How To Build A Portable Usb Hard Drive

Instead of buying one of the big 40 GB or 100 GB portable usb drives on the market from seagate, etc...I wanted to build one by buying an internal drive for a laptop and put it in a steel casing since it would be cheaper. Also the internal drive would have a 3-5 year warranty against the 1 year warranty for above products. I wanted to ask other people on here about pros and cons?? This is a sample description I got on Amazon...However, for the same price (if you select 120GB) or even cheaper (if you choose 100GB) you can purchase a very small internal notebook hard drive (ATA6 or other suitable interface) and aluminum enclosure (supplied with USB cable, slim carrying case, and screwdriver set), put it together and make a perfect portable external hard drive. This will be definitely smaller in size and a more strategic investment. If you purchase the notebook hard drive, which is compatible with your laptop's interface, one day you may just upgrade your notebook. Otherwise, I think Seagate put inside a proprietary hard drive, which is can't be used for your computer upgrade needs. Also, internal notebook hard drives are usually provided by 3-year warranty and some even by 5-year (Seagate Momentus hard drive) but Seagate provides you only with a 1-year warranty, so keep that in mind as well. Won't you be sorry for your purchase if the drive crashes after a year of use losing all your data and invested money? So please reply!!🙂

Ok i have a similar question. 4 IDE slots available on my MB. Two taken up by hard drives and the other two taken up disc drives. Now i have an old 20GB seagate lying around. How do i access it in my comp via USB.

yes,indeed thats a good idea.but you have to compromise the speed.In a best case condition,from the hardware available now,u couldnt get half the speed of internal hdd.but hey u get 5 year warranty and max size for your money.waterloo,buy a usb to ide controller or a 3.5" hdd case (not sure if its the exact name) and connect the ide to ur hdd and usb to ur usb port, voilà 20gb pen drive is ready 😛I bought a tech com usb to ide convertor,costed me about 450Rs (maybe its lower now) with 1 year warranty and stuff.On the other hand if u buy a case it might cost you around Rs700-1200 depending on brand model...

Yeah dude just go to nehru place and get a 3.5" usb to IDE hdd case. But remember that you have to power it externally thru an adapter. If u have a laptop Hdd then simply buy a 2.5"casing. No need to power it externally and truly portable.

Given the choice between usb & internal HD i always go for the internal. Cheapest & the fastest. Get bigger HDs, to replace the smaller ones.with UDMA-4 or 66MB/s is still faster than USB2 (which bursts at 400Mb/s but wont sustain more than 200Mb/s). This is what you have with a 5yr old computer, currently you to UDMA-6 or 133MB/s with IDE or SATA2 at 300MB/s. Your data storage reqmts are going to increase every yr for sure.You go portable when u need portabilty or don't like to look under the hood, if its going to stay at home why bother.

@blr_p I do need portability, and I am not concerned about speed that much. This is where I want to put all my music. Of course I backup all music to good old cd's. But I also want to be able to play the music either on my computer or somewhere else. So I have a question about that --- playing music from the portable usb hdd should not be an issue, right??? Or is it that the portable hdd will wear out faster due to doing this ? Oh and my requirement wont go on increasing - I am permanently stopping with downloading music in a few months (another 70 GB to go) 🙂So what brand would you guys recommend??? Toshiba ? or which one? OR put it another way -- which brand will give a 5 yr warranty on a 2.5" laptop internal hdd ?? I stay in Bombay...so will have to buy it here. If you guys know of a good outlet to buy this, please tell me.🙂

I would recommend Hitachi (very reliable) or if that's not available here then Seagate/Toshiba.

QUOTE(yogi @ May 11 2006, 08:29 AM) [snapback]50931[/snapback]
So I have a question about that --- playing music from the portable usb hdd should not be an issue, right??? Or is it that the portable hdd will wear out faster due to doing this ?
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Not a problem if all you do is use a player ie winamp etc. If you use a media library, it can be bit slower hence my preference for internal HDs.

QUOTE(yogi @ May 11 2006, 08:29 AM) [snapback]50931[/snapback]
Oh and my requirement wont go on increasing - I am permanently stopping with downloading music in a few months (another 70 GB to go) 🙂
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Hah! this is easier said then done. Unless you plan to lock yourself up in a cave for a few years i cannot see this happening. In any case if your needs increase all you would need to do is replace with a bigger HD.

With all the developments in perpendicualr recording, i'm sure we will see bigger 2.5" HDs coming out.

Does anyone know what the biggest 2.5" HD available now is ?

