[Adrian04]

Looking for a external hard drive as a backup as well as for extra space. So which one does everyone recommend, I know Seagatet are highly rergarded and what else? Also what models? I'm probably looking for about 100 GB and in the middle price range. Thanks

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Hi. I have 4 external hard drives that I put together myself. I got a hd enclosure with fan, put the hard drive of my choice in it. All four work great and are plug and play between multiple computers that I use. There are off the shelf external hard drives available. In the course of researching those trying to make my own purchasing decision, I considered Simpletech and Seagate. After lots of reading reading reviews, and forums, I decided to get an enclosure and putting the hd of my choice in it. You can find enclosures for around $20.00 and a 200 Gig HD now costs less than $100.00. The major problem with off the shelf units is that they are not intended to be user serviceable. I mention this only because I have tried to help folks who post here seeking help on problems with such units and there isn't much that can be done because many such units cannot even be opened (Maxtor comes to mind). What it comes down to is you have to decide which is best for you. Off the shelf, no hd to install and it is just plug and play, but if anyting goes wrong there isn't much you can do. If you opt for the enclosure you have to get a hd, format it, install it which isn't hard to do. But if it breaks, you can open it, take the hd out and put it in a pc and recover your files. The choice is entirely yours! Good luck.

If I was going to get an off the shelf unit, I would still consider Seagate or Simpletech. I would stay away from Maxtor. Just my opinion.

Edited by austin_o, 01 June 2006 - 07:24 AM.

[austin_o]

Hi. I have 4 external hard drives that I put together myself. I got a hd enclosure with fan, put the hard drive of my choice in it. All four work great and are plug and play between multiple computers that I use. There are off the shelf external hard drives available. In the course of researching those trying to make my own purchasing decision, I considered Simpletech and Seagate. After lots of reading reading reviews, and forums, I decided to get an enclosure and putting the hd of my choice in it. You can find enclosures for around $20.00 and a 200 Gig HD now costs less than $100.00. The major problem with off the shelf units is that they are not intended to be user serviceable. I mention this only because I have tried to help folks who post here seeking help on problems with such units and there isn't much that can be done because many such units cannot even be opened (Maxtor comes to mind). What it comes down to is you have to decide which is best for you. Off the shelf, no hd to install and it is just plug and play, but if anyting goes wrong there isn't much you can do. If you opt for the enclosure you have to get a hd, format it, install it which isn't hard to do. But if it breaks, you can open it, take the hd out and put it in a pc and recover your files. The choice is entirely yours! Good luck.

If I was going to get an off the shelf unit, I would still consider Seagate or Simpletech. I would stay away from Maxtor. Just my opinion.

Edited by austin_o, 01 June 2006 - 07:24 AM.

[Adrian04]

Cheers austin that's great thanks. I was considering a Maxtor but it was in Officeworks and didn't know how reputable they are. Probably go with a Seagate now

[WinCrazy]

Personally, I would put it together from components like austin_o, but you need to shop for a good external case - one that has many good user reviews.

If you want to buy a prebuilt drive see the following list
The Western Digital models are well-liked. See the product reviews for:

Western Digital Dual-option USB 2.0 WDXUB1200BBNN 120GB 7200 RPM 2MB

Western Digital Dual-option USB 2.0 WDXUB2000JBNN 200GB 7200 RPM 8MB

Western Digital Essential WDXUL3200JBNN 320GB 7200 RPM 8MB

Edited by WinCrazy, 01 June 2006 - 12:45 PM.

[jrm20]

Well if you are smart I would get this.....


i-rocks IR-9400-S External Enclosure


http://www.newegg.co...N82E16817201015 $29.99


it is a nice external case and plus its Sata!



Western Digital Caviar SE 320GB 3.5" Serial ATA150 Hard Drive $108.99

http://www.newegg.co...N82E16822144394


Lets see here... Do the math and it comes to $138.98

You get Sata, 320GB harddrive and its cheaper and you get a Western Digital Harddrive aswell.. You cannot beat that price. The unit is a good put together piece of equipment.

VS the Westerndigital 200GB for $159.99

http://www.newegg.co...N82E16822144384

LOL its very obvious which to get..

All you do is unscrew the external enclosure (it comes with a screwdriver even) and install the harddrive, hook it up and your ready to format it... its simple..

Make shure you pick up a sata cable for $2.99 it doesnt say if it comes with one so I doubt it unless you already have one at home..

http://www.newegg.co...N82E16812104150

So the external irocks enclosure plus the 320gb harddrive and the $2.99 cable...

If you want to save even more money you could even get a smaller harddrive...

[WinCrazy]

I would not risk purchasing a product from Newegg that has only 2 user reviews. There are many other similar products which have many good reviews.

Otherwise, I love WD hard drives and still would shoot for getting an IDE model with a well-liked IDE external case. SATA interface external cases are too new to have built up reputations (good or bad).

[jrm20]

I would not risk purchasing a product from Newegg that has only 2 user reviews. There are many other similar products which have many good reviews.

Otherwise, I love WD hard drives and still would shoot for getting an IDE model with a well-liked IDE external case. SATA interface external cases are too new to have built up reputations (good or bad).

HAHA just because its only 2 reviews doesnt mean its bad. That model is a newer model.


Im just stating pick an external harddrive case like that and get a harddrive and you will end up saving money....

You shouldnt even rely on the reviews by themselves because its by normal people anyway and some people are retarded and on almost every product there is atleast one guy that just makes up a story and or doesnt know what he is talking about but the Irocks brand is fine.


Umm I dont know exactly what you are talking about but Sata is better and what are you talking about building up reputations?? There is plenty of sata cases to choose from if he doesnt want that exact one.. Its just an external case for sakes its cheap you put a harddrive in it thats it. Its not a whole pc or video card or similar product..

My opinion I would go for a sata because you could always stick it into your computer itself if you have a sata mobo and you get tired of an external drive all together.. (just an example)
sata is faster and better, why would you stick with crummy old ide now its like agp vs pci express is now it is outdated lol...

Edited by jrm20, 01 June 2006 - 09:30 PM.

[WinCrazy]

Yes, SATA drives are faster and are about the same price as IDE drives. However, this speed advantage is completely lost when the drive is installed in an external case. The USB (or Firewire) interface is a bottleneck.

I agree that some reviews are skewed, so that is why I suggest getting a case that has many good reviews. The sheer amount of reviews will give the reader a more reliable indication of the product's actual reliability and quality.

If the user is concerned obout installing the drive inside his computer in the future he should know that even the newest motherboards with SATA also always have IDE channels that support IDE drives.

SATA external cases are few and so new on the market it would be best to wait until these products are tested by the those who aren't afraid of the 'bleeding edge' of new technology. Also, relying on a brand name for quality is not a good bet when it comes to insuring quality.

[jrm20]

If the user is concerned obout installing the drive inside his computer in the future he should know that even the newest motherboards with SATA also always have IDE channels that support IDE drives.

I said to go with sata because if he ever wanted to take it out of the external case he could put it into his desktop thus meaning he will get faster overall speeds than an ide harddrive. Sata is faster inside of the computer and thats why I commented on that topic.

He knows that you can still use ide with the newer motherboards with sata. There is no point in buying an ide harddrive even if you bought a new motherboard or pc because sata drives are so much better and they are newer technology which will give you expandability now and in the future.

I am a system builder and thats why I think like that about ide vs sata but hey you can do whatever you want its totally up to you but in the end and the smarter decision would be to buy sata now.