[m4hl3r]

Hello.

I've been looking for a external hard drive, but I'm divided

I've come up with two options:

1. A LaCie Brick Mobile HD - 2.5" - 80 GB HD 5400 RPM - USB 2.0 FW 400
http://www.lacie.com/products/product.htm?pid=10700

2. A RaidSonic Icy Box without HD - 2.5"
(Link to manufacturer, but it's in german - remember, google is your friend.)
http://www.raidsonic.de/de/pages/pro..._objectID=3178

I really like that case of the RaidSonic Icy Box, however, I have no idea what HD to put in it.
HD spec.
capacity: min. 60 GB max. 100 GB
RPM: min. 5400 RPM but 7200 RPM would be better.
2.5"
Quiet, but a little noise is not a problem.
Out from those spec.s what HD would you recommend?

I'll be using it on Mac and a PC (.. I know, but it's for games )

My budget is around $200 - max. $225

Thanks.

- M4hl3r

[Franz Josef]

LaCie drives are good but I wouldn't go for a mobile external HD unless you need mobility - you will pay for the privelege. I'd avoid the brick too - it's just a little trendy and you pay for that.

An external drive should have lots of capacity - certainly not less than 100 GB and I would recommend 150-250GB - you can never have too much. If you have FW800 and don't need mobility, this triple interface160GB drive would be a good one.

[usurp]

on amazon i saw a lot of negative reviews on the Lacie drives. I ended up getting a 320GB Western Digital, dual interface for around $234. I read the Iomega are pretty fast and reliable also.

[torifile]

We have a purchasing advice forum for questions like this.

[k squared]

I just purchased a LaCie 160GB FW drive from Amazon. Absolutly no problems so far.

[m4hl3r]

Thanks for the response everyone, but I've decided to go for the LaCie Brick Mobile HD - 2.5" - 80 GB HD 5400 RPM - USB 2.0 FW 400. I'll recieve it early March

Thanks again.

- M4hl3r

[Robo]

Originally Posted by Franz Josef LaCie drives are good but I wouldn't go for a mobile external HD unless you need mobility - you will pay for the privelege. I'd avoid the brick too - it's just a little trendy and you pay for that.

Actually, surprisingly, you don't. The Brick hard drives are the same prices as their "normal," F. A. Porsche-designed hard drives.

I don't think there is a mobile version of their normal drives, so the Brick Mobile might be a different story, but I'd still assume it's priced competitively.

And even if you did pay a bit extra for the design - what's wrong with that? I think most people are too left-brained. There's more to a product than specs. You'd think, as Mac users, we'd know that more than anyone...

[Franz Josef]

Originally Posted by Roboman Actually, surprisingly, you don't. The Brick hard drives are the same prices as their "normal," F. A. Porsche-designed hard drives..

Nothing normal about Porsche - they're designer drives: hence the moniker "designed by FA Porsche". Go up the range and compare bricks with similar bland drives - latter are cheaper.

Originally Posted by Roboman And even if you did pay a bit extra for the design - what's wrong with that?

Entirely personal choice - as long as you know you're doing it.

[usurp]

I thought the Porsche drives looked cool until i found out they were plastic not metal.

[Is it 1981?]

Sorry to bring back this Thread From The Dead™ but figured this would be a better place for it than to start a new thread.

I'm toying the the idea of buying an external hard drive; specifically the mobile Porsche/ LaCie one to use with my iMac G4. I know a desktop hard drive would make more sense (more value for money and better performance) but I don't really like having a power brick - the same reason I went and bought a mobile Porsche/ LaCie DVD burner.

But are there any reasons why I shouldn't go for the mobile hard drive? Is it safe for it to be constantly plugged in to the Mac? Is it only designed for light use? I wouldn't be running apps from it; mainly storage for photos, videos and work files (made with Creative Suite apps).

[Taskiss]

But are there any reasons why I shouldn't go for the mobile hard drive?

Storage and on-line availability are two different usage patterns for hard drive functionality.

My solution to the same issue plaguing you was to go with the 160 GB 7200 RPM drive in my MBP and later purchase a cheap external or perhaps even a network drive.

That said, I still put my decision to the test and eyeball the Firewire 800 1 Tb Western Digital MyBook Pro...

[Mugge]

I'm also pondering my external HD options, now that TimeMachine is coming. I have a 2.5" USB2/FW400 case with replaceable disk, so the easy thing to do would simply be to put a bigger disk in it. I also appreciate not needing to have it hooked up to it's own power cord. It also saves a little electricity that way.

But how much space would TimeMachine actually require compared to your Macs own HD? That's the question that's bugging me.

[thegeriatric]

Originally Posted by Mugge But how much space would TimeMachine actually require compared to your Macs own HD? That's the question that's bugging me.

Good question i'd like to know as well.

[Miko]

What I would like to know is how will Time Machine handle those of us that already have a large external drive connected to our Macs never mind two or three, and will it try to back up everything on the Mac and External Drive all together. This could lead to a massive amount of drive space needed for Time Machine.

[Sargasm]

Western Digital's line of MyBooks are awesome. I have a 500 gig one with Firewire 400 (no 800 unfortunately) connectivity, and it was about 130 bucks.

[Kickaha]

Originally Posted by Mugge I'm also pondering my external HD options, now that TimeMachine is coming. I have a 2.5" USB2/FW400 case with replaceable disk, so the easy thing to do would simply be to put a bigger disk in it. I also appreciate not needing to have it hooked up to it's own power cord. It also saves a little electricity that way. But how much space would TimeMachine actually require compared to your Macs own HD? That's the question that's bugging me.

Unless you're editing/moving large files around on a regular basis, my experience with incremental snapshot backups is that is takes only about 15-20% more space to do daily, weekly, and a few months worth. The vast number of files on the Mac are small - even things like .app bundles are made up of many many small files under the hood. Moving them is going to cause more space to be eaten than updating them.

[Mugge]

So, if I'm currently using 70 GB of my 100 GB HD and I have a 100 GB external HD, then it should be good for a while?

[Kickaha]

I'd say so, but I haven't played with TM specifically yet. Heck, I might be in the market for new hard drives in a month or two.

[Is it 1981?]

Originally Posted by Taskiss Storage and on-line availability are two different usage patterns for hard drive functionality. My solution to the same issue plaguing you was to go with the 160 GB 7200 RPM drive in my MBP and later purchase a cheap external or perhaps even a network drive.

Thanks for your reply, but I don't have a portable plus online availability isn't what I'm looking for. Also, my iMac is only a G4, doesn't have USB 2.0 and can't even run Leopard. Relatively old, then I was just looking for an external HD that I could keep plugged in to my iMac - as far as anyone is aware, there's no reason (apart from lower value, performance) I couldn't buy a mobile HD for that purpose as opposed to a desktop HD? I'm just not a fan of power bricks, plus I don't want to have to worry about turning the HD on and off; I just want it to be there whenever I need it (that's why I'd be happy to buy a mobile HD).

[FFL]

Originally Posted by Sargasm Western Digital's line of MyBooks are awesome. I have a 500 gig one with Firewire 400 (no 800 unfortunately) connectivity, and it was about 130 bucks.

I'm glad you are happy with yours, but I must disagree.

Western Digital external hard drives suck!

Half of them I've seen with clients have failed, and there are multiple failure reports throughout the AN forums.