MCE Optibay Alternative CHEAP

[Pesper]

I have a 2011 Macbook Pro 13 inch. I found this on buy.com, 13 bucks is pretty cheap - what do you think about it? Have anyone tried it? Do you think it fits as good as MCE Optibay or is it just another crappy chinese home made piece of plastic...?

http://www.buy.com/retail/product.asp?sku=219129106

I'm planning to buy a Vertex 3 to place in the HDD pos, and then a 750 Gb 5400 RPM in this optibay...


Thanks!

 

[jjk454ss]

I have a 2011 Macbook Pro 13 inch. I found this on buy.com, 13 bucks is pretty cheap - what do you think about it? Have anyone tried it? Do you think it fits as good as MCE Optibay or is it just another crappy chinese home made piece of plastic...?

http://www.buy.com/retail/product.asp?sku=219129106

I'm planning to buy a Vertex 3 to place in the HDD pos, and then a 750 Gb 5400 RPM in this optibay...


Thanks!

I was tempted to purchase this one, but I would like the option of putting in a 1TB drive which is 12.5mm not 9.5mm. I'm wondering what is the best option also. I have an Intel X25M SSD and want to put in a large drive for storage, don't care about speed on it.

I'm not sure what Optibay to buy, and I'm not sure what drive to put in the optibay and which one to put in the original hdd location. Does the original hdd location allow for a 12.5mm drive in a 2011 15" MBP?

Can anyone suggest what optibay I should get? I want to save money, but don't want garbage. I guess after reading through this thread I'm not sure what to do with all the talk about cheap alternatives working and cheap alternatives not working, and 9.5mm and 12.5mm, and 1.5GBs and 3.0GBs, etc

 

[jjk454ss]

Thanks much! I think I'll go with this NewModeUS (which fits 9.5mm & 12.5mm).

Now I just have to figure out if I should go with a 750GB (7200rpm) or 1TB (5200rpm). If the 1TB is quite slow than I might just take the 750GB.

I just got this optibay today. I can't get it to fit in my 2011 15" MBP. It is too fat, I can't get the bottom back on my MBP. Anything I might be doing wrong?

 

[jjk454ss]

OK, I took the newmodeus optibay in half, it was already about to come apart anyway, and it now fits. I didn't consider the newmodeus a cheap one, but I can't see a cheap one off ebay being any worse.

I'd really like to know if anyone has got a decent one for a 2011 MBP, thats fits a 1TB HDD preferably, and also mounts properly with all 3 original screws from the optical drive.

 

[2Turbo]

OK, I took the newmodeus optibay in half, it was already about to come apart anyway, and it now fits. I didn't consider the newmodeus a cheap one, but I can't see a cheap one off ebay being any worse.

I'd really like to know if anyone has got a decent one for a 2011 MBP, thats fits a 1TB HDD preferably, and also mounts properly with all 3 original screws from the optical drive.

I am really sorry man. When I posted about wanting that caddy, I had no idea it wouldn't fit without modding in the mbp. I found out the other day that newmodeus said they still hadn't had a chance to see if a 1TB HDD would fit in the 2011 optibay. But OWC's site states that the mbp optibay will not fit a 1tb hdd.

So did you manage to install a 1tb hdd after all, or just the caddy and regular size hdd?

 

[legreve]

Just receieved my MCE Tech optibay... I have attached a photo to display the exact contents of my package.

The delivery time from order to I had it in my hand has been 7 days.
I made the purchase from the German shop:

www.zapware.de
Total price including tax, handling and transport:
128 euros

Contents are:
Optibay enclosure for 2.5"
External enclosure for Superdrive
Usb power cable... (yes, unfortunately you need to use both usb ports when using the Superdrive.
Usb connector cable
Complimentary electronics screwdriver
Bag of screws
Installation guide cd

Both bays came wrapped in bubblewrap. The whole package was sized to fit the products exactly so there has been no rummaging around in the package. The only thing that concerns me is that the Superdrive enclosure is a little flimsy regarding the chip board in the back of the bay that will catch the sockets of the superdrive. Otherwise it seems fine. Looking forward to installing it all

 

[njaremka]

looks like a nice little setup. what does the front slot on the superdrive enclosure look like?

 

[legreve]

looks like a nice little setup. what does the front slot on the superdrive enclosure look like?

