A much faster and easier way would be to backup your current drive via an application like Carbon Copy Cloner, and then copy the entire contents of the drive to your new hard drive as a bootable clone. From there, it would behave exactly like your old drive in every way. Pop it in your computer, and go on using it as if you'd never even switched drives. No installation of an OS, no installation of new programs, none of that necessary. It's great!
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WD Scorpio 320GB Hard Drive w. Macbook [Confirmed to be working]
- Thread starter nyprimus4
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A much faster and easier way would be to backup your current drive via an application like Carbon Copy Cloner, and then copy the entire contents of the drive to your new hard drive as a bootable clone. From there, it would behave exactly like your old drive in every way. Pop it in your computer, and go on using it as if you'd never even switched drives. No installation of an OS, no installation of new programs, none of that necessary. It's great!
I bought an external enclosure and put the new drive in it. Then I used SuperDuper to clone the internal to the external, and finished up by swapping the drives. I ended up with the new internal drive cloned with the data from the previous one. I'm using my old internal still as a FW800 bus-powered external.
Does the internal SATA bus on a MBP support 3.0 Mbs, or just 1.5?
The reason I ask is that the Hitachi 7200 RPM 200GB drive most vendors are selling is the SATA 1.5 Mbs version. The WD Scorpio -- even though it has a smaller cache (8MB vs. 16 MB) and is 5400 RPM -- is a SATA 3.0 Mbs drive.
If the internal SATA bus on a MBP is 3.0 Mbs then the Scorpio could be faster in real world use.
My Scorpio 320 is ordered. SHould be here from Newegg in the next day or so.
The reason I ask is that the Hitachi 7200 RPM 200GB drive most vendors are selling is the SATA 1.5 Mbs version. The WD Scorpio -- even though it has a smaller cache (8MB vs. 16 MB) and is 5400 RPM -- is a SATA 3.0 Mbs drive.
If the internal SATA bus on a MBP is 3.0 Mbs then the Scorpio could be faster in real world use.
My Scorpio 320 is ordered. SHould be here from Newegg in the next day or so.
But be aware that swapping the HD does void your warranty though, ifyour mac dies, just swap the old drive back in! (Apple won't know... unless you've torn something, or lost some screws)
Replacing the Hard Drive does not void your warranty at all. As long as you don't brake something while inside your warranty is still there. But it is a good idea to swap the original drive back in if your sending it in to Apple.
Anyway, that drive will work, but get an external HD, plug your new drive into it, CCC or Super Duper! your drive (clone it) then pop it in.
Make sure you have a Philips #00 and Torx #6 (i bought mine on eBay for about $5 shipped each)
No, not correct. SATA150 will do a theoretical 187.5MB/s, though in practice there will be some overhead, and the support chips/memory controllers have a lot to do with 'real' world thoroughput. Intel MB's currently have a 'flaw' if you will, that limits SATA150 to about 80MB/s, which is still above the Hitachi 7k200's maximum sustained read (though bursts might be a little higher it is negligible for all practical purposes). Even the fastest SAS 15krpm Seagate Cheetah 3.5in tops out at ~130MB/s. Fastest currently available SSD from Mtron tops out at 120MB/s reads, 80MB/s writes (manufacturer specs, not what you'll get in the 'real world' on current Intel platform supplied chipsets, unlike Nvidia...maybe it will improve with the Monteviña chipset next summer).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serial_ATA
MTRON MSP 7000 SSD - Raptors Beware
http://www.anandtech.com/storage/showdoc.aspx?i=3167
Samsung, Ridata SSD Offerings Tested
http://www.tomshardware.com/2007/12/17/solid_state_drives/index.html
Mtron SSD 32 GB: Performance with a Catch
http://www.tomshardware.com/2007/11/21/mtron_ssd_32_gb/
http://www.anandtech.com/storage/showdoc.aspx?i=3064
Ie, the current fastest 2.5in Hitachi laptop drive, 7k200 tops out at 71MBs in transfer rates on reads only (writes are naturally slower), whereas the 250GB WD Scorpio 5.4k rpm drive comes in at a significantly slower 58MB/s (and the jump to 320GB from areal density increase will not make up that much of a difference) leaving both below 'real world' Intel chipset supported max thoroughtput.
http://www.storagereview.com/php/benchmark/bench_sort.php
See this Wiki link for discussion of various I/O standards/specs. Remember that USB2.0 on the Mac, with whatever drivers and chip controller flaws, limits USB2.0 to ~30MB/s, whereas on the PC side it can be ~40MB/s or only about what Firewire 400 does in 'real world' tests (see http://www.barefeats.com for examples). What will really be cool, is if Apple is the 1st to support the newly announced FW3200 standard. It will be more than a year before any 2.5in HD comes close to approaching the maximum SATA150 affords (in single drive more, Alienware offers a 2x320GB Samsung RAID0 option in their 17in laptop). Very expensive (none that would make it into an Apple laptop within the next year...maybe 2 or 3 though) SSD's, like those from Mtron will shortly push the limits of SATA150's 'real world' bandwidth limit (not theoretical 187.5MBs limit).
