External Hard drives?

Question

I want to get a new external hardrive (filled the old one)
Is there a difference between the small ones that run on usb power and the larger ones that you plug into the wall?
are both reliable to keep data?

can anyone recoommend ones you've had success with??

Answer 1

both of them are reliable to keep data.
but the USB one usually used if you want to take your data with
and the big one is better if ou just want to keep it into your computer (also cheaper)

Answer 2

USB or Firewire external drives that have there own power units are best for your system as one's that draw power from you computer can cause problems unless you have a large reliable Power Supply Unit.
I would suggest a powered external hard drive (or for that matter a hard drive caddy) and a reasonable size USB Memory card if you want to move information around (it's surprising how much you can fit on 2Gb).
For speed of data transfer go firwire if you can (you can get PCI firewire cards if your PC doesn't have one). Mini hard drives can also have a compatability problem if you try using them on a '98 or linux machine (you should use FAT32 to be on the safe side).

Another thing you should look at it the software that comes with any external hard drive especially stuff that can make automatic system and data backups, a real must with the notorious unreliability of windows.

I have 2 Maxtor 300Gb externals which have proven more than reliable, with 2 2Gb USB sticks.

Another option is a network hard drive which can be used with as many PCs as you have in the house, it really is a matter of what you are going to use them for.

Answer 3

Your external hard drive should show as an icon on your screen. Simply drag and drop everything you want on that drive. If you want to clear space on your machine's hard drive then don't forget to delete whatever you move onto the Lacie once you have checked that it has transferred successfully. If you want to start putting stuff directly on the Lacie then just specify it as the destination whenever you save something. You have a massive amount of capacity as it stands and I am unsure why you want to move stuff onto the Lacie, unless it is for reasons of backup, which is obviously a good idea. It's a shame you are not on a Mac, as you would then have, on Leopard, the fabulous Time Machine facility which will mean never losing anything ever again. If you don't think you are much good at computers make your next one a Mac - they are simpler, smarter, and cooler than a PC, and much easier to use. Vista is where Mac was about ten years ago.

Answer 4

The smaller the better. The best is if you can get a 1.8" Hard Drive fixed in to a External Box with USB connectivity. This Hard Disk drive is exactly the one used in iPOD Video. But most cost effective is the 2.5" type. This uses the Hard Disk Drive used mostly in Note Book PC. Both the 1.8" and 2.5" type operate on USB power and do not need external power. So, it is very portable as you do not hv to carry a an AC adaptor also. But if you are looking for stable, fast, high-capacity and back-up storage, then you may hv to go for a 3.5" type. Here, it is very easy to get a 300GB capacity ones very easily.

I hv used a 2.5" type for portable use and I am very happy about it.

Answer 5

Though I have both, I preferred the 2.5" hard disk. The advantage are more portable and no external power. You can carry it anywhere as it is just like a pocket calculator. Data are reliable for both but I got problems with the big one for non-high speed computers (old computers).

Answer 6

When u consider the speed of data transfer, its the sata harddisk that wins over usb harddisk. The speed of processing will be greatly affected when u use the usb harddisk. The reliability is same in both, and u have vulnerability of usb harddisk as you are often displacing it. The only benefit of usb harddirve is its portability.
if u felt ur processing is not of much importance but only for data storage, go for usb.

Answer 7

A lot of differences, size for one, price and speeds are others.

USB ones...
The Verbatim Store 'N" Go 4 gig one is ok, read/write speeds are 469 and 623 seconds, respectively.
It comes with nice software but has an annoying cable.About $130
The Western Digital Passport Pocket 6gig has nice security optins, but is way too slow to mention it further.
The PNY Maxfile Attache 8gig is real fast at read speeds of 361 seconds and write speeds at 430 seconds. But again another nice little drive brought down by something bad, its cable is junk and pron to breaking and stretching. About $150

The read and write times im providing you were done on with 3 gigs worth of info at one time.

Best bet is to stay with the larger ones, you can get a WD My Book , which is about the size of a good sized novel, with decent read and write times, for about $70 for the 80gig one and about $90 for the 120gig one.

Answer 8

If your thinking of using a jumpdrive over a conventional hard drive, i can say from experience that they are so much nicer. And i've never had any problems from mine, I just hung it around my neck when i'd go to work, and i'd have everything I needed from home: passwords, pictures, reports ect. However, the downside is, you usually don't get too too much hard drive space on a jumpdrive, and if you plan on backing up your computer on it, you may not have enough space. But other than that, if you just want a hard drive to tote your school or office work, a jump drive is amazing!

Answer 9

USB is better. I tried both and i find the USB ones are better. Believe me

Answer 10

yes they are both good,i like having these cables and just use a regular harddrive,even though i have a small one..