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    Does 2.5" external Sata need power cable?

    Discussion in 'Hardware Components and Aftermarket Upgrades' started by Dacien, Feb 5, 2011.

  1. Dacien

    Dacien Notebook Guru

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    I have had a USB-to-Sata adapter laying around for a while, but I noticed that it only has a single cable to connect to a 2.5" Sata drive. It has a molex power connector, presumably for it's IDE-to-USB functionality. Did I lose a cable (such as a molex-to-Sata power adapter) or does a 2.5" Sata hard drive only need one connector for power and data? Thanks in advance for your help.
     
    Dacien, Feb 5, 2011
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  2. waleed786

    waleed786 Notebook Evangelist

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    pretty sure most 2.5" sata drives are powered through the same USB port
     
    waleed786, Feb 5, 2011
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  3. chimpanzee

    chimpanzee Notebook Virtuoso

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    I think he meant the power to the drive itself which AFAIK is part of the SATA cable, unlike ancient IDE where it is a seperate molex adaptor.
     
    chimpanzee, Feb 5, 2011
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  4. michael_recycled

    michael_recycled Notebook Deity

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    Hi,
    It depends. Usually, a 2.5" HDD needs more power than a USB port needs to provide per specification.

    Manufacturers of external drives and USB/Sata adapters don't mind and rely on the assumption "some overload is possible". That way they can save some pennies by not providing the necessary power adapter or even not providing a connector for a PSU.

    That said, yes, this was on purpose by the manufaturer of that adapter. What is more embarrassing: most adapters come with an AC adapter enclosed. But they simply don't feed the part for 2.5" HDDs. :eek:

    Power and data cables are separate with sata also.


    Michael
     
    michael_recycled, Feb 5, 2011
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  5. chimpanzee

    chimpanzee Notebook Virtuoso

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    stand corrected. having been only dealing with 2.5" SATA drive, I have the impression that the molex is a thing of the past.
     
    chimpanzee, Feb 5, 2011
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