Solved IDE/SATA Adapter vs. HD Enclosure?

Slammer · Aug 4, 2011

First of all, I know this is a really long post, but I tried to include all the information I've acquired so far. Thank you in advance for reading through this whole thing to help me

In anticipation of a new HD I'm going to be getting soon for my laptop (I hope) I've been trying to decide what to do with my current laptop HD. I want to use it as an external HD for storage (or maybe to boot other OS's off of, I haven't decided yet). So I searched through eBay and basically found two solutions to use it as an external HD: A SATA/IDE to USB adapter, or a HD enclosure, with different pros and cons for each. I also have several older internal desktop HDs around my house that I'd like to use as external storage devices as well, so that plays a part into what I want to get. I'm going to list the pros and cons of each possible solution that I can think of, and then if anyone has anymore that I didn't think of or more information about which setup is best or the questions I have, I'd appreciate it. I'm trying to decide which one is going to be best solution.

What I want: A way to interchange and connect internal laptop and desktop HDs with sizes up to 1TB to my computer through the USB ports. If the 1TB support isn't possible for my price range (Trying to keep it to $5 on eBay; no more than $10) then at a minimum it should support a laptop HD up to 500 GB. Preferably something hot-swappable, with as few cables as possible.Also, the more support for different types, connection types, sizes, and capacity of HDs, the better.

IDE/SATA to USB adapter:
Pros- 1) It will fit both 2.5" Laptop and 3.5" desktop HD's, nice because I have several older 3.5" desktop HDs sitting around that I'd also like to make use of. 2) They seem to support greater HD sizes than enclosures (for the same price). Since I'll be getting a 1TB HD, it'd be nice to have something that supports one that size, in case I want to use that one externally for some reason, but it's not a requirement. 3) Will work with both IDE and SATA HDs, nice because many of the old HDs I have use IDE.

Cons- 1) It requires the purchase of a separate Power Supply cable, which will add to the cost and be one more cable to deal with (also, I assume that all power connectors for all HDs are the same, and I don't need to worry about having different types of power adapters. If this isn't the case please let me know; lack of compatibility would be another con) 2) I've heard that static electricity could pose a serious problem for internal HDs that aren't protected, and could easily render them useless. Is this a serious problem I need to be constantly wary of, or is it just another one of those "be careful because you're not allowed to sue us" type warnings? Under what circumstances would I need to worry about it? This is the main reason I'm leaning towards an enclosure, unless it's actually a non-issue or there's a relatively easy way to protect them.

HD Enclosure:
Pros- 1) Convenient for taking it places, with added protection all around 2) They don't seem to need any additional power supply (or other) cables. Again, please correct me if I'm wrong. 3) Seemingly more support for hot-swapping, but I can't find any concrete evidence that the adapters don't support this.

Cons- 1) Most only fit 2.5" OR 3.5" HDs, and won't work with both sizes (Although if I could find one that does work with both for a cheap price that'd be awesome) 2) They don't seem to support SATA and IDE at the same time, which means I'd probably have to get at least two different ones (or pay a lot more for one that does support both). Although having two available at the same time could be a possible Pro.

I know this is a lot to read, but I only deal with software and need help choosing the right hardware. I really appreciate any helpful information you guys can give me about this.

An example of an adapter without a power supply: USB 2.0 to IDE SATA 2.5 3.5 Hard Drive Converter Cable | eBay

An example of an adapter including a power supply; notice the increased cost: USB 2.0 to IDE SATA 2.5 3.5 Hard Drive Converter Cable | eBay

Please notice that neither of these tell you the max capacity of HD they support, I don't know if they just didn't include that information on the page (I've seen other similar adapters that do include a capacity limitation in the description) or of they just support "unlimited" amounts of storage in drives.

