I have one of these (not this exact item) and it has come in handy numerous times to recover data and even to use as a case for a temporary external hard drive (I currently have an old laptop 2.5" drive in mine, using it as an external drive for my studies, obviously with another backup method!)
Seems like an absolute steal, even to just have lying around the home if a mate is having data troubles, you can whip it out and assist them on the spot!
Thanks, didn't see that there, it's still a bargain though, and I know these guys replace anything faulty and are pretty reliable.
r u serious? Why would u pay for more postage than the item itself.
What?
It will be expensive to return it back to meritline in case of any fault.
You can buy a new HDD.
these are REALLY bad enclosures and requires 2 usb ports to operate, the case heats up quickly and its almost too hot to touch it after a few minutes.
makes weird noises as well, avoid if you can and treasure your expensive 2.5 hdd's
requires 2 usb ports to operate,
Really depends
I also have one that has 2 ports, but only i use 1 and it still works
but yeah, these aren't as good as the other ones using the mini usb ports
They dont require 2 USB ports… maybe your comp is old and its not pumping enough juice.
Mine works fine on one.
Usually I use these to either:
- recover data from a virus-infected HDD before wiping, or attempt to salvage data from a failing HDD.
- As external storage, I don't leave it on my laptop as secondary storage =\
and so I'm here to provide feedback on the required 2 usb ports.
I don't live on the bleeding edge and am happy with my current C2D PC
Also, all the 2.5 external HDD's from Seagate, WD and other well known brands never required 2 usb ports ON MY PC and they don't heat up easily hence my comment above
These are WYSIWYG cheap cases, end of story.
is this AUD or USD?
USD
why do they require two usb ports?
Sometimes with older computers the usb ports can't pump out enough voltage.
Mine works fine with one.
why do most of the cheap ones have a dual usb Y cable though?
yeah a few years ago not all USB ports were powered. If you had a little + next to your USB symbol, its a powered USB port, otherwise you needed to use two usb ports
originally a USB could provide 500ma (0.5amp). Nowadays they often provide more. But some hard drives require more than 500ma, so even if it is powered, it may need more than one usb port to get enough amps to power the drive.
NO not volts, all usb ports produce the same 5 volts. It is the number of amps that the usb ports vary on.
Ma bad, amps it is :)
Your link takes to $6.99!
you need to add to cart and enter the code
ah thanks
I've had a few of these and they aren't too bad. You definitely get what you pay for. Mine don't seem to like my PS3 either.
NB catch for new players:-
If you are looking to get one of these to have for one day/just in case, as well as the power and cooling issues identified above, it might be better to look at getting an enclosure that can mount both 2.5" and 3.5" hard drives. This will however up the price a fair bit and require external power rather than USB power.
Not meaning here to critique this deal in either direction.
Some general comments and some in reponse to those above:
I have an IDE version of this enclosure. Same product down to the little green bundled screwdriver. It did the job for which it was needed, but you get what you pay for. In my case the tabs holding the front panel in place intruded on the internal space where the drive is meant to fit, which made it a struggle to slide the drive in completely while avoiding excessive force. Also, you can tell that the PCB does not come from the same factory as those used by reputable brands. I wouldn't trust it for backing up valuable stuff due to the possibility of corruption while the data's flowing through circuitry that appears to be of a "just barely good enough to be functional" standard.
A second USB plug is normal, particularly for bare enclosures where it's unknown what drive is going to be used. My 2.5" enclosures from reputable brands like Vantec and Astone have them. 2.5" drives tend to be right near USB 2.0's power limit - some go over it while the ability of some ports to provide power is below spec. But more often than not, things will work fine with just the power+data plug inserted.
A case getting hot isn't a bad thing, it just means it is more effective at dissipating the enclosed HD's heat than one that stays cooler to the touch.
2.5" drives that are 12.5mm high (1.5TB and most 1TB models) might not fit.
Hope that helps.
is WD800U0017 series of WD portable hard disk 2.5 inch ?
hi op, can you post the price in USD please
It is USD mate, if you meant AUD, I am unsure as I did not purchase one.
if you did mean AUD, it may fluctuate about a few cents off(as AUD to USD rate is not constant)
Pretty good, but still $3.68 on eBay…
http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=180724…