2 TB Caviar Green for Time Machine??

[budha]

OWC has these for 130 bucks...

Has anyone heard any horror stories about these things? I don't let my Time Machine run all the time... I only do manual backups once a night. It's 70 bucks off so it seems like a steal.

Should I pull the trigger?

Edit: They are wayyyy cheaper on Amazon. $110.

[Flash SWT]

I've been using the 1.5 TB version for over a year with no issues. <knock on wood>

.

[albert1028]

Be Cautious About buying HDDS from amazon. I am a prime member and I have in the past bought some HDDs but I tend to stay away because their packaging is horrendous. Look at some user posted pictures of some of the popular HDDs.

They basically just put it in a typical amazon box with the HDD in its plastic factor thin plastic case and put in a few air packaging bubbles.

Even though I live in California, I rather pay a little more and for tax to get it from newegg or mwave, I know for sure newegg packages their drives really well so that drives don't suffer a lot of G's during shipping.

Drives can go bad if they suffer a lot of G's during shipping which may be due to bad packing.

just passing on my wisdom. :)

[alphaod]

No issues with the drives. I have 2 of them in RAID 1 for my Time Machine backups.

[Einz]

The Samsungs get better reviews than WD Green drives and on sale.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152245&nm_mc=EMC-IGNEFL100710&cm_mmc=EMC-IGNEFL100710-_-EMC-100710-Index-_-InternalHardDrives-_-22152245-L0B

[BertyBoy]

No issues with the drives. I have 2 of them in RAID 1 for my Time Machine backups.

It'll be fine, but Green drives aren't designed for main drive use, they'll be slow, spinning down as often as they can.

[mjsmke]

I have 2 of them. 1 internal and one external in a FW800 enclosure for Time Machine. I carry it to work every day and its fine. Quiet too.

[SatyMahajan]

OWC has these for 130 bucks...

Has anyone heard any horror stories about these things? I don't let my Time Machine run all the time... I only do manual backups once a night. It's 70 bucks off so it seems like a steal.

Should I pull the trigger?

Edit: They are wayyyy cheaper on Amazon. $110.

That's what I use. 2 1TB Blacks, backed up (via TM) onto a 2TB Green

[Rod330]

I've been using 1 TB Green WDs in two NAS devices for Time Machine for 8 months with no issues whatsover.

[xlii]

I use a 2TB Caviar Green in a OWC FW800 enclosure as my time machine backup drive and it has worked well. Bought the drive from Amazon too. I've bought a lot of stuff from Amazon and have never had an issue.

[Hellhammer]

It'll be fine, but Green drives aren't designed for main drive use, they'll be slow, spinning down as often as they can.

Backup drive is usually not the main drive :rolleyes: IMO Greens or other low-power disks (Samsung EcoGreen for instance) are best for backup purposes since they are quiet and save power.

[gugucom]

+1

I've been using a RAID0 2*2TB drive with WDGreens for mass storage for quite some time now. OS X and Windows is on SSDs.

[Transporteur]

I've been using a RAID0 2*2TB drive with WDGreens for mass storage for quite some time now. OS X and Windows is on SSDs.

Same here. I'm using 2 WD20EARS in my Mac Pro and 8 WD20EADS in my file server. No problems whatsoever.

[Concorde Rules]

+1

I've been using a RAID0 2*2TB drive with WDGreens for mass storage for quite some time now. OS X and Windows is on SSDs.

Your backup solution is two RAID0 disks?

I assume you have another copy which isn't RAIDed as that strikes me as being silly if not. :confused:

[Transporteur]

Your backup solution is two RAID0 disks?



How do you figure that mass storage = backup?

If his operating systems are on SSDs, I assume that his working data has to be located somewhere else, hence the RAID 0. That doesn't imply that it is used for backup.

[Sahib7]

I'm using two 1TB WD Caviar Blacks RAID0 for my main system and data and one 2TB WD Caviar Green as TimeMachine-HDD. No probs so far....

[Concorde Rules]

How do you figure that mass storage = backup?

If his operating systems are on SSDs, I assume that his working data has to be located somewhere else, hence the RAID 0. That doesn't imply that it is used for backup.

Even so, strikes me as an odd setup :p

I could RAID 0 my two WD Blacks but I dont see much point tbh.

