately. You also have the choice to get better cooling/ventilation for it.


Any difference between internal and external drives that would mean a benefit of externally casing a drive intended for internal use?

Nope. Externally HDDs already made by other manufacturers are the same thing. Open them up, and there is an internal HDD inside.


I also take it that it's nice and simple for a computer idiot like me to put together and get going nice and simply?

Yep. Remove a couple screws. Plug HDD in. Replace screws.


Also - would it work like normal externals, which essentially work like a giant flash drive which just opens up an explorer window?

Yep.

[MinionZombie]

Interesting, although my initial viewings online for prices haven't shown any cost benefits to doing one myself ... yet.

[EvilNed]

Well, my main gripe with manufactured external harddrives are that they also try to look cool and hip, with lights and such. Which means that there's alot more components that can break inside.

If you buy an external shell, they already know that no ordinary guy would buy a shell (way too 1337!) but would go directly for an already manufactured external HDD, so they just focus on the practical side of it.

[3pidemiC]

Also, if the manufactured external hdd breaks, you'll have a helluva time getting that hard drive out of it.

[MinionZombie]

"lights and such"?

All Western Digital have is a nice looking, simple case (not like Seagate's "FreeAgent" on that silly little platform stool thing), and a blue light which denotes data transfer (a nicer version of the little green power/transfer light on my pre-FreeAgent Seagate drive).

So, what examples of "such" do you have? I'm intrigued, but also - how would the light conking out affect your data storage or your drive from working though? :confused:

[EvilNed]

THe lights don't affect your data storage, but usually when you see a light, or several, on an external harddrive it usually means they spent more time making it look cool (so you'll buy it) and less time on it being very functional. The cooler they look, the easier they break. Rule of thumb.

[MinionZombie]

So basically no real scientific evidence. :p

Although I will say, the Seagate FreeAgent doesn't look at all like a good design and physically unstable - give it a Google, it sits on some weird pedestal type design, very silly.

WD just has a very simple shape, a nice but simple black shiny finish and a nice but still simple light on it, which functions to show that it's on and data is transferring.

I think lesser brands tend to focus on fashion-over-function far more than the majors ... well, unless of course you think about the FreeAgent, which I'm totally not into - my original Seagate is a nice design, very stable, simple look, does the business.

Interestingly there was a 250gb super-hard-core external HDD on "The Gadget Show" last night here in the UK, one that's fire and water proof. They submerged it, torched it and blew it up and it survived all that.

[EvilNed]

Which makes are best?

Any personal horror stories with them?

Any personal success stories with them?

This is what you were asking for, not scientific evidence.

[MinionZombie]

This is what you were asking for, not scientific evidence.
Smart arse. :p

[EvilNed]

Well, KGB has taught me all I know.