It's actually one big opening. It would seem that the enclosure is a snug fit around it, and then free passage to the drive feed. So if you imagine this:

Wrapped inside that black casing, that's basicly it. And then usb 2.0 only ofc :/

 

[njaremka]

It's actually one big opening. It would seem that the enclosure is a snug fit around it, and then free passage to the drive feed. So if you imagine this:

Wrapped inside that black casing, that's basicly it. And then usb 2.0 only ofc :/

that doesnt sound too bad, especially when i dont use my superdrive but maybe twice a year or so.

 

[jjk454ss]

I am really sorry man. When I posted about wanting that caddy, I had no idea it wouldn't fit without modding in the mbp. I found out the other day that newmodeus said they still hadn't had a chance to see if a 1TB HDD would fit in the 2011 optibay. But OWC's site states that the mbp optibay will not fit a 1tb hdd.

So did you manage to install a 1tb hdd after all, or just the caddy and regular size hdd?

Its no problem, I looked at their site and this looked like the correct one, I just can't get it to fit. It works like it is, with the optibay in half, the drive just isn't very secure. The optibay from newmodeus seems very cheap, even if it did fit I don't think I would purchase one from them again. There is no way to attach the drive to the optibay(except the sata connectors, no screws), and the optibay is only connected to the MacBook with one screw. And like I said, the optibay was basically in two pieces when I got it, only one side was attached, the other side was apart. Plus, no directions or paperwork of any kind.

 

[skasol]

Just receieved my MCE Tech optibay... I have attached a photo to display the exact contents of my package.

The delivery time from order to I had it in my hand has been 7 days.
I made the purchase from the German shop:

www.zapware.de
Total price including tax, handling and transport:
128 euros

Contents are:
Optibay enclosure for 2.5"
External enclosure for Superdrive
Usb power cable... (yes, unfortunately you need to use both usb ports when using the Superdrive.
Usb connector cable
Complimentary electronics screwdriver
Bag of screws
Installation guide cd

Both bays came wrapped in bubblewrap. The whole package was sized to fit the products exactly so there has been no rummaging around in the package. The only thing that concerns me is that the Superdrive enclosure is a little flimsy regarding the chip board in the back of the bay that will catch the sockets of the superdrive. Otherwise it seems fine. Looking forward to installing it all

How do you like this option? why did you go with this one as opposed to the aya version? I am interested in one just not sure which one to get yet. will my battery life be affected? I am going to leave the SSD and use the optibay for a 1TB as fast as I can get. any advice it's for a 2010 mbp 15" thank you.

 

[JDENredden]

I've bought a 64GB SSD, and a Optibay clone, and will buy a MaxxUpgades enclosure soon. (Side note: Are these on sale anywhere else? For me the shipping is another 25$). I plan to install when I get it.

I plan to put the SSD in the the regular slot, and my stock 500GB HDD in the OptiBay. What do you recommend I clone over to my SSD? Its 64GB.

Thanks,

 

[Manix]

Ebay product is awful.. they dont last.. the seller smk12 i think - i got the superdrive enclosure.. its poorly made but cheap and how often do i use my superdrive atm.. 2-3 month max.. and that because my macbooks new so been changin hardrives so need to install osX
i know several ppl purchasing the ebay caddies, they either just dont work to well, or stop workin, very poor build quality.. also they only support sata 1.5 - i e-mailed the seller directly and they confirmed this, so if u place a fast sata2/3 ssd in optibay - dont cry when u perform the benchmarks


i'm going to go with new modeus if i purchase a vertex 3; or the datadoubler from owc, if i go for owc drive... maxupgrades also supply the data doubler (optibay replacement owc do) but its slightly dearer than owc (£5-10)

Can you guys send me the link from the newmodeus kit which fits the mbp 17 !? Thanks a lot !

I also plan to purchase the Vertex 3. I had found the MCE optibay as a solution where is the difference to the newmodeus?

 

[grazykid]

Can you guys send me the link from the newmodeus kit which fits the mbp 17 !? Thanks a lot !

I also plan to purchase the Vertex 3. I had found the MCE optibay as a solution where is the difference to the newmodeus?

I got the newmodeus one, the main difference besides price is that the newmodeus lacks the 2 side parts that the screws go in, I had to do some creative customization to get the newmodeus from moving within the case. If I could go back and decide again I would go with the expensive mce that has all 3 screws and the superdrive enclosure. I always want to be on the safe side, and not having those 2 extra screws screw*d feels that maybe one day my hard drive will get screw*d

My opinion, hope this helps.

