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Is this hard drive good for my new MacBook?

sonictonic

sonictonic

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Mar 25, 2006
954
11
San Jose, California
Seagate ST9120821A-RK 120GB 2.5"
http://shop2.outpost.com/product/4795259?site=sr:SEARCH:MAIN_RSLT_PG

It's at Fry's for $140... I think this is a good buy isn't it? Will it work in my soon to be here MacBook, and be reliable?

And just to make sure since I have heard mixed things... if I replace the HD myself, does it void my Apple warranty?

Okay last question... lol... how the heck do I install this thing and have it be my main and only drive (duh its a laptop right)? I mean, I know how to put it in, but is it easy to figure out how to install Mac OS X from scratch? This'll be my first time doin this exactly... (I've installed a hard drive before but only on a PC and as a second drive, not the main and only one...)

Thanks in advance for your help!
 
It'll be a breeze once you get it in. Just boot from your OS DVD, run Disc Utility and format the drive, and then do an install!

I recommend newegg.com for new drives, you can look up by notebook drives, and then make sure they're SATA (which you need).

Good luck!
 
Hard drives for MacBook

For advice on choosing and installing a hard drive in your MacBook, see this thread. Two 160GB SATA drives have been announced that are 9.5mm or shallower--slim enough to fit the MacBook. The Hitachi is available now, but from only one vendor, who charges $280. The Seagate should be out any day or week now; one would hope it will cost more like $200. If you don't need a drive urgently, I suggest you hold out for a 160GB, especially if you need to hold a lot of audio or video files.
 
reubs said:
This one shows up on Newegg. It's the Seagate Momentus 5400.3 2.5". I believe this will work. Someone can correct me if I'm wrong. My concern would be if the Macbook would even support a 160 GB HDD.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/CustRatingReview.asp?Item=N82E16822148073
Click to expand...

That's ATA, not SATA, so no it wouldn't work. (Though there wouldn't be a problem due to the fact that it's 160)

All the drives here should work:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.asp?N=2010150380+1035907918&Submit=ENE&SubCategory=380
 
Question: after you've found a 2.5" SATA drive, is there much worry that it's bigger than the 9.5mm? And if so, how do you find this information? I checked newegg, and most of the drives didn't list that spec...

For example, would this drive be alright?
 
xfiftyfour said:
ah.. that would make more sense.
Click to expand...

Actually, it doesn't make any sense...Americans care about drive height too.

The same spec is used in the US for drive height. Unfortunately it's often not listed on web sites. Most drives these days are 9.5 mm though.

Edit: BTW, the drive you're looking at is 9.5 mm (Seagate PDF)
 
BAspecialCake said:
I believe the 9.5mm is metric for our mates in the UK...

Correct me if I'm wrong.
Click to expand...

metric... also for Australia, all of asia, all of europe... ummm I think only the USA use imperial still? rofl... minority, for once.
 
WildCowboy said:
Actually, it doesn't make any sense...Americans care about drive height too.

The same spec is used in the US for drive height. Unfortunately it's often not listed on web sites. Most drives these days are 9.5 mm though.

Edit: BTW, the drive you're looking at is 9.5 mm (Seagate PDF)
Click to expand...

Is 2.5'' = 9.5mm?
 
BAspecialCake said:
Is 2.5'' = 9.5mm?
Click to expand...

No...9.5 mm is about 3/8 of an inch. The drives are 2.5 in across and 9.5 mm high. Yes, the mixing of units is weird, but it's the way people usually do it.
 
Oh man I did not expec all these replies. :p

Can anyone just plainly recommend a drive for me that is 100-120GB, and under $150, that is at a store I could physically go buy it, in California? I had no idea so many of you guys were in the UK! :eek:


EDIT:
Okay well after checking out Circuit City and Best Buy, it seems that SATA notebook hard drives are hard to get in stores! :( I guess my best bet is to order online then... Since I wanted to stay under $150, I am thinking this one from newegg.com: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16822146225

Would that work well?

Last question - what is the difference between SATA and SATA2? I saw in the MacBook specs that the standard drive is SATA2? I am confused what that is exactly, or what it means... :p

Thanks for all the response and help, people. :)
 
WildCowboy said:
No...9.5 mm is about 3/8 of an inch. The drives are 2.5 in across and 9.5 mm high. Yes, the mixing of units is weird, but it's the way people usually do it.
Click to expand...


Ah...

Appreciate it. One would think they would keep the units of measure the same. Thanks bro.
 
livingfortoday said:
It'll be a breeze once you get it in. Just boot from your OS DVD, run Disc Utility and format the drive, and then do an install!

I recommend newegg.com for new drives, you can look up by notebook drives, and then make sure they're SATA (which you need).

Good luck!
Click to expand...


Thank you!
 
9.5mm drives

xfiftyfour said:
For example, would this drive be alright?
Click to expand...
You would, indeed, have to make sure it fits. The Seagate Momentus 5400.2 (your link) does fit, as do the Hitachi TravelStar 5K120 and 5K160. But not the Fujitsu perpendicular-recording drives coming in a month or two: They'll be 12.5mm.

I'm in the same situation. My daughter's MacBook will arrive in about 8 days. She goes to college in 34 days. I ordered the cheapest MacBook (512MB, 60GB) because I'll be fitting it with 2GB of RAM and a 160GB drive. Right now the only 160 that's compatible (<9.5mm, SATA) is the Hitachi, which is sold by just one vendor, for $279. I'm hoping to see prices below $225 within 10 days, either on the Hitachi or on the soon-to-be-released Seagate 5400.3 160GB.
 
andrewheard said:
What about OWC? They have this western digital drive for a good price.

Link
Click to expand...


For anyone interested, I ended up going with this 120GB Western Digital drive from OWC. Should be here tomorrow according to ups.com! I can't wait :D

I think this is a pretty good deal, and 120GB is plenty for me in my MacBook. I will be very happy. :)

Thanks for all the replies, people!
 
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