View Full Version : what's a good price for an external HDD?
SteveMcQ
09-26-2006, 05:05 AM
I haven't been keeping up on the PC scene, so what's the norm for external HDDs? I'm starting to look around since I need a new one and I'm not sure what is a good deal and what's average.
Also, the usual suspects of Seagate and Maxtor or Western Digital still the ones to go with for an external? USB, Firewire, or SATA? Suggestions I would greatly appreciate. Thanks.
psiufoxx2
09-26-2006, 07:52 AM
There's a Western Digital 160GB on sale at Compusa for $50 After Rebate.
Check this week's sale paper. It's $120 to begin with - $70 in rebates.
NC-17
09-26-2006, 01:58 PM
Building your own external drive can be quite affordable. Get a cheap drive from Fry's + External drive enclosure. Couple screws and a screw driver later (if that, some are screwless) and BAM! (futurama reference), cheap external drive!
SteveMcQ
09-26-2006, 11:02 PM
Are drive prices fairly consistent across drive sizes that one could suggest a good GB/dollar ratio that I can look for? I'm mainly looking at the Western Digital My Book Essential 250GB drive (Best Buy for $170 (http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=7969585&type=product&productCategoryId=pcmcat33200050002&id=1153997294349)). Is that a normal price (GB/dollar) for 250GB? I can find it online through Amazon ($109 shipped (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B000EVOOO8/pricegrabber2-elect-20/ref=nosim)).
Also, what concerns me is that it uses passive cooling. Should I be looking for one tha has an active fan?
There's also a model that runs $20 more typically, the Premium package. It includes backup software and a Firewire port. The software doesn't really appeal to me (or should that be something I look for?), but I'm wondering more, is there a big enough difference in transfer rates between Firewire 400 and USB 2.0? From everything I read, the difference between the two isn't that huge, so any information on that would be great.
Thanks.
SOSTrooper
09-27-2006, 01:52 AM
33 to 40 cents per gig should be your target for external HDs. Any higher is not worth it, but if you can find it lower, then thats even better.
SteveMcQ
09-27-2006, 03:44 AM
33 to 40 cents per gig should be your target for external HDs. Any higher is not worth it, but if you can find it lower, then thats even better.Sweet. Just found the one I linked above for $99 shipped from the Dell store.
BryceDraven
09-27-2006, 03:56 AM
My friend got a MyBook and made me put a lot of... movies from my computer onto it. It was a pretty good external harddrive and it was like x5 bigger then my current harddrive. I was pissed when I seen how big it was. So if you can find a good price, Mybooks are pretty good.
SteveMcQ
09-27-2006, 04:40 AM
My friend got a MyBook and made me put a lot of... movies from my computer onto it. It was a pretty good external harddrive and it was like x5 bigger then my current harddrive. I was pissed when I seen how big it was. So if you can find a good price, Mybooks are pretty good.The 250GB Essential version runs for $93 plus tax at the Dell Store right now. That's after 10% off automatic coupon and they also have free shipping for it for a limited time.
BryceDraven
09-27-2006, 04:43 AM
The 250GB Essential version runs for $93 plus tax at the Dell Store right now. That's after 10% off automatic coupon and they also have free shipping for it for a limited time. Darn, I am here sitting with a 80gig harddrive but really, I wanna find a 1tb internal hardrive. Have you guys seen any around? I heard they were out.
SteveMcQ
09-27-2006, 05:18 AM
Just checked the big three (Western Digital, Maxtor and Seagate) and I didn't see any internal HDDs with 1TB capacity. Largest I saw listed was 750GB.
Best Buy has a 250GB for $100 this week.