External Hard Drive Suggestions

rabsparks · Aug 17, 2011, 03:18 PM

I would appreciate any suggestions with reliability being a major factor for a hard drive that I can use to back up my Imac's internal hard drive (500 GB).

roland.g · Aug 17, 2011, 03:38 PM

Depends on what you want and budget. Personally I go for the OWC Elite AL-Pro cases. $45 for FW400/USB or $80 for the FW800 quad interface. Then get a drive from NewEgg. 1.5TB Hitachi Deskstars run $65. 1TB would be less. Also OWC (macsales.com) has their Classic case for about $40-50. Build your own is easy and cheap. Don't get smaller than a 1TB drive.

Taz Mangus · Aug 17, 2011, 03:38 PM

I bought two of Iomega Black Belt 1TB portable drives. I use one for the time machine backups and one to store my media files on. I like it because it is small and the FW-800 ports can be chained together. I place mine on a backpack shelf on the back of the iMac. This allows me to reduce the amount of power cords and also hides the drives out of sight. The drives have a 3 years warantee which is nice.

Spike88 · Aug 17, 2011, 07:55 PM

I've got the WD external (see my signature file) via FW connection. Went with this specific unit because its vented. Many of the smaller 2.5" don't have vents. Thus, tend to run a little hotter. Went with larger 3.5" with its own cooling system. Having FW connection was a great feature as well...

Works for me...

rabsparks · Aug 21, 2011, 06:56 PM

First I would like to thank you for taking the time to give me your hard drive recommendations. After doing a fair amount of research on the subject, I decided to buy a WD Elements drive. I like the WD pricing, and I figured that I might as well take a chance on this drive. There were plusses and minuses on all the reviewed drives.

So since there is nothing outstanding regarding my possible choices, I figured that it was hit or miss.

Once again, thanks for your input.

rick

Stan Mikulenka · Aug 22, 2011, 03:06 PM

Hi rabsparks,
if you worry about the longevity of your HD, then you have to buy the 'Enterprise solution' commercial HD, not the 'MickeyMouse' hard drives every 'expert' here is telling you to buy...
They usually cost 3~5 times more than the 'off the shelf' hard drives you get everywhere.

niksimpsons · Dec 29, 2011, 05:05 AM

Well its an old thread and has been answered i used Seagates HDD which has a dual format can be used for Mac as well Windows.I am using 500GB its flexible and very fast.

GGJstudios · Dec 29, 2011, 05:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by niksimpsons

Try to check Seagates HDD which has a dual format can be used for Mac as well Windows.I am using 500GB its flexible and very fast.

The OP made their selection 4 months ago.

davys · Dec 29, 2011, 08:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Taz Mangus

I bought two of Iomega Black Belt 1TB portable drives. I use one for the time machine backups and one to store my media files on. I like it because it is small and the FW-800 ports can be chained together. I place mine on a backpack shelf on the back of the iMac. This allows me to reduce the amount of power cords and also hides the drives out of sight. The drives have a 3 years warantee which is nice.

many thanks for the heads up on the BackPack Shelf Taz...much appreciated!

niksimpsons · Dec 30, 2011, 12:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GGJstudios

The OP made their selection 4 months ago.

YES i know I noticed the dates and figured out although the OP has long since resolved the situation, the comments might help somebody else in a similar situation who want to use an external drive for both Mac & Win.

Aug 17, 2011, 03:18 PM	#1
rabsparks macrumors newbie Join Date: May 2010 Location: Maryland	External Hard Drive Suggestions I would appreciate any suggestions with reliability being a major factor for a hard drive that I can use to back up my Imac's internal hard drive (500 GB).
	0

Aug 17, 2011, 03:38 PM	#2
roland.g macrumors 601 Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: One mile up and soaring	Depends on what you want and budget. Personally I go for the OWC Elite AL-Pro cases. $45 for FW400/USB or $80 for the FW800 quad interface. Then get a drive from NewEgg. 1.5TB Hitachi Deskstars run $65. 1TB would be less. Also OWC (macsales.com) has their Classic case for about $40-50. Build your own is easy and cheap. Don't get smaller than a 1TB drive. __________________ I know this because Tyler knows this. You are not a beautiful snowflake. You are the same decaying matter as everything else.
	0

Aug 17, 2011, 03:38 PM	#3
Taz Mangus macrumors 65816 Join Date: Mar 2011	I bought two of Iomega Black Belt 1TB portable drives. I use one for the time machine backups and one to store my media files on. I like it because it is small and the FW-800 ports can be chained together. I place mine on a backpack shelf on the back of the iMac. This allows me to reduce the amount of power cords and also hides the drives out of sight. The drives have a 3 years warantee which is nice. __________________ '11 27" iMac Quad Core 3.4GHz, 16GB, 1TB HD, 256GB SSD; '09 17" MacBook Pro, 2.8GHz, 8GB, 500GB HD; '09 MacMini, 2.0GHz, 4GB, 320GB HD; '13 32GB iPhone 5; '10 64GB WiFi/3G iPad; '10 32GB iPod Touch
	1

Aug 17, 2011, 07:55 PM	#4
Spike88 macrumors 6502a Join Date: Jan 2010	I've got the WD external (see my signature file) via FW connection. Went with this specific unit because its vented. Many of the smaller 2.5" don't have vents. Thus, tend to run a little hotter. Went with larger 3.5" with its own cooling system. Having FW connection was a great feature as well... Works for me... __________________ Mid-2010 iMac 21.5" 3.2 GHZ / 1 TB HD (SL @ 12 GBs RAM) + My Book Studio 1 TB via FW800.
	0

Aug 21, 2011, 06:56 PM	#5
rabsparks Thread Starter macrumors newbie Join Date: May 2010 Location: Maryland	Thanks for all the inputs First I would like to thank you for taking the time to give me your hard drive recommendations. After doing a fair amount of research on the subject, I decided to buy a WD Elements drive. I like the WD pricing, and I figured that I might as well take a chance on this drive. There were plusses and minuses on all the reviewed drives. So since there is nothing outstanding regarding my possible choices, I figured that it was hit or miss. Once again, thanks for your input. rick
	0

Aug 22, 2011, 03:06 PM	#6
Stan Mikulenka macrumors 6502 Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Calgary, Canada	Hi rabsparks, if you worry about the longevity of your HD, then you have to buy the 'Enterprise solution' commercial HD, not the 'MickeyMouse' hard drives every 'expert' here is telling you to buy... They usually cost 3~5 times more than the 'off the shelf' hard drives you get everywhere.
	0

Dec 29, 2011, 05:05 AM	#7
niksimpsons Banned Join Date: May 2011	Well its an old thread and has been answered i used Seagates HDD which has a dual format can be used for Mac as well Windows.I am using 500GB its flexible and very fast.
	0

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