Portable External Hard Drive vs Internal Laptop Drive

Aren't those portable external hard drives simply 2.5" laptop hard drives in an enclosure? Why are they known for higher failure rates when internal laptop hard drives do not have that stigma? Is there a difference in the quality of the drives? Should I just get an internal HDD and get an enclosure? I'm not sure how that would make a difference though.

Is there a difference in the longevity b/c the external would assume more wear and tear? What happens if the portable HDD and the laptop would be moving together anyway? Is it just b/c the hard drive is less protected under an enclosure, by which it is the fault of the enclosure or is it b/c of the repeated use of USB or something like that?

 

It because external HDD get tossed in laptop bags, dropped, etc. More wear and tear.

 

In other words if I got one with a really protective enclosure as well as had a particular place for it in my laptop bag where it wouldn't get tossed around, it would be equally (or very nearly equally) long-lasting?

 

Yes if your careful with it. It should last just about as long as an internal drive. My dads had a 20GB external HDD for the last 6-7 years. It in a huge, bulky case, that keeps it safe from bumps. He is also ultra careful with it.

 

Alright, thanks a bunch of your replies. I'll probably get one with a really protective case and pad it with foam around haha.

 

There's a host of reasons why an external drive might die faster than an internal one. Other than the wear and tear from being moved more frequently, you often run into these as well.
1) The case is badly designed and ends up with higher operating temps for the drive
2) The power supply isn't steady and variations puts more stress on the drives and...
3) Cheaper externals use cheaper drives, giving the impression that an external drive fails faster....

 

This is a very important point.
An external 2.5" drive without its own power supply draws up to 100% more power than specified for an USB port. (power consumption of a 2.5" HDD during spin-up: 1000mA@5V, power feed of an USB port as specified: 500mA@5V) Not all computers can handle this overload. And a HDD that has problems to spin up due to power issues will likely fail earlier.

Michael
Edit: these dreaded (non spec-compliant) Y-cables will provide additional 100mA, not 500 which is often believed.

 

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My external HDD requires 2 USB ports to run.

 

Well getting a 2.5" external with its own power supply would nullify its benefits as a portable external, but if I got one that used two usb ports would eliminate the variable power requirement as a possible factor?

 

Why so ?
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