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teresabush · Aug 23, 2011, 05:23 AM

My MacBook now has limited space for videos now, and I would like to buy an external hard drive disk for it.

I notice that there are Seagate, Western Digital, but not sure which one is better, and properly better for both Mac and Windows.

Any suggestions?

residentEvil · Aug 23, 2011, 05:37 AM

*sniff*sniff*

make sure the enclosure for the new drive has at least USB2 and FW400. From there, eSata and FW800 is only a few dollars more. Go with at least a 7200RPM drive as well. I'd get any drive BUT a Western Digital.

and since you are "new", check the correct forum next time too.

CharlesS · Aug 23, 2011, 03:37 PM

FW400 is a waste of money. Either go for FW800 or just stick with USB. eSATA is nice, except that Apple never seems to want to include it, so it's pretty useless for Macs, unless you happen to have that one 17" model that still has an ExpressCard slot.

USB 3.0 is a nice compromise between cheap and future proof (Macs don't support USB 3.0 yet, so you'd have USB 2.0 speeds in the short term, but your next Mac will probably have USB3 on it since Intel will eventually put it on the motherboard).

As usual, my recommendation is to build your own. It's easy and requires no skill other than how to use a screwdriver. You can either get a cheap USB case or a good FW800 case, and then put this drive in it. This way, you'll get the full warranty on the drive, and you'll be able to pop out the drive and put a bigger one in for cheap without having to pay for the case all over again should the need arise.

Spheric Harlot · Aug 23, 2011, 03:44 PM

Originally Posted by residentEvil

I'd get any drive BUT a Western Digital.

why?

CharlesS · Aug 23, 2011, 03:58 PM

I'd guess he's referring to the quality of their external enclosures, which is not known to be great. Their internal drives, however, are pretty much the best for this sort of thing, particularly the Green drives, which don't get as hot or use as much energy as other models, reducing the risk of the drive overheating in the enclosure. I've got a WD20EARS in a OWC enclosure right now, and it's a great drive.

BTW, if you decide to get a drive other than the one I recommended, avoid 7200 RPM drives. A 5400 RPM is already going to be faster than either USB 2.0 and FireWire themselves, so the only thing a 7200 RPM is going to get you is more heat, and higher chance of failure.

residentEvil · Aug 23, 2011, 04:35 PM

Originally Posted by Spheric Harlot

why?

personal choice/experience? cheap and average life span aren't very long. when getting a large sized external drive, i want it around for awhile. for that, i stick to server based components (10k and 15k SAS or 7200 SATA). never had a WD* SATA last longer then a 10 - 12 months.

* i have several Hitatchi SATA disks that are now on year 2. i hope with the WD buy-out they don't die by association

residentEvil · Aug 23, 2011, 04:43 PM

Originally Posted by CharlesS

FW400 is a waste of money. Either go for FW800 or just stick with USB. eSATA is nice, except that Apple never seems to want to include it, so it's pretty useless for Macs, unless you happen to have that one 17" model that still has an ExpressCard slot.

USB 3.0 is a nice compromise between cheap and future proof (Macs don't support USB 3.0 yet, so you'd have USB 2.0 speeds in the short term, but your next Mac will probably have USB3 on it since Intel will eventually put it on the motherboard).

As usual, my recommendation is to build your own. It's easy and requires no skill other than how to use a screwdriver. You can either get a cheap USB case or a good FW800 case, and then put this drive in it. This way, you'll get the full warranty on the drive, and you'll be able to pop out the drive and put a bigger one in for cheap without having to pay for the case all over again should the need arise.

you talk future proof but then say USB3. while backwards compatible, not many computers are being shipped with that and none in the mac lines. might as well say Thunderbolt then since that is backward compatible too with adapters.

but since the poster wants it to work in both environments now...an external case with USB2 and FW400 (and my suggestion with FW800 and eSATA too) is future proof on both platforms and doesn't add much cost for the case.

as for 5400 v 7200 or 2.5" v 3.5", see my post above about what i buy. 2.5" 5400 RPM drives aren't what i want in an external case.

usually the external drive is for archival/backup storage (and in this case from the OP, video storage/playing i assume) and for that i would buy accordingly. if you are simply wanting to movie a bunch of large files often between machines, which is exactly what a 5400 2.5" laptop drive in an external case is good for, then i agree. i have 2 of those...bus powered and beats being limited to thumb drive sizes

CharlesS · Aug 23, 2011, 04:56 PM

Originally Posted by residentEvil

you talk future proof but then say USB3. while backwards compatible, not many computers are being shipped with that and none in the mac lines. might as well say Thunderbolt then since that is backward compatible too with adapters.

