Upgrading laptop hard drive

  • Thread starter Thread starter OhioGuy
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OhioGuy

I've got a ~ 16 month old Dell Inspiron 1300 Laptop that has a 60 GB hard
drive. (actually gives me about 50 GB of true space) Lately, this small
size has been getting in the way, so I've been thinking of ways to get more
disk space. Here are the two ideas I've been thinking of:

1) upgrade the internal ATA-6 drive with something like this:
http://www.computergiants.com/items...zmam=6444850&zmas=1&zmac=18&zmap=ST3160215ACE


2) buy some sort of external USB drive

98% of the time, we use this laptop on a desk.

If I got a USB drive, then I could also use it to transfer files between
my other computers, which would be beneficial.

Anyone have any thoughts on which way I should go?
 
OhioGuy said:
I've got a ~ 16 month old Dell Inspiron 1300 Laptop that has a 60 GB
hard drive. (actually gives me about 50 GB of true space) Lately,
this small size has been getting in the way, so I've been thinking of
ways to get more disk space. Here are the two ideas I've been
thinking of:

1) upgrade the internal ATA-6 drive with something like this:
http://www.computergiants.com/items...zmam=6444850&zmas=1&zmac=18&zmap=ST3160215ACE


2) buy some sort of external USB drive

98% of the time, we use this laptop on a desk.

If I got a USB drive, then I could also use it to transfer files
between my other computers, which would be beneficial.

Anyone have any thoughts on which way I should go?
Click to expand...
USB = portable, therefor more useful.
And better value for money.
 
OhioGuy said:
I've got a ~ 16 month old Dell Inspiron 1300 Laptop that has a 60 GB hard
drive. (actually gives me about 50 GB of true space) Lately, this small
size has been getting in the way, so I've been thinking of ways to get more
disk space. Here are the two ideas I've been thinking of:

1) upgrade the internal ATA-6 drive with something like this:
http://www.computergiants.com/items...zmam=6444850&zmas=1&zmac=18&zmap=ST3160215ACE


2) buy some sort of external USB drive

98% of the time, we use this laptop on a desk.

If I got a USB drive, then I could also use it to transfer files between
my other computers, which would be beneficial.

Anyone have any thoughts on which way I should go?
Click to expand...

Are you sure the proposed HD you mentioned is a laptop HD??? I
searched and it looks to be a desktop size. Perhaps I don't understand
how you intend to use it?
 
here is a page of Laptop Hard drives
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=2030150380+1035907889&name=ATA-6

The page you listed does not make it clear if that HD would fit in a
laptop...they take 2.5" hard drives.

If I had the cash I would actually go both ways...I would upgrade the
Internal HD to a larger Capacity(never know when I might actually take the
laptop on the road) and I would also buy an External USB HD case with a fair
sized HD .
peter
 
OhioGuy said:
I've got a ~ 16 month old Dell Inspiron 1300 Laptop that has a 60 GB
hard drive. (actually gives me about 50 GB of true space) Lately, this
small size has been getting in the way, so I've been thinking of ways to
get more disk space. Here are the two ideas I've been thinking of:

1) upgrade the internal ATA-6 drive with something like this:
http://www.computergiants.com/items...zmam=6444850&zmas=1&zmac=18&zmap=ST3160215ACE
Click to expand...

That one won't work -- it's a 3.5" HD, and you need a 2.5" HD for the
laptop.

Try something like this WD 120
(http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136130) if you
need an internal HD near that price. You can get 80 GB HDs for $10 less,
but why?!?

If you're more interested in performance, you might consider a 7200 RPM HD
(http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822146229). It
makes a BIG difference!

2) buy some sort of external USB drive

98% of the time, we use this laptop on a desk.

If I got a USB drive, then I could also use it to transfer files between
my other computers, which would be beneficial.

Anyone have any thoughts on which way I should go?
Click to expand...

An external USB2, Firewire, or eSATA HD makes a lot of sense. You can use
it for data storage, spare HD for your desktop (with an image of the boot
drive cloned to its own partition), and backup of desktop and laptop
storage. For those times you need to bring specific stuff on the road with
you, a 4GB USB2 thumb drive ($15 or so) will be MUCH more convenient, and
you can leave the external HD home.

It's more a matter of how much you want to spend to get more flexibility
and utility. Desktop (3.5") HDs and their external enclosures will be
cheaper than the 2.5" variety. Assuming your desktop uses SATA HDs, you
can get an external enclosure for $42
(http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817153061) and a
fast, high capacity HD for $100
(http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136073). You can
also get a pre-made external HD
(http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136025), but
you'll be able to use the HD as a spare for the desktop, as well as control
your build better, by choosing the specific HD and enclosure for the specs
you want.

My vote would be for a big external HD plus a USB thumb drive.
 
OhioGuy said:
I've got a ~ 16 month old Dell Inspiron 1300 Laptop that has a 60 GB hard
drive. (actually gives me about 50 GB of true space) Lately, this small
size has been getting in the way, so I've been thinking of ways to get more
disk space. Here are the two ideas I've been thinking of:

1) upgrade the internal ATA-6 drive with something like this:
http://www.computergiants.com/items...zmam=6444850&zmas=1&zmac=18&zmap=ST3160215ACE


2) buy some sort of external USB drive

98% of the time, we use this laptop on a desk.

If I got a USB drive, then I could also use it to transfer files between
my other computers, which would be beneficial.

Anyone have any thoughts on which way I should go?
Click to expand...

