Powerbook will not recognize USB ext. hard drive

[ralexf2]

My Powerbook G4 (OSX10.3.9) will not recognize a Toshiba USB 2.0 external hard drive. Any suggestions.
I appreciate any help I can get at this point

 

[riscy]

Is it recognised on another computer?

 

[fiercetiger224]

My Powerbook G4 (OSX10.3.9) will not recognize a Toshiba USB 2.0 external hard drive. Any suggestions.
I appreciate any help I can get at this point

The question is, has it been formatted yet? What brand USB 2.0 external drive did you buy, or did you buy an enclosure and throw a Toshiba HD in there? What model PowerBook G4 do you have (because the the TiBooks don't have USB 2.0 I believe.)?

Have you tried opening Disk Utility and checking if it's there unformatted?

 

[drewsof07]

Yeah, if it's toshiba, most likely it was formatted for windows.

 

[GoCubsGo]

Is it powered by anything other than USB? If not, then the USB ports in the powerbook may not be able to power the external drive. The Western Digital Passports actually have this "problem" so WD will gladly sell you a dual USB cable to power the drive you just purchased from them when connected to a laptop.

 

[maxrobertson]

Yeah, I believe Jessica is right. It might help to get the kind of USB cord that has 2 different plugs and plug it into both USB ports (I'm assuming the PowerBook has 2) because many external HDs don't work with my MacBook unless they have that feature, for whatever reason.

 

[TonyDinah]

Toshiba portable hard drive

Did you ever resolve your problem? Now 2 years after my husband purchased the it, I finally try to use with my Powerbook and am experiencing the same problem you posted in May 2008!