Once Intel puts USB3 on the motherboard, every Mac and PC in the world will ship with it. That's why I say it's future-proof.

Your next Mac will probably have USB3 ports on it.

but since the poster wants it to work in both environments now...an external case with USB2 and FW400 (and my suggestion with FW800 and eSATA too) is future proof on both platforms and doesn't add much cost for the case.

A USB3 enclosure costs $25. USB2 enclosures are even cheaper. A FW800 enclosure costs $80. If you think tripling the price is not much extra cost, well...

FW400 enclosures will usually at least double the cost of a USB2/3 enclosure as well, in addition to not being that much faster than USB2 in the first place. A complete waste.

as for 5400 v 7200 or 2.5" v 3.5", see my post above about what i buy. 2.5" 5400 RPM drives aren't what i want in an external case.

I've had good luck with WD so far, and so have a lot of people on here I believe. They're a highly respected brand, and they're what Apple uses in their Time Capsules these days.

And if longevity is what you want, like I said before, 7200 RPM is not the way to go. It won't get you any extra speed, but it will cause it to generate more heat and probably fail sooner.

As for 2.5" vs. 3.5", the OP didn't specify which he was going for. I assumed 3.5", which is my default since you can get larger and more reliable drives for cheap. If you want it to be powered by the USB/FireWire port instead of plugging into the wall, then yes, you will want a 2.5" drive instead.

residentEvil · Aug 24, 2011, 07:49 AM

we can play the pricegrabber game for ions, but i'm not paying anywhere near $80 for an oxford quad interface 3.5" external enclosure...and it COMES with all 4 cables!

as with ANY brand name prodcut; its all in the eye of the beholder. i stand by not buying anything from WD. good for you that you like them.

Spheric Harlot · Aug 24, 2011, 07:59 AM

Originally Posted by residentEvil

we can play [...] for ions

this one took me a good while.

CharlesS · Aug 24, 2011, 01:13 PM

Originally Posted by residentEvil

we can play the pricegrabber game for ions, but i'm not paying anywhere near $80 for an oxford quad interface 3.5" external enclosure...and it COMES with all 4 cables!

If you have a link to a cheaper quad interface enclosure, please share it!

cgc · Aug 24, 2011, 03:08 PM

I'd recommend getting an external enclosure with either eSata (preferred) or FW800 (make sure it's an Oxford chipset) then buying a brand name hard drive and sticking it inside. Can do this for a little more than the cost of a complete external HDD but this way you know you have brand name parts inside.

teresabush · Aug 25, 2011, 05:32 AM

Sorry for posting in the wrong section, and thanks for correcting me.

Originally Posted by CharlesS

As usual, my recommendation is to build your own. It's easy and requires no skill other than how to use a screwdriver. You can either get a cheap USB case or a good FW800 case, and then put this drive in it. This way, you'll get the full warranty on the drive, and you'll be able to pop out the drive and put a bigger one in for cheap without having to pay for the case all over again should the need arise.

I never think of DIY. Great idea!

Originally Posted by residentEvil

usually the external drive is for archival/backup storage (and in this case from the OP, video storage/playing i assume) and for that i would buy accordingly. if you are simply wanting to movie a bunch of large files often between machines, which is exactly what a 5400 2.5" laptop drive in an external case is good for, then i agree. i have 2 of those...bus powered and beats being limited to thumb drive sizes

Oh yes, I would like to have movies/videos in the external drive, and connect to my PC or Mac when I need to play them.

I appreciate the advice from you guys.

CharlesS · Aug 25, 2011, 12:00 PM

I found a slightly cheaper FW800 case than the OWC enclosure; slightly over $70.

Newegg.com - macally G-S350SUAB2 Aluminum 3.5" Silver USB2.0 / eSATA / FireWire External Enclosure

Macally used to use Initio chipsets in their enclosures, but I think the new ones that look like the G5/Mac Pro towers use Oxford.

Spheric Harlot · Aug 25, 2011, 12:04 PM

Originally Posted by residentEvil

we can play the pricegrabber game for ions, but i'm not paying anywhere near $80 for an oxford quad interface 3.5" external enclosure...and it COMES with all 4 cables!

I, too, am intrigued.

Link, please!

kittonian · Sep 9, 2011, 01:08 PM

The best (meaning most reliable and easiest to connect to any machine) that we've found is the Lacie Rugged series. The drive is housed in a shock mounted protective case and has USB, FW400, and FW800 connections. Plug in and go. Plus, they've dropped in price recently so you can pickup a few if you want.