Should I power the original HDD from a secondary USB when used externally ?

[XPcentric]

I changed my original Toshiba HDD on a Macbook because it was moving too slow and load cycle count was too high. Now I was trying to use this HDD as external using a cheap USB Sata adapter. However, I'm able to browse the content for a little time, but it gets disconnected too quick and this loop keeps going.

I wonder if I should try to use the additional USB part of the cable to power it of if I should not even take the risk. The original HDD requires only 5V, 1A I dont think the HDD is the problem here.


edit: I just observed that OSX support is not even mentioned on eBay products page and only windows, but I was able to view the content for a short time.

 

[Bruno09]

The original HDD requires only 5V, 1A

Someone will correct me if I am wrong :

A computer's USB port can deliver a 500 mA (0.5A) maximum current.

Therefore, you need two USB ports to power this external drive.

 

[XPcentric]

Thank you Bruno09!

I took the risk and plugged the other USB part to power it, and something changed. It did finally work longer for what I was trying to do but still got disconnected. Basically I used Path Finder in List View and checked to Calculate all files sizes. It took long and it managed to calculate all folder sizes in root '/', but then when I tried to open a subfolder, it didnt calculate the size of files in it and it got disconnected.

It might be because of the old HDD or because of the power not being enough even when powered with two USB slots, I still dont know. The following article I discovered says that not all USB ports deliver the same power, and that makes it even trickier:

https://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?p=19483231#post19483231