Portable HDD's, help
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Portable HDD's, help
Hi
Can some one advise me what would be the better make(s) to go for from the following list?
SEAGATE
IOMEGA
BUFFALO
hITACHI
These are within my budget of £70 for a 1TB drive. If you know of any better, please advise me, its very welcome.
Only one i dont want, is any WD HDD's, 2 have failed on me, and i will never go there again.
Thanks
Can some one advise me what would be the better make(s) to go for from the following list?
SEAGATE
IOMEGA
BUFFALO
hITACHI
These are within my budget of £70 for a 1TB drive. If you know of any better, please advise me, its very welcome.
Only one i dont want, is any WD HDD's, 2 have failed on me, and i will never go there again.
Thanks
Spoon PPRuNerist & Mad Inistrator
Neither Buffalo nor Iomega manufacture hard drives, they buy in from others (probably including WD), so you might end up with your bete noire anyway.
Iomega has a history of rotten customer support, and poor reliability - although that does refer more to the nineties than the noughties! They are now a subsidiary of EMC, since June last year, so should have access to decent storage technology.
I would compare the features of the drives, and also read customer reviews to help make up my mind.
SD
Iomega has a history of rotten customer support, and poor reliability - although that does refer more to the nineties than the noughties! They are now a subsidiary of EMC, since June last year, so should have access to decent storage technology.
I would compare the features of the drives, and also read customer reviews to help make up my mind.
SD
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I have the 320Gb NESO HDD wich is smart and works really well. The 1TB version is £82.80 so a little more than you want to spend but worth looking for deals.
They use Hitatchi HDD's.
They use Hitatchi HDD's.
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ditto on Saab
I can fully endorse what Saab has said re Iomega. They are a like a box of chocolates, except instead of chocolates you get something else, brown also, but not as tasty. I've heard more anguished data screams regarding same than I hope to remember.
I've got good results with Seagate and Hitachi.
Make sure you have a good backup policy: Personally, I would buy an empty external case, and the drive separately.
Place the drive INSIDE THE PC periodically for backup/mega size data transfer, (even with USB 2.0 it still takes a long time to transfer 30gb -much more 1,000 gb!)
I've got good results with Seagate and Hitachi.
Make sure you have a good backup policy: Personally, I would buy an empty external case, and the drive separately.
Place the drive INSIDE THE PC periodically for backup/mega size data transfer, (even with USB 2.0 it still takes a long time to transfer 30gb -much more 1,000 gb!)
You've got me worried now 
I've an 'Elements' and a little 'Passport' each 250GB (or 232GB depending how you calculate) and both are WD.
They're just used for backup and putting all of my desktop in my case on long trips. Worked OK so far.
Desktop has Samsung and uses a Maxtor external for backup. Can't remember what's in the lappy.
I've an 'Elements' and a little 'Passport' each 250GB (or 232GB depending how you calculate) and both are WD.
They're just used for backup and putting all of my desktop in my case on long trips. Worked OK so far.
Desktop has Samsung and uses a Maxtor external for backup. Can't remember what's in the lappy.
I don't know if I would classify a manufacturer's entire output as unworthy: if they have problems with one range, they hopefully learn from that in the next generation. Seagate famously had major firmware problems in 2008, while IBM got sued over mass disk failures in 2001.
If you're really concerned about what disk goes inside the external enclosure, you can roll your own: get an enclosure and HDD from someone like Scan, and put it together. If I was doing this today I'd probably prefer a Samsung 1TB drive for about £75. No, I don't think that's too much - it's amazing how we're already taking Terabytes for granted, isn't it?
If you're really concerned about what disk goes inside the external enclosure, you can roll your own: get an enclosure and HDD from someone like Scan, and put it together. If I was doing this today I'd probably prefer a Samsung 1TB drive for about £75. No, I don't think that's too much - it's amazing how we're already taking Terabytes for granted, isn't it?
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Buffalo tends to use Western Digital. Buffalo is a brand of Matsu****a, which recently renamed itself after its most famous brand, Panasonic. They're decently engineered products.
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I have no problems with WD - Yes, I've had a failure recently, but it was within 1 year of purchase, so was replaced FOC by WD.
I've had more failures with Seagate disks over the last 15 years than any other make, but then I've probably used more Seagate disks than any other make (all work-related, rather than at home).
