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Patrick_Bateman · Apr 12, 2002, 10:12 PM

I plan on purchasing either one of these three...

Acomdata 40GB, USB 2.0 for $170.
Acomdata 60GB, USB 2.0 for $200.
Maxtor 40GB, USB 2.0 for $190.

I chose these three, because I don't want to use my credit to purchase online, and these are the best ones that I can buy with cash.

So...The size doesn't really matter that much to me...it's the quality and performance that matters...Which one would you prefer?

Patrick_Bateman · Apr 12, 2002, 10:14 PM

By the way, I have a iBook 500, 10GB HD, using OS X. Hopefully those hard drives work flawlessly with OS X.

Macola · Apr 13, 2002, 11:26 AM

Originally posted by Patrick_Bateman:
By the way, I have a iBook 500, 10GB HD, using OS X. Hopefully those hard drives work flawlessly with OS X.

You won't get the throughput of USB 2.0, so it may be better get a Firewire external drive instead (although Firewire in OS X is a little flaky still).

Patrick_Bateman · Apr 13, 2002, 12:11 PM

How about this...

Buslink, 40GB, Firewire, for $215.

I know Firewire and USB is a huge difference...but, $215 for the 40GB/Firewire and $170 for the $40GB, USB...Is the Firewire worth $45 extra, not including tax?

I know I can't use the USB 2.0...will the USB 1 be THAT SLOW?

Thank you for your help.

CRASH HARDDRIVE · Apr 13, 2002, 01:34 PM

Originally posted by Patrick_Bateman:
How about this...

Buslink, 40GB, Firewire, for $215.

I know Firewire and USB is a huge difference...but, $215 for the 40GB/Firewire and $170 for the $40GB, USB...Is the Firewire worth $45 extra, not including tax?

I know I can't use the USB 2.0...will the USB 1 be THAT SLOW?

Thank you for your help.

Yeah, it'll be THAT slow. I'd go with the Firewire option, even if it costs a bit more. If you had some way to add USB 2.0 to the iBook I'd recommend it, but you don't, so it's not such a good idea to jones yourself on drive speed by so much.

You should be able to save a bundle of dough by going with a standard USB 1.0 external drive (or enclosure/drive) if that's where you're happy with going... so why pay the extra dough for USB 2.0 speed that you can't use?

Are these harddives the smaller laptop size, or standard 3.5" drives? You should be able to shave more off the price by getting the hard-drive and external firewire enclosure seperatly.

Patrick_Bateman · Apr 13, 2002, 03:05 PM

Well...I decided to go to Staples (Never thought about it in the first place) and I saw a Maxtor 80GB, Firewire drive for $199. I asked the person if that was the correct price, and it was. Right there, I bought it, because it just seemed like a great deal. It wasn't on the website at all...it was just there.

So, Now, I have it...I'm installing it now...have to install OS 9 first to install the software. Damn classic! Hopefully, I'll have no problems with my new hard drive. 80GB!!! Hell yeah!

Thank you once again for your help.

Macola · Apr 16, 2002, 12:30 PM

Originally posted by Patrick_Bateman:

So, Now, I have it...I'm installing it now...have to install OS 9 first to install the software. Damn classic! Hopefully, I'll have no problems with my new hard drive. 80GB!!! Hell yeah!

You don't need to install OS 9 if you don't want to; the drive will work fine with OS X . The Maxtor software for the Mac is nothing much; all they give you is essentially their own Firewire driver, but you're much better off using Apple's Firewire extensions built into OS9, or the native Firewire support in OS X. I should warn you that I'm not a Maxtor fan...too many bad experiences, but hope you have better luck!

Red Wolf · Apr 16, 2002, 04:26 PM

I think I'm going to head over to my local Staples

Question: is going from a 5400 rpm firewire drive to a 7200 rpm firewire drive worth an extra $50 for the new iBook?

Patrick_Bateman · Apr 16, 2002, 10:29 PM

So far...Everything has been going well.

I already installed OS 9 and installed the software. I didn't know that I didn't have to do that...Too late now. Thanks though.

$200 for an 80GB 5400 HD is pretty good.

What many bad experiences did you have with Maxtor????

Macola · Apr 17, 2002, 09:45 AM

Originally posted by Patrick_Bateman:
What many bad experiences did you have with Maxtor????

Lots of posts here and on MacFixit describe similar problems to mine with Maxtor Firewire drives. Long story short: 40 GB FW drive had the notorious "red light" problem after a few months, returned it, got a replacement, worked okay for a few months, then had the same problems, finally corrupted drivers, FW bridge completely died. The bottom line is their IDE drives (within the enclosures) may be okay, but their FW bridges suck.

Patrick_Bateman · Apr 17, 2002, 11:33 AM

Originally posted by Macola:


Lots of posts here and on MacFixit describe similar problems to mine with Maxtor Firewire drives. Long story short: 40 GB FW drive had the notorious "red light" problem after a few months, returned it, got a replacement, worked okay for a few months, then had the same problems, finally corrupted drivers, FW bridge completely died. The bottom line is their IDE drives (within the enclosures) may be okay, but their FW bridges suck.

.....Damn......That's terrible. I did get a special warranty that if something goes wrong, I can just get my money back. Damn though, I really hope nothing bad happens. I thought Maxtor drives were very good too...**** .

Thank you for telling me this though...I appreciate it. Now, if it happens, I won't be as angry and suprise.