Western Digital Passport 320 GB with Intel Macbook?

[bsheridan]

Does anyone have any experience in using a Western Digital Passport 320 GB model as an external HD with an intel macbook?

Do you power it with 1 or both usb ports?

Had any problems with it?

Would you recommend?

Thanks, .B.

 

[killmoms]

No experience with the 320GB model specifically, but all those portable drives that are bus-powered run off of one USB port for power and data. And since all Intel machines have USB 2.0, you're set.

 

[bsheridan]

I've read that people with PowerPCs have had to use both usb ports though.
Would you know if it has more GB, it will need more power?

 

[killmoms]

I've read that people with PowerPCs have had to use both usb ports though.
Would you know if it has more GB, it will need more power?

Regarding PowerPC users, that seems bizarre. Perhaps that's because they have older machines that lack USB 2.0? USB 1.1 didn't have as much power over the line as I recall.

As for a larger drive needing more power, that's not true. The power requirements of a drive come from its physical size and rotation speed (and thus the energy needed to keep it rotating). Larger 3.5" hard drives, the kind used in desktops, require more power because they spin faster and are physically larger (which is why 3.5" drive-based externals require external power). Notebook drives in the 2.5" form factor all require the same amount of power, which is small enough that it can be delivered solely via the USB bus.

 

[bsheridan]

Thanks for clearing that up for me, much appreciated.

 

[spacepower7]

I have the WD 250GB. It works fine with my Macbook and iBook 1.42GHZ. It doesn't work with Powerbook G4 1.25GHZ or 1.33GHZ. With those we use a powered USB hub and it works fine.

The WD package says that some computers may require a Y-cable which hooks the drive to two USB ports to assure that it gets enough power.