 

[DarkFlame]

I have a 2011 Macbook Pro 13 inch. I found this on buy.com, 13 bucks is pretty cheap - what do you think about it? Have anyone tried it? Do you think it fits as good as MCE Optibay or is it just another crappy chinese home made piece of plastic...?

http://www.buy.com/retail/product.asp?sku=219129106

I'm planning to buy a Vertex 3 to place in the HDD pos, and then a 750 Gb 5400 RPM in this optibay...


Thanks!

You might want to reconsider the placement of the drives. the 2011 uMBPs only have the 6GBps capability in the main slot and only 3GBps in the optibay. Don't waste your money on a Vertex 3 without using its full capability!


I am also looking for a solution that'll run me around 50-60 dollars instead of 100. That's absurd.

 

[NikFinn]

I have a 2011 Macbook Pro 13 inch. I found this on buy.com, 13 bucks is pretty cheap - what do you think about it? Have anyone tried it? Do you think it fits as good as MCE Optibay or is it just another crappy chinese home made piece of plastic...?

http://www.buy.com/retail/product.asp?sku=219129106

I'm planning to buy a Vertex 3 to place in the HDD pos, and then a 750 Gb 5400 RPM in this optibay...


Thanks!

You might want to reconsider the placement of the drives. the 2011 uMBPs only have the 6GBps capability in the main slot and only 3GBps in the optibay. Don't waste your money on a Vertex 3 without using its full capability!


I am also looking for a solution that'll run me around 50-60 dollars instead of 100. That's absurd.

He said he's going to put the SSD in the HDD position which does indeed support SATA III aka 6GBps.

 

[DarkFlame]

So is the only solution spending 99 dollars on this? Everything on ebay looks cheap, nothing on craigslist...

I just want a secure place to put a hard drive in the optibay. What if I get one of these cheap alternatives and reinforce it somehow?

Anyone have any suggestions?

 

[orthorim]

So is the only solution spending 99 dollars on this? Everything on ebay looks cheap, nothing on craigslist...

I just want a secure place to put a hard drive in the optibay. What if I get one of these cheap alternatives and reinforce it somehow?

Anyone have any suggestions?

My newmodeus one is pretty solid, no need to reinforce that.

The one MacSales.com sells as part of their SSD optibay kit looks very nice too and you can be sure about compatibility - not sure they sell it separately though, the website is hella confusing. As part of the kit it's very cheap, only adds $15 or something.

 

[DarkFlame]

My newmodeus one is pretty solid, no need to reinforce that.

The one MacSales.com sells as part of their SSD optibay kit looks very nice too and you can be sure about compatibility - not sure they sell it separately though, the website is hella confusing. As part of the kit it's very cheap, only adds $15 or something.

I have a 13 inch 2011 unibody. I don't believe they offer something for my notebook that fits flush and securely. That data doubler looks like its good quality but a poster above said he had a hard time keeping it from moving. An enclosure is much nicer and I feel like it keeps the drive from moving. It has those 2 extra screws, you know? Someone needs to be competitive here, so overpriced and I feel like its one of the most popular items.

Argh.

 

[orthorim]

Has anyone gotten the DVD Player app to work? Mine says "no valid DVD drive found" and quits before I can do anything. That's with an external DVD drive connected.

BTW I really, really recommend getting 120GB or more. My 80GB drive keeps running out of space + I have to shuffle files around.

 

[orthorim]

I have a 13 inch 2011 unibody. I don't believe they offer something for my notebook that fits flush and securely. That data doubler looks like its good quality but a poster above said he had a hard time keeping it from moving. An enclosure is much nicer and I feel like it keeps the drive from moving. It has those 2 extra screws, you know? Someone needs to be competitive here, so overpriced and I feel like its one of the most popular items.

Argh.

Yeah well the newmodeus I have is an enclosure. It only fits 9.5mm drives, and is missing those 2 screws so it's held down only by 1 screw. I was worried about that but the thing is it's in there so tight it couldn't possibly move.

As I said (a very long time ago in this thread) I tried attaching a very thin piece of foam to the top of the newmodeus enclosure to really wedge it in there - but as it turned out even that very thin piece of foam was too much, it would pop the bottom enclosure and I had to take it off. I can't imagine the new 2011 MBPs have a bigger DVD drive in them...

