External 3.5" HDD question

[Patroclus]

I'm about to buy a 1-2TB external HDD to keep my files.

I previously looked at 2.5" 2TB external HDD from Seagate & WD, but I found out the hdd inside the case has proprietary connector, which means you can not connect it to a desktop/laptop with the standard SATA cable.
This is a very unfortunate situation. If the case electronic or the USB 3.0 connector broke (even if the hdd is ok), then .....R.I.P all your data.
I've learnt this lesson from my sister WD MyPassport 2TB 6 month ago, when the USB 3.0 chipset broke down, the store would not help her back up the data. She was pissed.

Definitely would not expect that to happen to me.
I need to make sure I can still connect the drive to my desktop comp to save my data, and buy an external case to revive it.
I've seen claims that the external HDD used in WD MyBook Essential uses a normal 3.5" internal SATA HDD, but I wonder whether this is true for all models from WD, Seagate or Toshiba.

Any idea ?

 

[corkyg]

In many cases, that "proprietary" connector is a removable adapter. My personal choice is to use a good quality external case with HDDs of my own choosing. Example:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...140805125227:s

 

[Boogieman_WD]

Hey Patroclus! Sorry to hear that your sister had to go through that with her external drive. It is indeed frustrating. Even though it has been quite a while since her drive broke down, if you still haven't tried this - here's a link with our data recovery partners: http://support.wdc.com/recovery/index.asp?wdc_lang=en.
As for your question - I'm afraid that there's no way of telling for sure what kind of drive there is in your external enclosure. You can find explanation about that here: http://wdc.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/1704. In this case what I would recommend to you is that you get an internal HDD with an external enclosure as Corkyg has suggested. This is the only way to be sure you can connect your HDD with a standard SATA cable. I think the WD Green would be a pretty good option for that. Its main purpose is secondary storage and it runs very cool and quiet which improves its life over time. It has reduced power consumption as well. I think those things in particular make the WD Green drive a pretty good option for an external enclosure if you want a reliable, cool and quiet external HDD. You can take a look at all of its features here: http://www.wdc.com/en/products/products.aspx?id=780
Hope I've been able to help. Let me know if you have any questions.

Boogieman_WD

 

[Patroclus]

Thank you for the explanation.
I've considered the option of buying internal hdd & separate enclosure as suggested, but the pre-build external from WD (Mybook Essential) has hooked my interest with its advantages:
- password protection feature & design. It looks slick , simple & beautiful. The case design is smart by allowing hot air to circulate through the ventilation window. Definitely a plus for long hours.
- the price is actually cheaper than buying internal + separate enclosure.

Still, if I can't make sure the type of HDD inside, then everything will be pointless.
The safety of my data is my 1st priority. I would not bet my luck on the fragile connector.

corkyg,
I actually had that Vantec enclosure for my 500GB Seagate 2 years ago, and frankly I wasn't really impressed with the cooling, so I sold it half price after only using it for 3 months. It was so fully enclosed with no air circulation at all. After writing like several hundreds of GB (about 30 min), the whole aluminium case was really hot. It made me feel cautious every time I used it, so I sold it & bought hdd docking station with Esata. But then, I hate using it too because too much physical handling of the bare drive would probably cause more problem in the long run (I have 3 hdd which I kept switching in the dock almost every 3-5 days). So, in the end I thought external enclosure for each HDD would still be safer than a docking station.
Oh well, I'm so fussy

 

[smitbret]

Thank you for the explanation.
I've considered the option of buying internal hdd & separate enclosure as suggested, but the pre-build external from WD (Mybook Essential) has hooked my interest with its advantages:
- password protection feature & design. It looks slick , simple & beautiful. The case design is smart by allowing hot air to circulate through the ventilation window. Definitely a plus for long hours.
- the price is actually cheaper than buying internal + separate enclosure.

Still, if I can't make sure the type of HDD inside, then everything will be pointless.
The safety of my data is my 1st priority. I would not bet my luck on the fragile connector.

corkyg,
I actually had that Vantec enclosure for my 500GB Seagate 2 years ago, and frankly I wasn't really impressed with the cooling, so I sold it half price after only using it for 3 months. It was so fully enclosed with no air circulation at all. After writing like several hundreds of GB (about 30 min), the whole aluminium case was really hot. It made me feel cautious every time I used it, so I sold it & bought hdd docking station with Esata. But then, I hate using it too because too much physical handling of the bare drive would probably cause more problem in the long run (I have 3 hdd which I kept switching in the dock almost every 3-5 days). So, in the end I thought external enclosure for each HDD would still be safer than a docking station.
Oh well, I'm so fussy

The 3.5" are all standard SATA at this point. I crack open a couple per year and haven't seen a proprietary connection in probably a decade.

 

[Patroclus]

Just to update.

After some more reading, I found out that MyBook Essential has hardware encryption which makes the hdd unreadable when connected to desktop computer (shown as RAW format). The hdd must always be connected to WD case.

Quote:
"I had a similar problem with a 2tb Mybook. What I discovered is that the mybook disk format and partition information is contained on the board with the SATA bridge inside the enclosure. This is why partition recovery does NOT WORK in this case. I tested this by buying a similar MyBook version and looking at the disk structure while in the enclosure and after it was removed from the enclosure. The result is without accessing the drive through the enclosure, the drive will appear as all unallocated space and disk management will view it as not initialized and not formatted. SOLUTION - (1) Buy a similar version of your Mybook ( I suggest if you need an older MyBook - go to a small mom & pop computer store). (2) Take the new Mybook apart (careful it's only 4 little plastic clasps inside the enclosure. (3) Swap your old MyBook drive for the new MyBook Drive. (4) Plug & Play, you'll find all your files intact and accessible."

WD Element is the model without encryption and can potentially be connected thru SATA port in desktop comp, but I've read some users found that recent batch has the connector soldered to the board too.

I finally ended up buying WD Green WD20-EZRX 2TB + Chronos HD318U3 USB 3.0 external case.
What is interesting with this enclosure is that it is actually the same as Vantec HX NST-330SU3-BK enclosure MINUS the ESATA Port. Since I couldn't find the Vantec version, I bought Chronos version for $27.

Comparing the two:
Vantec HX NST-330SU3-BK
http://www.amazon.com/Vantec-NexStar.../dp/B007B5Q0N8

Chronos HD318U3 USB 3.0 External Enclosure
http://www.chronos.com.tw/Product/E-1/HD318U3/HD318U3.htm

Some user say Vantec HX uses Asmedia 1051 chipset, and I confirm the Chronos does too (checking the Hardware ID in device manager)
Both supports 4TB hdd even when Chronos spec sheet doesn't say.
I called the distributor for Chronos in my country, and they said they've tested with WD 4TB harddisk without a problem.

HDTach 3.0.40 Read test seems to be around 115-117MB/s with WD Green.
I've tried copying 20 files @15-20GB each, and it is very fast, averaging 92-97 MB/s. The write was CRC & MD5 verified successfully.
WD Green temperature was steady at 39C, even after writing around 375GB.
Leaving it for 3 hours connected, and it is only 37C. Fan is silent.

I'm overall quite satisfied with what I have now.
Thank you all for all your help.