I did a search on the forum for this issue, but wasn't really able to resolve my question. It's pretty simple. Instead of buying an "external hard drive" such as: http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=1112201&CatId=136 Can I purchase a regular IDE internal HDD and pop it into an enclosure such as: http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=1042638&CatId=1204 ? If so, what is the advantage to buying an external drive, as they seem to be much more expensive than this route? If I were to go the route of internal/enclosure, what are important specs to consider when making a match (i.e. does enclosure need to be rated for GB size, RPM, etc. of HDD)? TIA
Today i actually recieved an External Enclosure for a 3.5" IDE HDD - i stuck a 40GB Maxtor 7200RPM 8MB Cache in it which has been lying around for awhile and it works perfectly. Put it this way an 80GB IDE will cost you £40 including delivery + the enclosure which will be maximum of £10 thats £50 for a backup drive or whatever you will use it for. instead of £80 buying the enclosure & hdd together from the likes of Maxtor / Western Digital. 120GB will cost you £45-£50 so for £60 you can get a 120GB external hdd enclosure instead of £100 odd.. It's alot cheaper and they run quite cool & reasonably quiet (and i'm REALLY fussy about any noise at all). It's alot cheaper, and they are incredibly incredibly undescribably easy to setup, any problems just ask Get your own !
Also, i may get told off for this - Check out ebay! - there are tones of 3.5" enclosures for about $15 & then you can get a hdd ide for very cheap! (didnt realise you were in us )
The advantage of an external drive would allow you to take it with you. While pen drives are useful, if you've got 40GB of, say, video, lugging around a PC may not be ideal. Yeah, laptops can work, but generally, you don't see 7200RPM drives in those. Desktops are pretty hard pressed not to find 7200RPM hard drives in them these days. Also, you could use them as part of a backup regiment. As long as you buy an external enclosure that accepts the size hard drive you're looking to use (3.5", 2.5" or 1.8", for example), you shouldn't have a problem. 3.5" and 2.5" are the most common, as they're standard for desktop and laptops, respectfully.