Example of a laptop HD enclosure. It only supports up to 160GB, and can't be used with desktop HDs. USB 2.0 2.5" SATA HD HARD DISK DRIVE CASE Enclosure | eBay

tom982 · Aug 5, 2011

Sorry Adam, but I'm not very good on hardware so I wont be much help here. I've posted this exact thread over at TSF so you can benefit from the combined knowledge of the two forums:

IDE/SATA Adapter vs. HD Enclosure? - Tech Support Forum

Tom

usasma · Aug 5, 2011

I've used all of these at work (we slave HDD's to our data backup system this way). The biggest drawback to the IDE/SATA to USB adapter is durability. I've had 3 over the last 4+ years because they break so easily.

At work we use the enclosures and they've lasted much longer than the IDE/SATA to USB adapter.
We use the 2½" and 3½" IDE adapters by removing the case - leaving us with just the innards. The biggest problem with them is the power connector for 3½" drives - they get a workout when being switched, and often break.
For the SATA we use a plugin module that's sized for both 2½" and 3½" SATA drives. The module sits on the desktop and you can plug in either drive because the module has different sized slots in the cover(s).

The problem is that you won't know if the adapter is going bad unless you test the hard drives that you're using - and that does take time. Now, as soon as a drive fails on one of the adapters, I test it immediately - that way I'm not fussing around with trying to figure out if it's a dead drive or a malfunctioning adapter.

Slammer · Aug 5, 2011

Thanks a lot for the info, It looks like it will just be better to get a couple different enclosures. All 2.5" HDs should be the same right? I won't have to worry about getting one for IDE and one for SATAs? I'm just assuming they're all recent enough to still be relatively standardized, but don't know if there are maybe some older ones with different connections than the new ones.

Also, I'm really dying to know how careful I need to be about static electricity around these things. I've heard you can fry 'em just by walking from one spot to another with them in your hand, but I can't help but feel these warnings are exaggerated. I still touch something metal before picking one up, but after messing with one for a couple hours without really paying attention to it, it still worked fine. Thanks for the help, I really appreciate it.

Also, thanks to Tom for posting it over there, the first response seems to agree that an enclosure would make more sense. And although I'd love to have one of the big ones from the second response, they might be too expensive. I'll check ebay again, see if they've gone down much in the last few months haha.

usasma · Aug 6, 2011

No, you need different enclosures for IDE - one for 2½" and one for 3½"
You can get one module for SATA that will handle both 2½" and 3½"

I got mine from a major electronics retailer in the area, so I'm not familiar with the prices on eBay.
This is the one that I use for SATA: Thermaltake - SATA Hard Drive Docking Station with eSATA and USB Connection - ST0005U
They also have one with 2 bays here: Thermaltake - Dual Bay Docking Station for Most Internal SATA Hard Drives - ST0014U

Hard drives aren't so sensitive that looking at them will fry them - but you must be careful with them. The more precautions that you take, the more likely it is that you'll have no problems.

At work we make sure that we remove all power before attaching them and then we touch the metal of the case while we're grounded (in order to discharge any residual static charge) and that's usually all that we need. But we don't have rugs at work, and we have grounded metal counters that we're in contact with all day long.

whs · Aug 6, 2011

i use this one. It has the same functions as the Thermaltake but is a bit cheaper. It works very well.

usasma · Aug 6, 2011

Nice whs!

Note the black rectangle in the top of the device.
The small black rectangle is for 2½" SATA drives
The large black rectangle is a spring loaded cover for the 3½" SATA drive opening

whs · Aug 6, 2011

usasma said:
Nice whs!

Note the black rectangle in the top of the device.
The small black rectangle is for 2½" SATA drives
The large black rectangle is a spring loaded cover for the 3½" SATA drive opening

And in the front you have an SD card reader and two USB ports - that is especially handy for laptops where you never have enough ports.

Slammer · Aug 6, 2011

Ok so 2.5" HDs can have SATA or IDE connections? And if I get one of those docks will it support all HDs, whether they use IDE or SATA? I might be willing to spend more on one of those if it will cater to any HD I throw at it.

So as long as I use a little common sense, ground myself before touching them, and don't do any moonwalks across a carpet while holding one I ought to be pretty safe?

If I don't get one off ebay I'll be looking for something a bit cheaper, like this Newegg.com - Rosewill RX-DU101 2.5" & 3.5" USB 2.0 Docking Station It seems to have all the same features as the other one (minus the extra slots for USB, but that's ok) but maybe I'm missing some other reason for it being cheaper...