OWC Mercury On-The-Go FireWire 800/400 +USB 2.0 2.5" Portable Case Kit for SATA 2.5" Hard Drives
A bit pricey, but very good quality, and it is FW800, and it includes nice quality braided cables.
A train carrying some 30+ containers of UPS packages derailed in Illinois this morning. Just my luck, that's where my Scorpio 320 drive is.
wow that sucks. i hate shipping delays.
Now UPS shows it is in route and on time again for a XMas Eve delivery. But if the carton looks damaged or beat up I'll refuse it.
Now that's a quick response! Thanks! I hope your HD survives the trip. You can always try it out and refuse it later if it doesn't work.
Edit: $90!!! Holy CRAP!
dont!, newegg packs their stuff REALLY REALLY well (two to three layers of bubble wrap around the drive, then in a box of popcorn) itll be fine
I know that. I've been using Newegg for years. However, I am not in a hurry for the drive, and it will contain my life on it (as my MBP internal). Even though I use Time Machine, I won't take the chance if it looks like the package suffered any unusual hard impacts. There's no reason I need to take the chance if I suspect it.
It's easy to say from the stats available from the vendors.
The 7200rpm drive has a quicker seek time (typical of 7200rpm drives). The 7200rpm has a slightly higher maximum throughput, but it's a close call. The 7200rpm drive has a bigger cache, which may help (but may not).
3Gb/s SATA vs. 1.5Gb/s SATA has nothing to do with single drive throughput. When a drive has a maximum throughput of 850 or 875Mbp/s (just over half of 1.5G/s), and you only have one drive, 1.5Gb/s isn't a bottleneck.
The larger 5400rpm drive is a good deal for people who need the capacity. For those who perpetually have 50GB of storage free, the 7200rpm drive will be a better performer.
I'm not a doctor, but I am an enterprise storage professional.
rezenclowd3
macrumors 65816
A train carrying some 30+ containers of UPS packages derailed in Illinois this morning. Just my luck, that's where my Scorpio 320 drive is.
Wow, you unlucky bastard... Sorry to hear that. :-( BTW, ever watch "Unbreakable"? Mebbe thats why it derailed
At least it wasn't my new TV. That's on a DHL truck for delivery Wednesday.Wow, you unlucky bastard... Sorry to hear that. :-( BTW, ever watch "Unbreakable"? Mebbe thats why it derailed
That is a nice enclosure, but if you just want something to clone drives or for temporary use, I'd suggest the Universal Drive Adapter. It's $30 from Other World Computing and converts any PATA or SATA drive (3.5" or 2.5") into a USB2 drive. I have used mine many times in the last year for drive replacements (MacBook, Mac Mini, Apple TV and a couple of others).
Is SuperDuper compatible enough with Leopard for me to just make a simple bootable clone of my internal to the new Scorpio? I just want to do that and swap them to start using the new Scorpio as my internal.
Never mind. I found out how to do what I want easily using Time Machine or Disk Utility.
Actually, this seems like the best and easiest option, using Disk Utility:
Duplicating a disk
You can duplicate one hard disk or volume onto another. For example, you
can duplicate a disk that contains photos and movies to send to a friend, or
you can duplicate your startup volume to use as a backup.
To duplicate a disk:
Click the disk or volume you want to duplicate and click the Restore tab.
Drag the disk or volume you want to copy to the Source field.
You can drag it from the list at the left or from the Finder.
Drag the disk or volume that will contain the copy to the Destination field.
If you can’t drag a particular disk or volume to that field, you can’t copy to
it. If it’s your startup disk or volume, start up your computer with another
disk, such as your Mac OS X install disk. Otherwise, try to quit any
applications that are on it or that use documents on that disk.
If you want to erase the destination before copying to it, select “Erase
destination.” If you want to use the copy as a startup disk, select “Erase
destination.”
If you want to add the original’s contents to the destination without erasing
it, deselect “Erase destination.”
Click the Restore button.
Then you're probably two or three inches away from getting one of these:
Hitachi to Release 500 Gigabyte Notebook Hard Drive in February:
http://www.powerpage.org/2008/01/hi...gigabyte_notebook_hard_drive_in_february.html