What HD can I upgrade to?

[ptjh]

I currently have a 7200, 200 or 250 GB HD in my unibody mac - the one it came with. However I'm sick of moving around my 1TB external HD and just want to use that as back up and upgrade my internal HD.

I've never installed a HD before and don't have a clue what makes, models, sizes will fit perfectly and which are compatible.

I read 500GB seagate ones work but ideally i'd want one that's 1Gb +
Can I do this? Are there any big drives intended for laptop use? Do 'desktop' hard drives only work in desktops or would they not be durable enough?

Thanks

 

[maflynn]

At the moment 650gig is the largest HD that you can fit into the MBP

 

[spinnerlys]

It all comes down to size.

Desktop computers use 3.5" HDDs, laptops use 2.5" HDDs.

So you can't use a desktop HDD inside a laptop, as those drives are to big.

There is a 640GB, 750GB and maybe even a 1TB 2.5" drive around, but depending on your MacBook they are tho high, as the maximum height of internal HDDs for Mac laptops is around 9.5mm. Maybe you have a model that can accept bigger drives.

3.5" on the left _________________ 2.5" on the right.

 

[ptjh]

Cool, thanks. So i'll look for as much space as I can in 2.5" size. Any ideas on models or brands you mention in 640GB, 750GB and maybe and 1TB 2.5" drives? I looked on dabs but it says the 2.5 drives come in:

2.5" x 1/8H , 2.5" , 2.5" SFF , 2.5" SFF Slim , 2.5" x 1/6H

Most models seem to be 2.5 x 1/8H. The model of MBP I have is the 1st gen unibody 15" that came out around Sept 2008. Is there anywhere I can find out about the perfect size for my laptop?

 

[Eruanno]

9.5 mm is indeed the height of drives in all portable Macs (...I think? The 9.5 mm-height-drive I installed into my dads white MacBook fit perfectly)

 

[maflynn]

Cool, thanks. So i'll look for as much space as I can in 2.5" size. Any ideas on models or brands you mention in 640GB, 750GB and maybe and 1TB 2.5" drives? I looked on dabs but it says the 2.5 drives come in

No, as I mentioned, 650gb is the largest drive that will fit inside the MBP. All other drives are physically to large at the moment. AFAIK, only the western digital 650 is the one you want as its 9.5mm

 

[ptjh]

No, as I mentioned, 650gb is the largest drive that will fit inside the MBP. All other drives are physically to large at the moment. AFAIK, only the western digital 650 is the one you want as its 9.5mm

Alright thanks. It's the Scorpio Blue isn't it

http://www.dabs.com/products/wester...-3gb-s-65JZ.html?refs=47250000-50473-50480000

On the downside a couple of users have reported that it is slow compared to even the 5400 rpm one that ships with the MBP so I don't know if it'll be any good for audio work.

 

[Gabriel GR]

The largest 9.5mm HDD to fit is the Scorpio Blue 640GB. Some claim that even the thicker 1TB drives fit but I've not seen any installation guide for these.

If you want more capacity, you have to think whether you need your optical drive. If you don't, you can install another 640GB drive in it's place. If you RAID them you will get a significant performance boost as well.

For what it's worth, I don't feel comfortably with carrying 1TB of my data in a laptop because it's more prone to lose and HDD failure.