While I'm here, what's the difference between SATA and eSATA and Sata II? Performance wise, comparability wise, and physically wise.

Thanks again for all of everyone's help, I'd be lost without all your hardware expertise and experience. I think I'll definitely go for an enclosure/dock type setup over an adapter, the one I borrowed for testing also gave me a lot of problems.

usasma · Aug 6, 2011

NO! The dock will only support SATA drives
SATA connectors are the same on 2½" and 3½" drives
IDE connectora are different on 2½" and 3½" drives
2½" drives are for laptops and that's the standard size for them. IDE drives are older and smaller than SATA drives
3½" drives are for desktops and that's the standard size for them. IDE drives are older and may be smaller than the SATA drives

You need:
- a dock for SATA drives (both 2½" and 3½")
- an enclosure for 2½" IDE
- an enclosure for 3½" IDE

The drawback to all this stuff is that you'll have to carry around all of it.
The USB adapter is only 2 pieces (the part that plugs into the drive and the power adapter).
The USB adapter is also cheaper - so it may be easier to start with this while trying to figure out which enclosures/docks/adapters that you're willing to carry around.

Finally, this doesn't address the difference between newer and older 2½" SATA drivers. The newer drives only require 500ma of current - which is what the USB ports put out. The older drivers usually require more - and that's why there's several USB plugs and an included AC adapter.

Good luck!

Slammer · Aug 6, 2011

Haha sorry if I'm not making this easy, I just like to know everything before I make decisions. But you've been extremely helpful.

I think I just have one more question: what's the deal with eSATA? Is that a whole other connection I need to worry about?

usasma · Aug 7, 2011

eSATA is like USB - it's just a different connector.
I think it's a bit faster than USB 2.0 - but so is Firewire and it didn't catch on either.

I routinely transfer 100's of gB's of data and find that USB is slow but adequate for my needs (mostly data backup). I've been considering eSATA or Firewire but can't justify the added expense for something that I don't really need.

Slammer · Aug 8, 2011

Oh ok so it's just another type of transfer cable. Like USB, Firewire, or that new Thunderbolt thing that was recently developed. So it's not a type of HD connection I need to worry about. Thank you so much for all of your wisdom and knowledge

I will refer back to this page when I get my new HD in and need to start worrying about all this!

paul1149 · Aug 8, 2011

I use both here, and both are nice. The open adapter is gold for quick connecting various drives. For under $10, it came with its own power supply. The IDE enclosure is solid, but I've had to give up hopes of true hot-swappability. It just will not disengage from Windows. So I turn it on late in the evening, do my backups, then turn it off after I shut down.

What I'd like to do, though, is hook it up to a NAS device which would be used as a server. Just waiting for one to fall into my lap.

whs · Aug 8, 2011

eSata is great and very fast - faster even than USB3. I tried both (e.g. for imaging) on the same system with the same image and it was faster. If you have it on your PC, use it. If you do not have it, get a PCI card - that costs very little.

whs · Aug 8, 2011

usasma said:
eSATA is like USB - it's just a different connector.
I think it's a bit faster than USB 2.0 - but so is Firewire and it didn't catch on either.

I routinely transfer 100's of gB's of data and find that USB is slow but adequate for my needs (mostly data backup). I've been considering eSATA or Firewire but can't justify the added expense for something that I don't really need.

I think you would be amazed about the additional speed. Try it, you'll like it. It is a small investment for the PCI card and the enclosure. Especially for imaging it is a great gain. I image from the SSD to eSata in no time.

Slammer · Aug 25, 2011

I've had a little bit of a change in plans, details are in this thread since I don't think it's necessary to post my new questions in two different threads:http://www.vistax64.com/general-discussion/291222-new-hard-drive-questions-3.html If anyone wants to head over there and help me out with my new batch of inquiries, then thanks

I doubt I'll end up mesing with any adapters or enclosures at this point, so I'll mark it solved. Thanks for all of your help!

Solved IDE/SATA Adapter vs. HD Enclosure?

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