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    Recovering data from Dell 5150 Inspiron HD

    Discussion in 'Hardware Components and Aftermarket Upgrades' started by bpatters69, Jun 13, 2008.

  1. bpatters69

    bpatters69 Notebook Enthusiast

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    Hello Folks,

    My Dell Inspiron 5150 died over the weekend and I am 90% sure it was the motherboard so I would like to recover the data from the HD. I have read that there are external housings that you can buy which will allow you to use or recover the data on the HD via a USB connection. I spoke with Dell tech support and they said I have a 3.5" Hard Disk. 3.5" sounds big for a notebook hard disk but I will confirm that when I open the PC over this weekend.

    Would the following work as an external enclosure?

    http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817332007

    Thanks, Bill
     
  2. Greg

    Greg Notebook Nobel Laureate

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    You have a 2.5" disc. Dell techs can sometimes be pretty stupid.

    The enclosure is exactly what you need, except that it is 3.5"...you'll want 2.5".
     
  3. elijahRW

    elijahRW Notebook Deity

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  4. kevinscotland

    kevinscotland Notebook Consultant

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    yeah it will be np. look on ebay for Ata/sata to usb devices.


    i've seen ones that are compatable with both.
     
  5. TheRealFireblade

    TheRealFireblade Notebook Consultant

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    Ebay is certainly worth considering... and Amazon are a good source as well.
    But Newegg sell dozens of cheap 2.5" IDE enclosures.

    However, it might be worthwhile spending a little more, and buying one which supports both IDE + SATA, since it would provide you with some future-proofing ;)
     
  6. elijahRW

    elijahRW Notebook Deity

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    I second the notion :D
     
  7. bpatters69

    bpatters69 Notebook Enthusiast

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    Thanks all. I will confirm the size of the HD when I open up the PC this weekend. 2.5" makes a lot more sense to me too.

    Cheers.
     
  8. elijahRW

    elijahRW Notebook Deity

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    1 million dollars says it's a 2.5" HDD :D

    BTW you planning on selling the broken notebook?
     
  9. The_Observer

    The_Observer 9262 is the best:)

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  10. K-TRON

    K-TRON Hi, I'm Jimmy Diesel ^_^

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    The insprion 5150 uses a 2.5" ide/ata/pata harddrive. IDe/ata and pata are all of the same, just so you know. Most likely your drive is a 30-40gb 4200rpm drive, as those were the common drives when the system was for sale.

    You will need a laptop ide to usb adaptor, so that you can get all of your data off of the harddrive.

    K-TRON
     
  11. bpatters69

    bpatters69 Notebook Enthusiast

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    Update - I just took out the hard disk. The HD measures 2.5" wide and 3.5" long. I think measurements for HD are in width so 2.5" is the answer, no?
     
  12. bpatters69

    bpatters69 Notebook Enthusiast

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    Yep. I will sell it. Interested?
     
  13. K-TRON

    K-TRON Hi, I'm Jimmy Diesel ^_^

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    yes, the drive is a 2.5" drive. The measurements are from the side which the interface connector are on.

    K-TRON