[Transporteur]

Even so, strikes me as an odd setup :p

I could RAID 0 my two WD Blacks but I dont see much point tbh.

I have to say, I've got a very similar setup.
OS on SSD and data on 2 2TB Greens.

The simple reason for using a RAID 0 instead of just single drives is the performance. The RAID 0 makes over 200MB/s read and write.

Personally I don't like spending thousands for a computer an than waiting minutes for my data to be copied. RAID 0 out of two drives reduces the waiting by 50%, so definitely worth it for me.

[gugucom]

My backup is on a 2TB time capsule for OS, business and private data. Mass data storage are all movies that I collect from many different sources but mainly from satellite TV. I can watch the movies from everywhere in the house. Initially my plan was to backup the 4TB but I have not found a suitable solution for more Sata ports. I need one port for my OS X and another for Windows. Unfortunately OS X does not give me Blu-Ray support which I need for ripping high def movies occasionally. So by the time I have the two operating systems and the blu-ray ODD running there are only three ports left. I have tried an Areca card for more ports (with the SSDs) but it will not sleep which is also essential for me. So the movie archive currently isn't backed up. The drives actually see very little work and mostly sleep. I hope that they prove as reliable as the WDGreens that I have used in the time capsule for several years. If I can find a RAID card that suits my needs I will probably backup the movies as well.

[alphaod]

It'll be fine, but Green drives aren't designed for main drive use, they'll be slow, spinning down as often as they can.

They're for backups and that's all they do. They are quiet and they do the job.

[strausd]

I have 2 Caviar Blacks for holding stuff, and 2 Caviar Greens for backup and everything has worked out very well so far.

[stix666]

What is the performance difference between 2 greens and 2 blacks in RAID 0?

[Concorde Rules]

I have to say, I've got a very similar setup.
OS on SSD and data on 2 2TB Greens.

The simple reason for using a RAID 0 instead of just single drives is the performance. The RAID 0 makes over 200MB/s read and write.

Personally I don't like spending thousands for a computer an than waiting minutes for my data to be copied. RAID 0 out of two drives reduces the waiting by 50%, so definitely worth it for me.

Fair enough, I never to disk to disk copying so I have absolutely no need for the RAID0 speeds. On the contrary the increased latency would have a negative impact on my work.

[philipma1957]

What is the performance difference between 2 greens and 2 blacks in RAID 0?

greens have a 3 year warranty
blacks have a 5 year warranty

since you only need the drive as your receipt the 5 year warranty has real meaning

the blacks are a bit noisier
the blacks are a bit faster

for me the 5 year warranty is big so I buy only hdds with 5yr warranties. I return them around 4.5 years as they tend to die then but you get 9 years since the replacement lasts another 4.5 years. Also after 4 years the exact drive tends to no longer exist wd will always up grade the drive. so by purchasing the 5 yr drives I tend to find I get 9 yrs worth with a midway upgrade..

the above is the single biggest reason why no one with a mac pro should ever buy "apple" 1tb hdds for the 2nd 3rd and 4th bays of the pro . you get a 1 year warranty and if you buy the exact same hdd from wd you get a 5 yr warranty. plus apple charges 150 for the 1tb hdd and wd charges 120 for the kit and newegg charges 90 for a bare oem type. also wd has a customer loyalty program that gives good prices.

[milbournosphere]

I've heard horror stories about the green drives, especially when in a RAID arrangement. I'd recommend one of the blacks.

[reebzor]

I've heard horror stories about the green drives, especially when in a RAID arrangement. I'd recommend one of the blacks.

I have 4 2TB greens in a RAID 5, and another one for backup. I've never had a problem.

[milbournosphere]

I have 4 2TB greens in a RAID 5, and another one for backup. I've never had a problem. Hmm...I've heard many accounts of the drives having trouble in a RAID setup due to their intelligent sleeping and the variable spin rate. Maybe they were just hw issues. Glad to hear they've worked well for you, I've always had good luck with WD drives.

[reebzor]

Hmm...I've heard many accounts of the drives having trouble in a RAID setup due to their intelligent sleeping and the variable spin rate. Maybe they were just hw issues. Glad to hear they've worked well for you, I've always had good luck with WD drives.

I also have my RAID card set to not spin down the drives. Not sure if the WD intelligent sleeping still happens, but either way I have heard bad things, I can just never argue with the price of them.