SDHC VS. Jump Drive

[TubeTote]

I posted about this in the memory forum, but only one reply, so trying here...

I need about 128GB of storage space and would like to use flash memory. This will be used to store photos and videos that I have taken over the years. I could buy 4 32GB SDHC cards, or one 128GB jump drive for about $50 more. What would you choose and why? Is one more reliable than the other?

 

[Miramonti]

Not sure of your application needs, but while 4 might be more inconvenient, it also has a 'buffer' if one gets lost or broken/defective. For this reason and the $50 savings, I'd go sdhc.

 

[gorcorps]

If it's only for backup purposes then I'd go with the SD cards. I would go with the USB drive if you were using it outside of you home, as having an SD adapter isn't that common.

But for just home backups, cards are cheaper and as said above if something fails you only lose 1/4 of your collection instead of all of it.

 

[lxskllr]

I'm curious as to why you want flash media. If it were me, I'd get a 1tb hd, and maybe 2 32gb SD cards. That way you'll have tons of reliable storage, and a decent amount of very portable storage. In any case, you should have them backed up to a couple different drives. None of them can be trusted for archiving.

 

[mfenn]

I'm curious as to why you want flash media. If it were me, I'd get a 1tb hd, and maybe 2 32gb SD cards. That way you'll have tons of reliable storage, and a decent amount of very portable storage. In any case, you should have them backed up to a couple different drives. None of them can be trusted for archiving.

+1

Instead of buying 4 x 32GB SD cards, you could buy 4 1TB HDDs and duplicate the data among them. For the same price!

 

[0roo0roo]

yup, faster as well
sdhc cheapie pen drives= slows!!

 

[TubeTote]

I'm curious as to why you want flash media. If it were me, I'd get a 1tb hd, and maybe 2 32gb SD cards. That way you'll have tons of reliable storage, and a decent amount of very portable storage. In any case, you should have them backed up to a couple different drives. None of them can be trusted for archiving.

Understandable question...this is for portability. I do actually have a TB drive in this very computer to back it up with. I also have a question...when you say 'none of them can be trusted for archiving', are you referring to flash in general?

For that matter, which format do you think IS the most reliable for archiving?

 

[TubeTote]

+1

Instead of buying 4 x 32GB SD cards, you could buy 4 1TB HDDs and duplicate the data among them. For the same price!

Hmmm, very true...but I still need portability.

 

[mfenn]

Understandable question...this is for portability. I do actually have a TB drive in this very computer to back it up with. I also have a question...when you say 'none of them can be trusted for archiving', are you referring to flash in general?

1.8" USB HDD http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...ue&Order=PRICE

Small as hell and still a bunch cheaper.

 

[Miramonti]

Understandable question...this is for portability. I do actually have a TB drive in this very computer to back it up with. I also have a question...when you say 'none of them can be trusted for archiving', are you referring to flash in general?

For that matter, which format do you think IS the most reliable for archiving?

He's referring to the need for redundancy with any backup choice.

 

[TubeTote]

1.8" USB HDD http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...ue&Order=PRICE

Small as hell and still a bunch cheaper.

Not bad! I never even thought of that. A little larger than I want, but a pretty good compromise for the price. The only thing that makes me nervous is that it is a regular HDD instead of solid state. I once lost a ton of data when my laptop fell, so it's always on my mind. I guess I don't really know if solid state is really that much more reliable though.

 

[lxskllr]

Understandable question...this is for portability. I do actually have a TB drive in this very computer to back it up with. I also have a question...when you say 'none of them can be trusted for archiving', are you referring to flash in general?

Really anything, but especially flash. Mechanical drives will gives clues many times before dying. Flash just one day becomes unusable :^/ If the data's important, it should be spread around in a few locations.

Here's how I look at it. Mechanical drives are dirt cheap, fast, reliable, but big. Flash is expensive, slow, reliable, and small. I don't know your exact purpose, but I suspect you don't need ultra portable storage for ALL that data. I think a large mechanical drive for mass storage, and a small drive for portability would be the best all around solution. If you want to get even techier, skip the flash altogether, and use the money to build a server you can access away from home. That way you won't lose expensive, and possibly sensitive data from a small card, and you can use a server for multiple purposes.

 

[ShawnD1]

I'm curious as to why you want flash media. If it were me, I'd get a 1tb hd, and maybe 2 32gb SD cards. That way you'll have tons of reliable storage, and a decent amount of very portable storage. In any case, you should have them backed up to a couple different drives. None of them can be trusted for archiving.

Because flash is infinitely more durable. I've broken hard drives just by dropping them on the floor whereas I keep a USB drive in my backpack and it's still good after being thrown around and exposed to -30C temperatures over the past few years.

On a similar note, I copied my Windows Vista installation DVD onto a 4GB USB drive just so I have a reliable copy that will never be scratched or damaged.

Flash media is so reliable that even today we still have working Atari 2600 games. Atari was literally 30 years ago, and the games still work. Hard drives and CDs will not last 30 years of being thrown around in the closet or being thrown against the wall.

 

[lxskllr]

Flash media is so reliable that even today we still have working Atari 2600 games. Atari was literally 30 years ago, and the games still work. Hard drives and CDs will not last 30 years of being thrown around in the closet or being thrown against the wall.

I think the technology is different between the old ROMs, and newer rewritable stuff. I don't know that you can directly compare them.

 

[0roo0roo]

yea well i think atari carts wer e roms not flash?

 

[mfenn]

Not bad! I never even thought of that. A little larger than I want, but a pretty good compromise for the price. The only thing that makes me nervous is that it is a regular HDD instead of solid state. I once lost a ton of data when my laptop fell, so it's always on my mind. I guess I don't really know if solid state is really that much more reliable though.

Think about it this way. You've already got the 1TB drive to use a "master" copy of the data. You could drop 4(!) of those 1.8" HDDs before you would reach the cost of even a single set of 4 x 32GB SDHC cards.

 

[0roo0roo]

http://gizmodo.com/5472859/even-kingston-knocks-off-kingston-microsd-cards
trust....

 

[lxskllr]

Not bad! I never even thought of that. A little larger than I want, but a pretty good compromise for the price. The only thing that makes me nervous is that it is a regular HDD instead of solid state. I once lost a ton of data when my laptop fell, so it's always on my mind. I guess I don't really know if solid state is really that much more reliable though.

SS is definitely more shock resistant, but you don't want to carry your only copy of the data regardless of what you use. Those 1.8" drives look ideal. They're downright disposable compared to flash media, and it'll leave you plenty of money left over for some external backup drives :^)

 

[ShawnD1]

Old ipods are good reliable storage drives as well. I tried to break my 4gb ipod mini with strong magnets and throwing it at my shed and it still works great. It's the old kind of ipod that has the regular spinning parts in it.