USB 3.0 ext HDD recommendation

[insimbi]

I need a fast USB 3.0 ext HDD for Time Machine and other data. I am looking at this one:

http://www.amazon.com/Book-Studio-E...qid=1380469370&sr=8-2&keywords=my+book+studio

Does anyone know much about it? Good, bad?

 

[B...]

External drives are essentially the same. Get USB 3, then whatever is cheapest, as I've read.

 

[Giuly]

External drives are essentially the same. Get USB 3, then whatever is cheapest, as I've read.

Which would be the 3TB Toshiba Canvio for $99.

However, if you have two Macs, chances are that one of them doesn't support USB 3.0 (-2012), so it's either FireWire800, Gigabit Ethernet or Thunderbolt. The LaCie d2 v3 with both FW800 and USB 3.0 would be a shortcut, but it's definitively not cheap.

You may also want to connect to the hard drive from both Macs without plugging and unplugging a cable, which is where Ethernet comes in handy.

The 3TB WD MyBook Live with Gigabit Ethernet and the MyBook Studio for Mac actually cost the same, merely $30 more than the Toshiba - one might work better for what he's trying to do, the other has a nicer looking enclosure and is faster: Pick one.

 

[in4fun]

I'm leaning towards the My Book Essential 3.0 - 3 TB drive which has it's own power source.


Does it make a difference if I choose an external USB 3 with or without it's own power source?

 

[in4fun]

ok - I found the answer

a USB drive with it's own power source is considerably faster

 

[g4cube]

ok - I found the answer

a USB drive with it's own power source is considerably faster

What you really mean to say is that a 3TB desktop, self-powered drive using a 3.5" HDD mechanism will be faster than a 2TB or smaller, bus-powered drive using a 2.5" HDD mechanism.

The performance has nothing to do with whether drive is self-powered or bus powered, but rather the type of HDD used.

A bus powered SSD based external drive, for example, will easily exceed the performance of a self-powered HDD based external drive.

 

[in4fun]

The performance has nothing to do with whether drive is self-powered or bus powered, but rather the type of HDD used.

ok, thanks for clarifying this.

I just ordered a WD 3.5" 3TB powered disk and hope this will get me a cheap and fast external storage solution.