Do both. you can get a 2.5 200 gig notebook drive for $97.00
http://www.pricewatch.com/notebook_hard_drives/200gb.htm

And a 500 gig USB external drive for $99.00 here
http://www.pricewatch.com/hard_removable_drives/usb_500gb.htm
 
John Weiss said:
That one won't work -- it's a 3.5" HD, and you need a 2.5" HD for the
laptop.

Try something like this WD 120
(http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136130) if you
need an internal HD near that price. You can get 80 GB HDs for $10 less,
but why?!?

If you're more interested in performance, you might consider a 7200 RPM HD
(http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822146229). It
Click to expand...

But.... if he's running out of space shouldn't he add more than 20GB? I'd
recommend going for the 120GB version of the same drive for only $30 more.
 
OhioGuy said:
I've got a ~ 16 month old Dell Inspiron 1300 Laptop that has a 60 GB hard
drive. (actually gives me about 50 GB of true space) Lately, this small
size has been getting in the way, so I've been thinking of ways to get
more disk space. Here are the two ideas I've been thinking of:

1) upgrade the internal ATA-6 drive with something like this:
http://www.computergiants.com/items...zmam=6444850&zmas=1&zmac=18&zmap=ST3160215ACE


2) buy some sort of external USB drive

98% of the time, we use this laptop on a desk.

If I got a USB drive, then I could also use it to transfer files between
my other computers, which would be beneficial.

Anyone have any thoughts on which way I should go?
Click to expand...

Definitely get the external drive first. If you can't off-load enough off
your laptop then upgrade it too.

External drives are the new "floppy net", er.. "CD net", er.. you get the
picture. I use a 4GB USB fob for most "floppy net" type stuff but an
external USB drive can't be beat.
 
DonC said:
But.... if he's running out of space shouldn't he add more than 20GB?
I'd recommend going for the 120GB version of the same drive for only $30
more.
Click to expand...

He didn't tell us his budget or his usage. I can't read his mind, so I
presented him with several viable options...
 
John Weiss said:
He didn't tell us his budget or his usage. I can't read his mind, so I
presented him with several viable options...
Click to expand...

With all due respect, spending $80 for a 20GB upgrade is a unviable budget
buster. It's not how much you spend -- it how well you spend it.
 
eSATA external hard drives are much faster than USB 2.0 .

With a laptop, you can get an eSATA ExpressCard, into
which you can plug your eSATA external HD enclosure.
SIIG makes 'em for PCI and PCIe busses.

For a desktop that has an eSATA port on the motherboard,
you just need a plug adapter to bring the connection to the
outside of the PC case. For a desktop that has SATA ports,
you just need a SATA-to-eSATA adapter.

For the hard drive, any SATA HD will do.

For the enclosure, here is one with its own power brick and
a cooling fan:
http://kingwin.com/product_pages/jt35ebk.asp
You can buy 'em for $30 (plus tax and shipping) on the web.
CompUSA and TigerDirect are selling 'em now.

You can also buy eSATA cables in various lengths and
plug configurations from places like this:
http://www.svc.com/esata-cable.html

Here's just one source for various eSATA adaptors:
http://www.firewire-1394.com/external-sata-solutions.htm

If you're unfamiliar with eSATA, it differs from SATA primarily
in the shielded connector and the wider windows for signal levels
to accommodate the longer allowable cable (up to 2 meters).
SATA hard drives talk to eSATA ports just fine.

*TimDaniels*
 
Timothy Daniels said:
eSATA external hard drives are much faster than USB 2.0 .

With a laptop, you can get an eSATA ExpressCard, into
which you can plug your eSATA external HD enclosure.
SIIG makes 'em for PCI and PCIe busses.

For a desktop that has an eSATA port on the motherboard,
you just need a plug adapter to bring the connection to the
outside of the PC case. For a desktop that has SATA ports,
you just need a SATA-to-eSATA adapter.

For the hard drive, any SATA HD will do.

For the enclosure, here is one with its own power brick and
a cooling fan:
http://kingwin.com/product_pages/jt35ebk.asp
You can buy 'em for $30 (plus tax and shipping) on the web.
CompUSA and TigerDirect are selling 'em now.

You can also buy eSATA cables in various lengths and
plug configurations from places like this:
http://www.svc.com/esata-cable.html

Here's just one source for various eSATA adaptors:
http://www.firewire-1394.com/external-sata-solutions.htm

If you're unfamiliar with eSATA, it differs from SATA primarily
in the shielded connector and the wider windows for signal levels
to accommodate the longer allowable cable (up to 2 meters).
SATA hard drives talk to eSATA ports just fine.

*TimDaniels*
Click to expand...

Very interesting!

My only question regards the logistics of connecting the drive to other
computers especially other people's computers. Unless they had a laptop.

But for backup on ones own computer it sounds like a winner.

Any thoughts?
 
DonC said:
My only question regards the logistics of connecting the drive to other
computers especially other people's computers. Unless they had a laptop.

But for backup on ones own computer it sounds like a winner.

Any thoughts?
Click to expand...

There are enclosures available with both eSATA and USB2 connectors, so you
can use USB2 for non-eSATA computers.

Whether or not the PCI-eSATA adapter is worth the price for the extra
performance on the laptop is up to the user. If the laptop has a 4200 RPM
HD, don't bother; the disk I/O on the boot HD will be the limiting factor!
If it's 5400 RPM, it might be noticeable. If it's 7200 RPM, eSATA is
likely worth it.
 
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