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Thread: External HDD

  1. #1

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    External HDD

    Hi all. My 2009 iMac is dying. Actually I have Lightroom and all my photos at it's internal 2TB HDD. So I'm thinking to buy the "new" 27 inches iMac with 512GB SSD ( well, maybe 1TB ) and move photo library to 2TB external drive. My question is - which drive to get - 3,5" with it's power supply or USB powered 2,5 inches ? As I can see there are some 2,5" really fast.
    Thanks in advance
    Best,
    Igor.

  2. #2

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    Re: External HDD

    2 TB SSD's aren't really that expensive anymore. It might be good to go with one of those for your working library. Use a regular old external 3.5" magnetic drive for backups or use a cloud backup service.

  3. #3

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    Re: External HDD

    Could you recommend one ?
    Thanks,
    Igor.

    Quote Originally Posted by domaz View Post
    2 TB SSD's aren't really that expensive anymore. It might be good to go with one of those for your working library. Use a regular old external 3.5" magnetic drive for backups or use a cloud backup service.

  4. #4
    jp's Avatar
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    Re: External HDD

    Western digital blue for a ssd. Good as a Samsung for less $. You can get USB adaptors that fit over the connector end of the drive.

  5. #5

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    Re: External HDD

    Thanks !

    Igor

  6. #6

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    Re: External HDD

    The new iMacs have Thunderbolt 3 connectivity. The connector looks like USB-C but is faster. If you get an external hard drive that is Thunderbolt 3 compliant (and a true Thunderbolt 3 cable) it will transfer data a lot faster. I would get the largest one you can afford, larger than the 2TB you already have.

    -Joshua

  7. #7

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    Re: External HDD

    Don't forget to make two backups and store one in a different location.

  8. #8

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    Re: External HDD

    Quote Originally Posted by giganova View Post
    Don't forget to make two backups and store one in a different location.
    And that's the important part. If you have only one point of failure, sooner or later, it will bite you. Ultimately, raw transfer speed is nice, but if you're doing your primary work on your internal drive, and using an external for storage, speed isn't that critical-- simply schedule a synchronization job for after hours.

    But if the data is important enough that you don't want to lose it, consider a cloud storage solution as a secondary for an external drive.

    I have absolutely no data to back this up (ha), but my experience has been that external drives last less time than internal drives. I would plan on replacing external spinning drives every 2 years. I have no experience as yet with SSD external drives.

  9. #9

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    Re: External HDD

    I use LaCie rugged external USB powered drives for backup. The rotating drives are a good deal and pretty fast at 130 MB/sec while the SSDs are more money, but several times faster (like 950 MB/sec). It depends on your budget, but they provide secure backup at home and in the field. Wouldn't shoot an event like a wedding without one or two regularly backed up to during the event.
    Others mentioning cloud backup is also good advice.
    I also upgrade every 5-7 years since technology advances may leave your older equipment stranded.

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