Where to buy 2.5 HD enclosure

[glennchung]

I want to buy a 2.5" HD (the notebook type HD) + an USB enclosure. I have heard that only 1 USB cable is necessary (it may be a Y-shaped cable) but all the 2.5 enclosures I found at Newegg has 2 USB cable which requires 2 USB ports, one for power and one for I/O.

I don't want to mess with 2 cables, is there any enclosure out there that only requires 1 USB cable?

Thanks!!

 

[jpeyton]

This one: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817146605

Works great for me with 1 USB (they supply an optional second seperate cord for power, but I've never used it with my 40GB 5400RPM drive).

And if you search Pricegrabber or Froogle, you can find it for less than Newegg.

 

[Zepper]

Even most notebook drives would put the output of current that most mobos can put on the USB ports to the test. If you have one or more other USB devices connected, then all may have problems when the drive tries to operate. I suggest a self-powered hub or a USB battery pack like the geeks.com used to carry.

.bh.

 

[jpeyton]

Originally posted by: Zepper
Even most notebook drives would put the output of current that most mobos can put on the USB ports to the text. If you have one or more other USB devices connected, then all may have problems when the drive tries to operate. I suggest a self-powered hub or a USB battery pack like the geeks.com used to carry.

.bh.

I would respectfully disagree. I have the enclosure I linked above, and I use a single USB cord (not split) to power the device flawlessly with my notebook. It doesn't matter if my notebook is on AC or battery power, and it doesn't matter if I have another device like a USB mouse, or card reader, etc. connected.

Some enclosures use less power than others. The Macally one would power probably any 4200RPM drive and most 5400RPM drives without a problem using one USB port.

 

[Zepper]

For it to work reliably you have to have a very recent drive in the case with all the latest power saving technologies. Some thumb drives can't work off what many mobos have available for current on the USB ports. You may be lucky with it or you may not... So if you want it to work right every time, arrange to provide alternate power to the drive.

.bh.