>Not a problem if all you do is use a player ie winamp etc. If you use>a media library, it can be bit slower hence my preference for >internal HDs.Great! thx for replying 🙂 I use foobar!!! 😀>Hah! this is easier said then done. Unless you plan to lock yourself >up in a cave for a few years i cannot see this happening. In any case >if your needs increase all you would need to do is replace with a >bigger HD.Dude, I dont have the yogi id for fun 😉 I am already in the process of locking myself in a cave - in other words breaking free of materialism and technology. I've already achieved perfection with eating only natural food and completely avoiding processed food. Let's see, I have never used a cell phone and havent turned on a tv in the last 7 years. I sleep at 8 pm and get up at 4 am. I think you get the picture now 🙂 And I am not joking, I am quite serious. I am still on the computer because that's my livelihood...which I hope to change someday.@waterloothanx for the suggestion...I will try to search for Hitachi or the other brands you mentioned.

The biggest 2.5" available in the market right now is a 160GB one. Of the lot the Seagate Momentus 5400.3 (5400rpm, 5yr warranty) is rated the best. A Fujitsu 160GB is a cheaper option but slightly lacking in performance (actually ur best best for a portable hard disk). Stay away from Samsung and Toshiba and 4200rpm drives.Hitachi Travelstar 7200rpm drives currently give the best performance but the biggest is a 100GB one.

Dude, I dont have the yogi id for fun I am already in the process of locking myself in a cave - in other words breaking free of materialism and technology. I've already achieved perfection with eating only natural food and completely avoiding processed food.
Let's see, I have never used a cell phone and havent turned on a tv in the last 7 years. I sleep at 8 pm and get up at 4 am. I think you get the picture now 🙂 And I am not joking, I am quite serious.
I am still on the computer because that's my livelihood...which I hope to change someday.[/b]


dude i think u sud become a hippie instead of yogy 😛 😀

QUOTE(yogi @ May 11 2006, 01:32 PM) [snapback]50962[/snapback]
Dude, I dont have the yogi id for fun 😉 I am already in the process of locking myself in a cave - in other words breaking free of materialism and technology. I've already achieved perfection with eating only natural food and completely avoiding processed food.
Let's see, I have never used a cell phone and havent turned on a tv in the last 7 years. I sleep at 8 pm and get up at 4 am. I think you get the picture now 🙂 And I am not joking, I am quite serious.
I am still on the computer because that's my livelihood...which I hope to change someday.
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So i guess the hard drive is more for meditational stuff rather than entertainment. If so i can see your point. Your lucky to be living in India where its actually still cheaper to get natural food over the other variety.

Good Luck with your quest.

Tho i wonder why one needs to shut one's self out of the material world to achieve the perfection you search.

Would it not be more desirable to attain said perfection by achieving harmony & balance with it instead. Point being less deprivation & more moderation instead.

I would recommend Hitachi (very reliable) or if that's not available here then Seagate/Toshiba.[/b]

I thought western digital was supposed to be the best.

@blr_p>So i guess the hard drive is more for meditational stuff rather than >entertainment.I do dance to music too 🙂>Your lucky to be living in India where its actually still cheaper to >get natural food over the other variety.Natural food ....is absent in urban areas like Bombay ,etc. It is all adulterated or heavily laden with pesticides even if you choose to buy just the fruits or vegetables. I've heard of some organic stores here but I highly doubt their authenticity because standards in India usually exist just on paper. Its kind of sad that people dont even stop at adulterating food to make profit...but that's how economy works especially in an overpopulated country. Anyway on the bright side, the tropical climate is wonderful for a huge variety in fruits and vegs...and since its summer now, there is an explosion of variety!! Its fantastic. >Tho i wonder why one needs to shut one's self out of the material >world to achieve the perfection you search.>Would it not be more desirable to attain said perfection by achieving >harmony & balance with it instead. Point being less deprivation & >more moderation instead.The material world brings pleasure which is just the other side of pain. I dont want any pain at all - just constant peace and joy.

QUOTE(yogi @ May 12 2006, 11:51 AM) [snapback]51063[/snapback]
Natural food ....is absent in urban areas like Bombay ,etc. It is all adulterated or heavily laden with pesticides even if you choose to buy just the fruits or vegetables. I've heard of some organic stores here but I highly doubt their authenticity because standards in India usually exist just on paper.
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Well moving out of the city & into the country could very well be the easiest way to obtain natural food. Tho i wonder how easy it is to achieve when surrounding farmers are using said additives to sell their produce. How to contain that ? similar arguments have been used against GM food as well.

QUOTE(yogi @ May 12 2006, 11:51 AM) [snapback]51063[/snapback]
Anyway on the bright side, the tropical climate is wonderful for a huge variety in fruits and vegs...and since its summer now, there is an explosion of variety!! Its fantastic.
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Indeed, very powerful when compared with what grows in more temperate climes. Mangoes, i wonder if this US Nuke deal makes them more expensive now since there is a much better market to sell to. Alphonso's touted to be the best, grow in your state & Gujarat from what i read here

QUOTE(yogi @ May 12 2006, 11:51 AM) [snapback]51063[/snapback]
The material world brings pleasure which is just the other side of pain. I dont want any pain at all - just constant peace and joy.
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Is it possible to seperate ying from yang 🙂 maybe in the short run but what about after.