How bad is it for a HDD to turn off and on all the time?

[jtvang125]

I am thinking about using a 2.5" HDD in a external enclosure loaded with all my mp3s and connecting it to my car stereo via USB. I can't have the HDD on all the time as it will drain the battery so my concern is will the life of the HDD shorten considerably if it's constantly turned on and off whenever the car is started or turned off? I can't seem to find a power adapter of some sort to softly turn off the HDD.

 

[oynaz]

If you make a habit of turning off your car stereo before shutting down the engine (thus turning off the HDD softly), I do not see any problems.

 

[Matthias99]

Originally posted by: oynaz
If you make a habit of turning off your car stereo before shutting down the engine (thus turning off the HDD softly), I do not see any problems.

I agree. As long as you're not 'pulling the plug' on the thing while something is trying to access it, there should be no real effect on the lifespan of the drive (assuming you're talking about turning it on/off a few times a day and not every five minutes all day long).