Best 2.5" HD and Firewire enclosure?

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GnomeCop

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Jun 17, 2002
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Have any opinions on wht the best 2.5" HD is right now? Fastest they make right now is 5400 rpm correct? I know some out there now have 8mb cache and perform quite well, but what brands/models seem to be the best price/performance/capacity right now?

I am looking to get one to put in a portable external firewire enclosure so I can take it with me to work, and stuff. These 2.5" enclosures seem to be a lot easier to connect because of the lower power requirements. Any recommendations on these type of enclosures? I think there was one by COOLMAX or something that was pretty good.
 
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TTM77

Golden Member
Dec 21, 2002
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If you only buy the enclosure so why bother with 5400 rpm?

And also it's cheaper to buy just the enclosure and put Ur own HD in. Another thing you might want to think about is USB 2.0. Firewire isn't the most popular.

I got my enclosure for like $30 or $40. But that was last year. I got the one that I can also put in the CD drive if I want. But if U just want HD, there are cheaper one out there. Many cheaper one.

Now my question is if my Enclosure also have that 130GB limitation like the PC. With PC, you have a 130GB limitation and if U go beyond that you have to have a PCI card to plug it in else it would think Ur HD is 130GB. But since the enclosure don't have spot to put PCI card, I'm not sure.
 
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GnomeCop

Diamond Member
Jun 17, 2002
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ok just to clarify a bit.

Buing an enclosure and adding a HD seperately is exactly what I am trying to do.

I want to use firewire. No USB 2.0. No problems with Firewire, I have it on my system, systems at work, friends systems, etc.

I am also talking about 2.5" hard drives. Like the kind they have in laptops, NOT 3.5" hds like regular desktop sized HDs. 2.5" HDs I think have 5400rpm as the fastest spindle speed available, with the new ones having 8mb cache they perform quite well I hear, but I'm not sure which brands/models have those specs, thats where I need some recommendations.

 
alexruiz

alexruiz

Platinum Member
Sep 21, 2001
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Originally posted by: GnomeCop
ok just to clarify a bit.

Buing an enclosure and adding a HD seperately is exactly what I am trying to do.

I want to use firewire. No USB 2.0. No problems with Firewire, I have it on my system, systems at work, friends systems, etc.

I am also talking about 2.5" hard drives. Like the kind they have in laptops, NOT 3.5" hds like regular desktop sized HDs. 2.5" HDs I think have 5400rpm as the fastest spindle speed available, with the new ones having 8mb cache they perform quite well I hear, but I'm not sure which brands/models have those specs, thats where I need some recommendations.
Click to expand...


You are totally correct sir!!

My suggestion is the Hitachi / IBM travelstar 40gnx... get the 40GB!! It rocks :)

Alex
 
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Lifer
Mar 11, 2000
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I'm using the 60 GB Toshiba 4200 rpm drive. It's quite fast, although not as fast as the 40 GB IBM GNX.

The enclosure is a Cutie Firewire. I'd recommend the Cutie DX. Both are Oxford 911 and both are about the same size (ie. TINY), but the DX looks a little nicer for about $10 more.

P.S. The prices above are in CDN dollars. I'm not sure which places in the US sell it, but there are a few.
 
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addragyn

Golden Member
Sep 21, 2000
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Unless it has been supersceded the 40GNX is indeed the fastest notebook drive.

The Sarotech Cutie is a nice little enclosure that comes in FireWire and FireWire/USB. I'm happy with my 2.
 
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GnomeCop

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Jun 17, 2002
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cool, so that IBM drive seems like a good choice. the 40GB drives are the norm for high capacity 2.5" HDs right now right?

I think I saw 80gb drives before, but I bet they cost so much I could get a 200GB 3.5" hd instead

thanks for that enclosure suggestion, looks cool.:D
 
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Lifer
Mar 11, 2000
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Originally posted by: GnomeCop
cool, so that IBM drive seems like a good choice. the 40GB drives are the norm for high capacity 2.5" HDs right now right?

I think I saw 80gb drives before, but I bet they cost so much I could get a 200GB 3.5" hd instead

thanks for that enclosure suggestion, looks cool.:D
Click to expand...
60 GB 4200 rpm drives are faster than their 40 GB 4200 rpm counterparts (but not as fast as the 40GNX) and fairly inexpensive.

Hence, I went with a 60 GB Toshiba. A Fujitsu is also a good choice, as they come with a 3 year warranty and are equally fast.

 
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GnomeCop

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Jun 17, 2002
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OK so is this place a ripoff for enclosures or are those normal prices.... seems high though.


where did you guys get your cutie DX enclosures?
 