SD
I've had more failures with Seagate disks over the last 15 years than any other make, but then I've probably used more Seagate disks than any other make (all work-related, rather than at home).
SD
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There was (maybe still is) a website that gives percentage failures per some-number-of-units-in-operation for HDs. I'll see if I can find it again.
When I last looked, Maxtor had awful ratings (like 700-ish whatevers). Most of the others were around 200, and LaCie around 60. So I bought a LaCie external on eBay, and it went on the blink inside a few weeks. When I opened the case, it was a Maxtor HD inside. I don't know if that's cos LaCie use Maxtor, or some rogue swapped them out.
My laptop has a Fujitsu and it's never missed a beat. Home is a selection of allsorts, and none have missed - but the WD one has gone a bit noisy so it's been retired. It's also the oldest HD there, so maybe age has got to it.
Addendum: this chap doesn't seem enamoured of Maxtor.
When I last looked, Maxtor had awful ratings (like 700-ish whatevers). Most of the others were around 200, and LaCie around 60. So I bought a LaCie external on eBay, and it went on the blink inside a few weeks. When I opened the case, it was a Maxtor HD inside. I don't know if that's cos LaCie use Maxtor, or some rogue swapped them out.
My laptop has a Fujitsu and it's never missed a beat. Home is a selection of allsorts, and none have missed - but the WD one has gone a bit noisy so it's been retired. It's also the oldest HD there, so maybe age has got to it.
Addendum: this chap doesn't seem enamoured of Maxtor.
G-Tech.
Lacie [they are only the front end and case] which can be shaky depending on model, the Rugged is pretty good.
Choice depends on connectivity and usage. I now go for solid, bullet-proof externals, you pays your money you makes your choice. I have 1Tb and 500Gb G-Techs with Hitachi innards which have never given any problems in three years and I am one of those that problems will arise with as I do things with kit and software that one shouldn't.
Last night it looked as if I had lost a 1Tb, directory destroyed, power down drive, wait five minutes, power up and it was up and running. Did a de-frag just to be sure anyway.
Choice depends on connectivity and usage. I now go for solid, bullet-proof externals, you pays your money you makes your choice. I have 1Tb and 500Gb G-Techs with Hitachi innards which have never given any problems in three years and I am one of those that problems will arise with as I do things with kit and software that one shouldn't.
Last night it looked as if I had lost a 1Tb, directory destroyed, power down drive, wait five minutes, power up and it was up and running. Did a de-frag just to be sure anyway.
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Looks like Hitachi would be the best choice, they are more or less the cheapest on my list too...
Both drives of WD i have are elements, both failed, but i was able (after 9 hours each) to get all my info back and restore to another drive.
WD Told me that its my fault i break them (i agree kinda)... They said that each time you need to make sure you "safely remove hardware" and not just rip out the usb like i do. Always make sure you boot the drive down before ripping out the power adaptor.
In short WD said, if the blue light is on, its not safe to turn off...
I have been using my maxtor in my usual careless manour, and had no issues at all. So all i can conclude is, the WD is fine unless your careless like me.
I have had a few friends having bad WD drives too, but again, then always do what i do and unplug the usbs with a further thought to eject or power down.
Both drives of WD i have are elements, both failed, but i was able (after 9 hours each) to get all my info back and restore to another drive.
WD Told me that its my fault i break them (i agree kinda)... They said that each time you need to make sure you "safely remove hardware" and not just rip out the usb like i do. Always make sure you boot the drive down before ripping out the power adaptor.
In short WD said, if the blue light is on, its not safe to turn off...
I have been using my maxtor in my usual careless manour, and had no issues at all. So all i can conclude is, the WD is fine unless your careless like me.
I have had a few friends having bad WD drives too, but again, then always do what i do and unplug the usbs with a further thought to eject or power down.
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WD Told me that its my fault i break them (i agree kinda)...
I'll be more careful from now on.
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Glad i can help some one =)
Since WD told me that i have ejected properly "EVERYTHING", right down to my ipod, as it used to just get yanked out too.
Suppose it was obvious MS wouldnt put a "safe eject" utility in windows if it served no purpose, turns out it does... Just now to find a purpose for some of the others windows stuff...
Since WD told me that i have ejected properly "EVERYTHING", right down to my ipod, as it used to just get yanked out too.
