I'm looking into an external hard drive for my ibook 12" because I will quickly be running out of the 100gb space internal I have. I was wondering, should:
1) I get a drive with a firewire connection/usb connection or both? What are the differences in connection speeds between these two.
2) When I save something onto the external hard drive, will it be just as fast as when something is being saved onto my internal drive?
3) I want something with a cool closure (something aluminum or white to match my ibook), any suggestions?
Thanks guys, I always count on you at Ehmac to get the answer I'm looking for :-)
I like the MacAlly aluminum cases - they are attractive enough. Their USB2.0/Firewire model is a decent price. But you'll not use the USB anyway, because at best it is about helf the throughput of Firewire 400. Choose a 3.5" if portability is not your major concern: you'll get higher speed and more capacity for the money than the 2.5" drives.
If you need it pocketsized, be prepared to pay a premium for a 2.5" external firewire case and a good fast laptop drive.
As far as speed -- you can expect a Firewire drive to be about equal to a normal (4200 RPM) built in iBook drive but a bit slower than a good (5400 or 7200 RPM) internal drive. The Firewire buss imposes some overhead, offset by the faster drive. The difference will vary by the type of use.
1) I get a drive with a firewire connection/usb connection or both? What are the differences in connection speeds between these two.
Definitely Firewire. USB 2 works just as well, but the transfer speed of firewire is way faster, it's night and day compared to USB 2.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Applelover
2) When I save something onto the external hard drive, will it be just as fast as when something is being saved onto my internal drive?
It will be with firewire
Quote:
Originally Posted by Applelover
3) I want something with a cool closure (something aluminum or white to match my ibook), any suggestions?
To look cool cost $$$. Personally screw appearance. You've got an iBook, thats cool enough. Get a case that is functional and it will save you money. But hey, that's my opinion.
Cheers
Out of curiousity, how much has the 100GB 5400rpm drive affected your battery life? Did you install the drive yourself or have it done by an Apple shop?
Out of curiousity, how much has the 100GB 5400rpm drive affected your battery life? Did you install the drive yourself or have it done by an Apple shop?
It was a BTO option, installed by apple when the ibook was made. It hasn't affected battery life at all.
But if it was BTO, you have no benchmark to compare to what you previously had... I currently have the 30GB drive and I've been reluctant to upgrade because I'm afraid it'll affect battery life.
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