Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Having an external SSD connected to the MacBook Pro kills the “Mobility” of the Macbook

Benz63amg

Benz63amg

macrumors 601
Original poster
Oct 17, 2010
4,528
1,028
Before I got the external SSD which is connected to my 13 inch MacBook Pro via usb cable I could disconnect my MacBook from the charger and sit in the living room with the laptop on my lap and enjoy it that way but it’s not as easy to do with an external SSD harddrive now connected to the MacBook, surely the SSD itself is not large (Samsung T5) but with the usb cable connected it adds some complexity to handling of the MacBook, is there a solution to this? A shorter usb cable perhaps and attached the SSD to the exterior of the MacBook? How do you guys deal with this issue?
 
EmmEff said:
Keep only what you need on the internal SSD and don't carry around the external SSD, unless absolutely necessary.
Click to expand...
Well, my music library is about 60gb so I can’t store that on the internal as I will barely have any space left on the 128gb internal (I currently have 83gb free)
 
Perhaps you could create a SECOND music library, smaller with your favorites ONLY, on the MBP internal drive.

If you're not willing to do that, the remaining choices are:
- have the external drive connected
or
- NOT have it connected.
 
  • Like
Reactions: EmmEff
If you don't want anything attached, you could investigate NAS (Network Attached Storage, where more or less you have a hard drive connected to you through your WiFi router), cloud storage (iCloud has a great feature that allows you to store a ton of information on the cloud and it optimizes what is stored on your Mac automatically), or upgrade to a MacBook Pro with a larger SSD.

The iCloud option is inexpensive and it works really well.
 
If you have a SD-card slot on your Mac, you could put the music library on a 128GB SD-card. You might even find a micro-sd adapter which wouldn’t stick out from the side at all (might require some modifications).
 
hfg said:
If you have a SD-card slot on your Mac, you could put the music library on a 128GB SD-card. You might even find a micro-sd adapter which wouldn’t stick out from the side at all (might require some modifications).
Click to expand...
No SD Card reader on a 13inch macbook pro 2017 model.
 
Benz63amg said:
No SD Card reader on a 13inch macbook pro 2017 model.
Click to expand...
OK ... wasn't sure how old your MacBook Pro was.

Perhaps a USB ThumbDrive then ... they make some really small ones which only stick out about 1/4"

www.amazon.com

SanDisk 64GB Cruzer Fit USB 2.0 Flash Drive - SDCZ33-064G-G35

The Cruzer Fit USB flash drive provides extremely compact storage for the smallest of host devices. Sleek in style and great in value, simply store your music collection, video collection, or pictures on the Cruzer Fit USB flash drive and start sharing with your family and friends. It also helps ...
www.amazon.com
 

Attachments

  • 1604642270957.png
    1604642270957.png
    247.2 KB · Views: 173
As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
Benz63amg said:
Before I got the external SSD which is connected to my 13 inch MacBook Pro via usb cable I could disconnect my MacBook from the charger and sit in the living room with the laptop on my lap and enjoy it that way but it’s not as easy to do with an external SSD harddrive now connected to the MacBook, surely the SSD itself is not large (Samsung T5) but with the usb cable connected it adds some complexity to handling of the MacBook, is there a solution to this? A shorter usb cable perhaps and attached the SSD to the exterior of the MacBook? How do you guys deal with this issue?
Click to expand...
Get a smaller smart NAS the you put a VPN server on it! This way you can Van back into your NAS where you keep your Mac sic/video Library!
 
hfg said:
OK ... wasn't sure how old your MacBook Pro was.

Perhaps a USB ThumbDrive then ... they make some really small ones which only stick out about 1/4"

www.amazon.com

SanDisk 64GB Cruzer Fit USB 2.0 Flash Drive - SDCZ33-064G-G35

The Cruzer Fit USB flash drive provides extremely compact storage for the smallest of host devices. Sleek in style and great in value, simply store your music collection, video collection, or pictures on the Cruzer Fit USB flash drive and start sharing with your family and friends. It also helps ...
www.amazon.com
Click to expand...
That would be a great solution but I only have usb c ports on my MacBook Pro. I have the usb a adapter but that will add a wire to the connection and if that’s the case then the T5 (wire hanging from the SSD) is the same and much better in terms of perrmance.
 
As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
Benz63amg said:
That would be a great solution but I only have usb c ports on my MacBook Pro. I have the usb a adapter but that will add a wire to the connection and if that’s the case then the T5 (wire hanging from the SSD) is the same and much better in terms of perrmance.
Click to expand...

Get a USB A to C adaptor like this one. I use them and they work fine.
 
As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back