• Some users have recently had their accounts hijacked. It seems that the now defunct EVGA forums might have compromised your password there and seems many are using the same PW here. We would suggest you UPDATE YOUR PASSWORD and TURN ON 2FA for your account here to further secure it. None of the compromised accounts had 2FA turned on.
    Once you have enabled 2FA, your account will be updated soon to show a badge, letting other members know that you use 2FA to protect your account. This should be beneficial for everyone that uses FSFT.

Suggestions on an external HD

R

rage4order

Gawd
Joined
Oct 4, 2004
Messages
795
I'm looking to buy an external HD and would like some suggestions. I'm mainly going to use it as a backup to my Ipod(which is 30Gb) so I'm looking at anywhere from 30-100 gig. I'd like to keep the price under $100 and I saw a Seagate 120gb in the paper for $90 but it only has a 2mb buffer. My question is, is the difference between a 2mb and an 8mb buffer that big? Also, what are some other factors I should look out for?
 
rage4order said:
My question is, is the difference between a 2mb and an 8mb buffer that big?
Click to expand...
In a USB drive, you won't notice a difference - USB limits you to ~20MB/s.
 
TeeJayHoward said:
In a USB drive, you won't notice a difference - USB limits you to ~20MB/s.
Click to expand...
Ok, as I said, I'm going to use it to back up my Ipod so really the first transfer/download will be the biggest. As it is, it's only about 3 gig right now anyways. After that, I'll really just be updating as I get more music/videos.
 
rage4order said:
Ok, as I said, I'm going to use it to back up my Ipod so really the first transfer/download will be the biggest. As it is, it's only about 3 gig right now anyways. After that, I'll really just be updating as I get more music/videos.
Click to expand...
Understood. My intention was to point out that the buffer difference is insignificant in an external enclosure. Other factors to look out for would be the spindle speed -bigger is better. 7200RPM is average, but it most likely won't make a difference on an external. Rather or not it requires an external power source is another thing to look for. It's possible to pick up a little 40GB laptop hard drive in a usb enclosure within your price range, and most of those do not require external power. Simple, small, effective. It's about the same size as your ipod, I'd say.
 
TeeJayHoward said:
Understood. My intention was to point out that the buffer difference is insignificant in an external enclosure. Other factors to look out for would be the spindle speed -bigger is better. 7200RPM is average, but it most likely won't make a difference on an external. Rather or not it requires an external power source is another thing to look for. It's possible to pick up a little 40GB laptop hard drive in a usb enclosure within your price range, and most of those do not require external power. Simple, small, effective. It's about the same size as your ipod, I'd say.
Click to expand...
No, I didn't mean anything by my reply. Sorry if you took it wrong. Also, you did remind me about the power source deal. A laptop HD had crossed my mind for the simple fact that I can run it off the USB power. I did see a 60GB one at CompUSA for $90. I may just go with that one so I don't have to worry about the power source, plus I already have an enclosure for a lappy HD. Thanks so much for your help.
 
TeeJayHoward said:
In a USB drive, you won't notice a difference - USB limits you to ~20MB/s.
Click to expand...

I have a laptop drive in an external usb enclosure and it has a nice declining hdtach from 28MB/s to 15MB/s with a 33MB/s burst. I'm thinking the interface could probably handle up to 40MB/s if needed.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top