Need more hard drive space on my computer. What are the pro's and con's of an external versus and internal dr?

Question

Pro's and Con's of external versus internal hard drive. If I go with an external what brand is the best to get?

Answer 1

I understand it's 4 a desktop
- in which case i would suggest an internal drive

u get drives of upto 500 gb

cheaper, neater - no added space no wiring,

u can do u'r bit of research,
http://www.pcguide.com/ref/hdd/perf/perf/issuesIntExt-c.html
http://www.storagereview.com/guide2000/ref/hdd/perf/perf/issuesIntExt.html

Answer 2

As already mentioned, internal cards are quite a bit cheaper than external. However, you didn't mention whether you are replacing your existing drive, or only adding on to it. If you are replacing it, you would want an internal drive since it will hold the operating system, etc. Internal drives also tend to be accessible even if some aspects of the PC are having problems - not sure if you can access an external drive at all if you had to boot your PC into safe mode, for example.

Do you need to take the contents of the drive with you to access from other computers? This would work best with an external drive. If you're not going to take it with you, though, there's not much benefit to an external drive over the internal ones. Also, external drives can have the cords knocked loose, etc. Just an inconvenience, but can still take some time to figure out what's wrong.

Answer 3

In my opinion, the advantage of external devices is that they are easier to access. They just plug into any available USB or Firewire port, can be daisy chained as needs grow, and can be easily picked up and moved in the event of an emergency. You're always gonna' get better speed with an internal device, that is a given, that will depend on what types of files you plan to work with. If you're going to be working with images, then possibly a mix of internal (for working files) and external (for in progress/saved files) might be the ticket. All just things to consider.

As far as brands I'd tend to stick with those who've a reputation for quality such as Seagate, Toshiba, Fujitsu for internals and Seagate or Western Digital for externals.

Answer 4

1) If u r needed for desktop pc then buy internal one
Its cheaper , faster .
2) External-slower in speed & high price.

Answer 5

An internal is Much cheaper. Do you need to cart large volumes of data around? Then the extra money might be worth it,,:-)=

Answer 6

Programs should be installed on you internal drive. Your files and folders (especially music and video) should be stored on your external drive.

Answer 7

internal
pro - cheap, huge amt dr available
con - limit to ur pc oni unless u pluck in and out

external
pro - gd for ppl who need data on the move
con - costly, and not as big amt as internal one

Answer 8

EXTERNAL IS HIGHER IN PRICE AS U NEED THE ADDITIONAL COST OF THE ENCLOSURE , INTERNALL BETTER VALUE NO ENCLOSURE NEEDED.INTERNAL WILL GIVE YOU BETTER PERFORMANCE HOWEVER IF YOU ARE A NOVICE YOU WILL NEED TO UNDERSTAND JUMPER SETTINGS ETC.EXTERNAL IS JUST PLUG AND USE.