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Lifer
Mar 11, 2000
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I got my Cutie in Toronto. They now sell the DX too. FWDepot in the US has good service, but are a tad pricey.

I got my Godzilla hub from them. GODZILLA!
 
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Lifer
Mar 11, 2000
24,131
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Originally posted by: GnomeCop
hahahahah..... damn



so that is a normalprice for the Cutie DX? $124 bucks?:Q
Click to expand...
Or $120 CAD (US$85). ;)
 
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GnomeCop

Diamond Member
Jun 17, 2002
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wow where do you get them for 85 bucks usd? Because it says 123.95 USD on firewiredepot's site
 
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dpopiz

Diamond Member
Jan 28, 2001
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many of the 2.5" drives these days have a 16mb cache. I think it's so that they don't have to waste power spinning the disk for very long, so it may not be optimized for performance like the cache on desktop drives.
 
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Lifer
Mar 11, 2000
24,131
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Originally posted by: GnomeCop
wow where do you get them for 85 bucks usd? Because it says 123.95 USD on firewiredepot's site
Click to expand...
Um, in Canada... :p Hence my reference to Toronto and Canadian dollars...
 
RichieZ

RichieZ

Diamond Member
Jun 1, 2000
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Why dou want a 2.5" HD, just because it can be bus powered?

Happy with my 120GB Cuda V in a very attractive Ice Cube enclosure (firewire/usb2 combo)
 
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GnomeCop

Diamond Member
Jun 17, 2002
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Yep, bus powered is what I'm after. I don't need a 3.5" enclosure, no point as to having an external HD when all it does is sit next to my computer at home. The extra portability is what I need, and less cables to deal with.

I was hoping for a firewire enclosure or firewire/usb2 combo, but that $20 dollar one only seems to have usb 2.0, wonder if its any good.
 
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pfastovsky

Junior Member
Jun 21, 2001
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Kind of on a side note - has anybody seen a case that will hold either a 3.5 or 2.5 drive. I am trying to find a single case that can deal with laptop drives or desktop drives (I don't care about 5.25).

Thanks
 
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Wallysaurus

Senior member
Jul 12, 2000
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Just a word of caution. I have a 20 GB Travelstar 40GNX and Iogear USB 2.0 enclosure and I haven't found one device that supplies enough power through the USB bus to power the drive, even though the documentation states that "most" will. The Iogear enclosure comes with a Y adaptor to power the drive off the PS2 mouse port and the combination works flawlessly when connected with it.
 
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GnomeCop

Diamond Member
Jun 17, 2002
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weird... I wonder if thats an issue with the Travelstar 40GNX or the enclosure...

Also, is that 40Gb 40GNX w 8mb cache the fastest 2.5" HD so far? (Besides the upcoming 7200rpm toshibas of course)

or is that Toshiba MK4019GAX (40Gb 5400rpm, 16mb cache) faster?

the toshiba is even cheaper too. hmmm....

link
 
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GnomeCop

Diamond Member
Jun 17, 2002
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hmmm, can't seem to find any reviews on that toshiba HD.

if anyone knows of one, please post it. Thanks
 
RichieZ

RichieZ

Diamond Member
Jun 1, 2000
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Originally posted by: GnomeCop
Yep, bus powered is what I'm after. I don't need a 3.5" enclosure, no point as to having an external HD when all it does is sit next to my computer at home. The extra portability is what I need, and less cables to deal with.

I was hoping for a firewire enclosure or firewire/usb2 combo, but that $20 dollar one only seems to have usb 2.0, wonder if its any good.
Click to expand...

Ic, well different people have different uses then. I use my enclosure with my laptop to get extra storage. When I need to be portable I just use my iPod :D
 
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Lifer
Mar 11, 2000
24,131
1,781
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Personally, I'd just stick with Firewire to be safe re: power issues. Then again, I have a Mac laptop with a powered Firewire port. Most (all?) PC laptops with Firewire have those stoopid unpowered 4-pin ports.
rolleye.gif


As for speed, most of the bigger 4200 rpm drives are fast enough these days for most usage. Personally, I'd just get the Hitachi 8 MB cache 4200 rpm 80 GB drive for <$300. 3 year warranty.

BTW, the 16 MB Toshiba is rated slower than the 8 MB IBM 40GNX. One beef of the 40GNX is it's noisy. Dunno how loud the Toshiba is though. My 60 GB 4200 rpm Toshiba and my 60 GB 4200 rpm Fujitsu are both very quiet. And both are fast enough for my purposes.
 
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