Suppose it was obvious MS wouldnt put a "safe eject" utility in windows if it served no purpose, turns out it does... Just now to find a purpose for some of the others windows stuff...
The reason why you need "safe eject" is because Windows can cache data heading for removable devices, meaning that it's not "written through" immediately. If you turn this off (in the Policies for the device) you gain the ability to yank the device out at any time, but at the cost of write performance.
It's not a Windows-specific issue, you have the same thing under UNIX systems - including Mac OS X, which has the bizarre "drag the drive in to the trash" process for ejecting it.
It's not a Windows-specific issue, you have the same thing under UNIX systems - including Mac OS X, which has the bizarre "drag the drive in to the trash" process for ejecting it.
Spoon PPRuNerist & Mad Inistrator
including Mac OS X, which has the bizarre "drag the drive in to the trash" process for ejecting it.
One of the few things about Apple that seemed wrong to me.
So at least they are consistent, then!
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One of the few things about Apple that seemed wrong to me.
So at least they are consistent, then!
So at least they are consistent, then!
That Apple way was perfectly easy to learn.
I also seem to recall from the old days that Windows had no software mechanism to eject floppies... you had to push the mechanical button and hope you didn't mess anything up !
And no, it's not "still there", unless you want to do things the old way. From memory now all you need to do is click the eject icon next to the drive in any open finder window, i.e. exactly where you would expect to find it. I bet Windows Vista, 7 or whatever they are calling it today still hasn't changed ?
Really Saab .... I expected more than badly thought out FUD that usually only Windows fanboys spew out from you....
(Don't get me wrong, I'm all for a balanced point of view of both camps......I know one size does not fit all)
Last edited by mixture; 24th Nov 2009 at 13:01.
Spoon PPRuNerist & Mad Inistrator
Wow,
That's some over-reaction, mixture! For the life of me I cannot see the "badly thought out FUD" in my post.
I simply agreed with another poster that it was an odd thing to have to drag a removable drive to the trash can to eject it. Conceptually bizarre, to my mind.
Note that I said it was one of the FEW things that seemed wrong to me. I have great respect for Apple and the Mac.
I was also surprised / interested that it was still part of the Mac way, some 15 years after I first came across it - hence the comment about consistency. Since I have very little to do with Macs these days, I accepted what bnt said about ejecting removable devices in OS X - if there are other ways to achieve the objective that's great, I'm pleased to hear it.
I'm not for or against either Macs or PCs, never have been. I admit that I am much more familiar with PCs these days, but I don't hold anything against the Mac or Apple, or their users.
SD
That's some over-reaction, mixture! For the life of me I cannot see the "badly thought out FUD" in my post.
I simply agreed with another poster that it was an odd thing to have to drag a removable drive to the trash can to eject it. Conceptually bizarre, to my mind.
Note that I said it was one of the FEW things that seemed wrong to me. I have great respect for Apple and the Mac.
I was also surprised / interested that it was still part of the Mac way, some 15 years after I first came across it - hence the comment about consistency. Since I have very little to do with Macs these days, I accepted what bnt said about ejecting removable devices in OS X - if there are other ways to achieve the objective that's great, I'm pleased to hear it.
I'm not for or against either Macs or PCs, never have been. I admit that I am much more familiar with PCs these days, but I don't hold anything against the Mac or Apple, or their users.
SD
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That's some over-reaction, mixture!
I also think it's worth fighting back for the Mac once in a while ...
Reckon you must have caught me at the wrong moment......as in hindsight I should have perhaps tweaked my wording a little more
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SD, I was on the Windows 95 beta "light house deployments" project about 9 months before release.
One of the first things my customer said was "you have to click Start to shutdown?". I raised it as an issue on their behalf, turns out that everyone accepted that indeed it was bizarre but by that time, so many people were using it, that changing the design would have been at least equally bizare. The millstone of legacy and backwards compatibility, until Vista and the new task bar.
My guess is thatthe Mac drag thing is probably for similar reasons.
One of the first things my customer said was "you have to click Start to shutdown?". I raised it as an issue on their behalf, turns out that everyone accepted that indeed it was bizarre but by that time, so many people were using it, that changing the design would have been at least equally bizare. The millstone of legacy and backwards compatibility, until Vista and the new task bar.
My guess is thatthe Mac drag thing is probably for similar reasons.