Slim, low profile, external hard drive?

Looking to link my music library to an external HD as I use my laptop as a home computer/desktop and im running out of space.
Would like something that runs cool and and that will not take up that much space (will likely just velcro it to the top of my laptop as its always docked anyways...)

Thanks.

 

Runs cool and slim are somewhat mutually exclusive. Most slim enclosures have no fan and use USB for power and data. Larger enclosures have fans but typically require an external power connection.


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Get an aluminium enclosure, the drive will stay within reasonable temperatures enven under ehavy I/O. It will get somewhat hot, but nothing critical and there are some pretty slim aluminium enclosures like that startech one: StarTech SAT2510BU32 Aluminum 2.5" Black SATA USB 3.0 SuperSpeed SSD SATA Hard Drive Enclosure - Newegg.com

I have that one, so I could just put a drive in it and leave it under heavy I/O for some time and check the temps.

 

Well we need specs of your current laptop? But instead of ext you should just expand your internal one to 1tb drive. External nice to have but they can get dropped or lost - velcro your asking for more trouble then it is worth. I would first look at how big of a drive your laptop can take first like I mentioned before we need specs to know what your asking for.

 

Understood.
Does that mean I shouldnt use an EHD without a fan as it will ultimately get damaged?
Considering I only listen to music for 2-3 hours per day I wonder if that would be enough wear and tear to warrant getting an external, enclosed hd as opposed to a slim one that is USB powered.

 

Thanks Tijo...that makes sense.
Would an aluminum enclosed drive run cooler than say a WD Passport, that is enclosed in plastic?

SJ-I NEVER use this laptop on the go anymore (since I started using an IPAD). Its a Latitude E6400 that is permanently docked.
Further, I have a 256 SSD internally and I cant afford a 500gb ssd at this time.

Please forgive my ignorance here but assuming I decide to sell the 256gb SSD and buy a 500 or 750gb disc drive with the proceeds, is it difficult to transfer everything from SSD to a regular HD?
Also, if I decide to just clone HD's...sending all the info from my SSD to the new larger HD, will the OS clone as well?

 

For an external hard drive - I've had good success with the Western Digital Passport drives. There are portable versions that are USB powered. Personally that's the route I would go, especially if the computer is permanently docked.
http://www.wdc.com/en/products/external/portable/

Should you decide to replace the notebook's internal drive, you could consider one of the hybrid hard drives available like the Seagate SSHD. The 1TB model is $100 USD (ST1000LM014). I recently installed the 500GB version (ST500LM000) in a family computer and it was pretty quick & quiet. It has a built-in SSD which acts as a cache for frequently used data like the operating system meaning you'll have better performance than if you just had a regular hard drive. It's a good compromise considering the price relative to SSDs.
Whether it's quick and easy to transfer everything over - not necessarily unless you have cloning software. Doing it the traditional way, you'd be reinstalling Windows, your programs, transferring your data &c. It's not difficult, it just takes time; post here if you need help.

 

Thanks Charles.

Any particular model that you liked?

 

The version I have is no longer produced, but its successor is the My Passport Slim with the metal casing. Realistically though all the portable drives WD sells will perform equally well for storing data; the reason you'd spend for the more expensive ones (Passport Ultra/Passport Slim) is due to the bundled software and/or fancier design; not really worth it IMO if you are on a budget. The drives inside are the same. I'd just get the Elements.

 

Or just replace the hard drive inside your laptop for a larger one, and you'll have your "old" hard drive and buy an enclosure to put it in for additional storage down the road.

 

For the record, unless you plan to do an insane amount of I/O continuously on the drive, it will be quite cool in a plastic enclosure. The WD passport is the "easy/no hassle" solution. I tend to go for enclosures because I like to tinker and build my own stuff when I can. I also like getting a drive with a profile as thin as possible and that is light, something that can be hard to find with pre-built externals, but not impossible.

 

Yeah, its going to be used solely as my music library, which I access/use for maybe a couple of hours a day.
Otherwise all of my work files and everything else will be remain on my internal SSD.

I will likely just get a passport. Thanks.

 

I've got a Sony external drive (1 TB) that came in an aluminum case and runs super cool. I got it for right around $85.

In case you want to take a look.
https://store.sony.ca/sony-1tb-exte...1S/cat-31-catid-All-Computers-External-Drives