Internal HD Vs External HD

[skylinegtrv98]

well I am looking for any input on the subject....I have a computer that I have recently built, and I have almost run out of space on my 500gb HD already, plus my 500gb External is also full....I was looking to get another HD of atleast 1TB...I was just wondering what people thought of the benefits of an internal HD vs an external HD...I do have plenty of space in my case for more Hard drives as well as a large enough Power Supply and mobo support....and if I do get an external...would it be better to get an internal drive and an enclosure or buy one that is already together...

sofar I have been pretty interested in this drive...

Newegg.com - SAMSUNG Spinpoint F1 HD103UJ 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - Internal Hard Drives


My initial thought is that it would be good to have it as an external because it would allow me to easily move the data on it to other computer and bring it with me places....but an internal just seems like a more stable solution...

thanks in advance for any opinions

 

[King X13]

Its a matter of preference.

An internal is no more stable then an external because they are the same thing. Only one has a big case around it and one has a little case around it.

The convenience of the situation should be your deciding factor. Like you said you would like to be able to transport the date to other computers so i would go with an external one. If you dont need to do this then an internal one. Its really the only reason for the two options, portability.

 

[saltynay]

Speed is another factor the internal will be faster and cheaper...... There is no reason why you can't plug an internal hdd into another pc just take off the case and plug straight into the mobo. Can always buy an external enclosure and put an internal hdd in yourself

 

[skylinegtrv98]

Speed is another factor the internal will be faster and cheaper...... There is no reason why you can't plug an internal hdd into another pc just take off the case and plug straight into the mobo. Can always buy an external enclosure and put an internal hdd in yourself

Is speed going to be that big of a difference? If I do use it as an external I would be using it through eSata....I was under the impression that it would be the same as the internal SATA ports?? am I wrong there?

 

[saltynay]

Yes.... do some reading (admittedly I was under the same illusion a few days ago) Esata stock harddrives seem to perform worse then added internal drives but the best performance is always a true internal drive through esata. I am still to understand the theory behind this as esata simply uses different energy patterns to acquire longer cable distances but I haven't readup much yet. Speed is always a difference its only you who an decide whether an extra 30mins copying time is valid or not.....

 

[Lazer]

Go for internal it's faster

 

[KurrentEweser]

My thoughts on having tons of online(internal) storage is you lose tons of files when the drive go bad. Unless you are running a file server, having instant access to tons of files is rarely necessary. The only way I'd feel comfortable with 1TB of internal storage would be with a raid 1 array. But that would require two 1TB drives.

I would go for an external enclosure with an eSATA connector rather than just USB. You may have to get a controller card for it. You'll get the speed of an internal drive and it can be powered down when it's not being used.

 

[King X13]

Speed??? Whats the rush? Are you trying to store top secret files before a ninja comes and kid naps you?

Your just storing files. Does it really need to be at lightening speed? No.

 

[Hussein19891]

Speed??? Whats the rush? Are you trying to store top secret files before a ninja comes and kid naps you?

Your just storing files. Does it really need to be at lightening speed? No.

Ok I can agree with you there. There really isn't much speed difference. But then you factor in the fact that external hard drives are usually more expensive on average. So why pay MORE for a SLOWER Hard Drive? The speed factor alone for me is not a turn off. But factored in with higher cost and better chance of spilling coke all over the external hard drive, is a HUGE turn off.

 

[skylinegtrv98]

thanks everyone for the input...I went with an internal 1TB drive...basically it came down to pretty much the price...its was 119 with free shipping from the egg...the money I would have spent for an external enclosure i spent instead on another 2gb of RAM ....if need ever arises where I would need an enclosure to make moving my data easier I can always get one, but I thought that since I have more than enough room in my case might as well, plus it makes one less thing that I would have to plug into my power strip..