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borg48

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2.5 size laptop harddrive and external drive

I wanted to get a 100gig 2.5 laptop harddrive and then an external case for it so i can have it as my portable drive.  My question is will all 2.5 laptop harddrive work as an external drive?  Meaning just using the usb to power it without any power adapter?

Thanks
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rid
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I just lookad at an old(-ish) 6 GB laptop HD. Its power rating is 5 V 500 mA, which is about what a USB port can deliver. Newer drives may take less power, but the enclosure circuitry may need some overhead.... You need to look at power needs for the components involved - 500 mA is max power load on a USB port, for a laptop probably max total power drain from all USB ports.
/RID
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No

Older ones may not.  Newer ones should.  You may need to use a double USB connector, that is, two USB connectors to the drive from the computer to supply suficient power for the drive.
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stevepo

It depends upon the enclosure.

Here is a link to a list of enclosures of various prices for 2.5 inch hard drives which DON'T require external power: http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.asp?N=2010090092+1053807124+1053907127&Submit=ENE&SubCategory=92

take your pick and enjoy!
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Gary Case
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... look carefully at the list of enclosures stevepo posted;  nearly ALL of them (in fact all of the ones I looked at that have a picture of the rear of the enclosure) have a jack for an external power adapter;  and many have notes that indicate you MAY need one;  or someone has mentioned that in the reviews.  Some of them do have provisions for using two USB connections, to get more power from the 2nd port (but as I noted, this is a bad idea with a laptop).

Bottom line:  self-powering a notebook drive from a USB port does work;  but when you do that you're at the margins of the USB spec on power => so don't be surprised if you eventually have problems with your USB ports if you do this routinely, or if you use the drive with other USB devices.
True, many of them do use 2 USB ports, also you want to be careful of how many RPM the drive your going to be putting into the enclosure is.  Some of the reviews stated that 7200 RPM are too much for some of the enclosures.  Read the product specs carefully and buy a trusted brand, it seems that there are more bad reviews for the less trusted brands.
I use several kinds of these.
If you are connecting to a laptop then use an AC adapter for the USB drive. ~ End of story...
That's the only SAFE way to go.
Don't risk using one without an AC adapter unless you're good with possibly replacing a laptop motherboard if it doesn't work as expected.

The two USB ports type box works in theory only. There is no way to 'know' if two adjacent USB ports on a given laptop were implimented (wired) as two completely seperate ports or if they are in affect a hub. If they are wired as a hub the max for BOTH ports in combination is still 500 mA.
I HAVE seen notes in Laptop manuals that specify no more than 500 mA TOTAL on all the USB ports.

These portable drive boxes that come without AC adapters are intended for use with desktops.
(Even the two USB cable versions.)
The intent of two USB cables is not so much to spread the load over USB ports as it is to get more power to a high RPM drive.

Note: The USB ports on 'some' older desktops (usually with the older version 1.1 USB) have no more power handling capacity than laptops. - 500 mA max.

If you are going to use this with the same laptop every time then why don't you simply install a larger drive.

If you want portable then you may be connecting it to someone elses laptop at some point.
Lacking the AC adapter you risk frying THEIR motherboard.
Do you wanna replace THEIR motherboard because you fried it for them?
~ Get the AC adapter!!!!!!!!!
.
... PCBonez said what I was implying -- but a lot more directly.   Bottom line:  they work without an adapter;  but there's a reason all of the boxes have an input for an A/C adapter!   As I said, they are "on the margins" of the USB spec ==> and it's never a good idea to use equipment on the margins.   You're just begging for failures ... and the point about frying someone ELSE's USB ports is a good one.
Just an echo...
I'd rather fry a $15 USB hub than a $$$$laptop mainboard...T
Review on the STORE-IT drive:

http://www.technobrains.com/phpbb2/viewtopic.php?p=918

Quote: "The Store-It Drive is USB 2.0 based and any computer with USB 1.1 will require the second USB connection for that added power."

Store-it + USB 1.1 + One USB Port = Dead USB Port

Don't plug that thing into MY laptop!
But if he has USB 2.0 then it works great.
"... it works great ..." => but you are, whether you realize it or not, running at the "threshold" of the capabilities of the USB port.   Kind of like driving your car at the red line all the time => it will work fine until the engine blows.
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Excuse my ignorance, but who do i give credit to on this since everyone gave such good information about it.
You can select split points and give as many to each person that you would like to.
... you can, as noted split points => but there's a minimum of 20 points, so you can only select two answers unless you increase the points for the question.