hey guys - long time lurker first time poster

I've been looking at external hard drives for my iBook 12 inch (the model just before the latest speed bump) running 10.3.9.

I've got my eye on the Icecube Gen II Combo 160Gb 8Mb for $243 from epowermac.com.au.
http://epowermac.com.au/product.asp?numRec...chFor=&PT_ID=75

I'm looking for any recommendations - can anyone suggest a better drive (in terms of value for money / quality / etc.)? Seen this one elsewhere for a cheaper price?

Finally, my iBook won't have any trouble seeing all 160 gig of the drive will it?

Thanks in advance guys, sorry for so many questions

what are you planning to use it for? just backing up, editing videos etc?
i ended up paying a bit more than i was planning on last week when i bought mine to get a pretty fast one to work with the video straight from it.

Add any hard drive yourself to a ---

Macpower Icecube Gen II 1394a and USB2 Combo $125.95

then you can change or upgrade anytime.

eg. Seagate Barracuda 160GB 7200RPM

Internet Price: 8Mb Cache $108.00 2Mb Cache $98
Seagate Price Check
and Seagate give a 5 Year Warranty.

I use a Seagate 120GB and Icecube Gen II with my Mac Mini.

Thanks for the replies!

I think I'll stick with ready-made external harddrives thanks Rodney9.

It will be used mainly for video editing/playback/storage, music storage and backup. Are there faster USB2/firewire 400 harddrives out there? - it doesn't say what speed (rpm) the drives are...

I bought the same drive from epowermac late last year. It only had FW400. The casing has passive cooling and the hard drive was a Western Digital. i don't have it anymore so I cannot check the model.

I think Rodney9's idea of buying the the casing and the drive separately is the best idea. At least you can get the fastest drive possible.

Have you considered a 2.5" drive. Limited to 100gb at moment (although 80gb is best value) but you won't need a power supply so it is much more convenient with an ibook.

Richard

The additional warranty on a drive mechanism bought separately could be a lifesaver.

I believe case assemblers must get drive mechanisms at a very good price because they only need a 12 month warranty on the HD.

Face it—the drive is going to die before the enclosure does (unless you drop same!).

Im also looking at getting an external drive for my ibook. I think that I'm going to go with a 2.5" one though, cause I know that the time I really need the data off my external drive there won't be a powerpoint near by, so I want something bus powered. I was looking at a lacie drive with a thumb scanner thing on it... seemed pretty gimmicky tho. Im also considering the macally one or the clearlight one they are selling on epowermac.

I'm soon to be using a Lacie over FW800 but has triple interface - 300GB 16MB cache - hot as, but you pay for it. My trusty $50 USB2 enclosure with a 60GB Seagate in it has never let me down and the drive is over 5 years old and was in a PC for 4 years of its life. So I think they are all good.

It is handy to at least have at least FW400 and USB2 interfaces on board, and don't bother with the one's that claim to run bus power (3.5" IDE I mean, 2.5" pocket drives might be alright).

I did look at the enclosure you are looking at but when I factored in a new big drive, I liked the Lacie solution. Personal preference however!

Cheers

i just bought the 250 gig version, using it through fw 400 with the aim to upgrade to 800 next year with a new imac.

was so impressed with the ease of use (plug and play/mount). finally i have enough hard drive space when editing video on my g3 ibook 30 gig!!

None of the iMacs have FW800. Although maybe next year, who knows.

I am seriously considering an external drive too.

That case a few posts ago looks great but I am guessing it only handles 3.5" drives??

Really don't need another power pack so I was leaning towards a 2.5" model but am unsure what to do.

Cheers.

I am looking at an external too - for my ibook (in the mail) and a mac mini (still looking for one).

I mainly want it for music and back-up, though have heard the hd in the mini is slow (i.e. slows down performance)

I was thinking the Lacie Mini (comes with drive)
http://www.lacie.com/products/product.htm?id=10119

or the MacPower M9 - DX (no drive included)
http://www.macpower.com.tw/news/2005/04/25/948
is also a USB and firewire hub

I am not going to go for looks (i.e. these too) - are there other cheaper options? The idea of a combo as a hub (especially for the mini) sounds good to me. Portability is important as spending 5-months in Canada next year (and taking the mini)

What is the difference in speed between the 2.5" and 3.5" drives - apologies for lack of knowledge on this. Any pro's/con's other than external power for the 3.5"?

while i am asking whats the diff between IDE, PATA and SATA drives -- what should i be looking for in a drive for external use?

thanx
c.

just wanted to *bump* this as seems to be a few peeps asking similar things

for example, see thread:
http://forums.appletalk.com.au/index.php?s...t=0&#entry96271

Also would really like comments on my own q's

cheers
c.