 

[DarkFlame]

Yeah well the newmodeus I have is an enclosure. It only fits 9.5mm drives, and is missing those 2 screws so it's held down only by 1 screw. I was worried about that but the thing is it's in there so tight it couldn't possibly move.

As I said (a very long time ago in this thread) I tried attaching a very thin piece of foam to the top of the newmodeus enclosure to really wedge it in there - but as it turned out even that very thin piece of foam was too much, it would pop the bottom enclosure and I had to take it off. I can't imagine the new 2011 MBPs have a bigger DVD drive in them...

That's good it fits securely, that is all I really care about...

Anyone have any expierence with these in the new 2011 13" Macbook Pros?

Which one is the correct one out of these:

http://www.newmodeus.com/pics/OBHD/OBHD-Matrix-6.html

and should I get the chrome finish? Does it match well? I'm having a hard time envisioning what the exterior will look like after the installation.

Thanks!

 

[grazykid]

Has anyone gotten the DVD Player app to work? Mine says "no valid DVD drive found" and quits before I can do anything. That's with an external DVD drive connected.

BTW I really, really recommend getting 120GB or more. My 80GB drive keeps running out of space + I have to shuffle files around.

there is an app dvd drive switcher somewhere in this forum that does that so you can make dvd player app to work. it switches to the external drive so it can work. If you don't find it send me a message.

 

[johnnyturbouk]

Has anyone gotten the DVD Player app to work? Mine says "no valid DVD drive found" and quits before I can do anything. That's with an external DVD drive connected.

this is a known complication of the surgery- ie installing an optical hdd caddy
i believe the MCE superdrive enclosure comes with a driver that allows one to access the dvd-app from external dvd... don't quote me on this, and i am sure some of the mce optibay users can elaborate

That's good it fits securely, that is all I really care about...

Anyone have any expierence with these in the new 2011 13" Macbook Pros?

Which one is the correct one out of these:

http://www.newmodeus.com/pics/OBHD/OBHD-Matrix-6.html

and should I get the chrome finish? Does it match well? I'm having a hard time envisioning what the exterior will look like after the installation.

Thanks!

yes the link is: OBHD9-SATA-SATA-NF

My newmodeus one is pretty solid, no need to reinforce that. It is only fixed by one screw, but it does feel secure: i took the bracket off the optical drive and installed it onto the HDD-caddy, and this bracket is then fixed onto the MBP 2011...i end up lossing one of the screws though, lucky i had a few screws spare-of the same type...phew

The one MacSales.com sells as part of their SSD optibay kit looks very nice too and you can be sure about compatibility - not sure they sell it separately though, the website is hella confusing. As part of the kit it's very cheap, only adds $15 or something.

OWC do sell the data doubler separately for $75: link here

ps the maxupgrade model also comes with DVD enclosure - see here and i believe the owc datadoubler is just a rebranding of the maxupgrade:
MaxConnect Optical Bay kit for MacBooks & MacBook Pros Unibody Models

 

[skasol]

this is a known complication of the surgery- ie installing an optical hdd caddy
i believe the MCE superdrive enclosure comes with a driver that allows one to access the dvd-app from external dvd... don't quote me on this, and i am sure some of the mce optibay users can elaborate



yes the link is: OBHD9-SATA-SATA-NF

My newmodeus one is pretty solid, no need to reinforce that. It is only fixed by one screw, but it does feel secure: i took the bracket off the optical drive and installed it onto the HDD-caddy, and this bracket is then fixed onto the MBP 2011...i end up lossing one of the screws though, lucky i had a few screws spare-of the same type...phew



OWC do sell the data doubler separately for $75: link here

ps the maxupgrade model also comes with DVD enclosure - see here and i believe the owc datadoubler is just a rebranding of the maxupgrade:
MaxConnect Optical Bay kit for MacBooks & MacBook Pros Unibody Models

Is the MCE the best one to get. I have the 2010 MBP i7 with 256 SSD, want to add more room due to large iphoto library and music. is the MCE flush does it fit properly? don't care about the cost or being cheap just something that works properly. thanks for the help. I have asked for a while no answer. just want something that fits properly without modification and buy a 7200 RPM drive for it or maybe even another 256 SSD. thank you.