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    will any HDD work

    Discussion in 'Hardware Components and Aftermarket Upgrades' started by kevinscotland, May 30, 2008.

  1. kevinscotland

    kevinscotland Notebook Consultant

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    Ok lets say it is a 2.5" IDE from a dell laptop, will any IDE 2.5" from another machine work in the laptop.

    same with sata drives.

    i do know that PATA and SATA are incompatible.
     
    kevinscotland, May 30, 2008
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  2. jisaac

    jisaac Notebook Deity

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    yes it should work
     
    jisaac, May 30, 2008
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  3. kevinscotland

    kevinscotland Notebook Consultant

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    thanks dude ;)
     
    kevinscotland, May 30, 2008
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  4. John Ratsey

    John Ratsey Moderately inquisitive Super Moderator

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    Depending on HDD size and computer age, you might hit the 137GB limit.

    The other issue is that while the vast majority of 2.5" HDD are 9.5mm (3/8") thick, there are a few that are 12.7mm (1/2") thick. There was a time when the 2.5" HDDs were 3/4" thick. See the attached snap of a Toshiba MK2720FC (which packed 1358MB in to that space).

    John
     

    Attached Files:

    John Ratsey, May 30, 2008
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  5. jisaac

    jisaac Notebook Deity

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    if he hits the 137gb limit he just has to partition his hd to have full use of its storage space. The only current hd I know that is greater than 9.5mm thick is the 5k500, but obviously there are older (and i mean old) hds that are very thick.
    kev needs to post his what dell laptop he's got as well as what drive he wants to use in it. :)
     
    jisaac, May 30, 2008
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  6. kevinscotland

    kevinscotland Notebook Consultant

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    i've got a latitude C400 that i have as a spare, and i have a few pata drives kicking about from my alienware laptop which is also IDE.
     
    kevinscotland, May 30, 2008
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  7. gt3

    gt3 Notebook Enthusiast

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    Here's some additional information on drive heights
    http://newmodeus.com/shop/index.php?main_page=page&id=3&chapter=0
     
    gt3, May 30, 2008
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  8. jisaac

    jisaac Notebook Deity

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    what is the model name/number of your free hard drives?
     
    jisaac, May 30, 2008
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  9. kevinscotland

    kevinscotland Notebook Consultant

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    does the model name and number matter? all i know at this minute is they are all the same size and pata.
     
    kevinscotland, May 30, 2008
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  10. jisaac

    jisaac Notebook Deity

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    ok all u really need to do if you want to know if a drive is compatible is measure its thickness using a ruler. Any drive that measures approx. 9.5mm is fine for use. Too much higher and you cannot use it in your c400, since it wont fit.
     
    jisaac, May 30, 2008
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  11. kevinscotland

    kevinscotland Notebook Consultant

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    cheers bro :D :D
     
    kevinscotland, May 30, 2008
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