AVAILABILITY OF SHOCK PROOF PORTABLE HARD DRIVES.

George

George

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I realise this is technically a computer related question, and Mods please move if appropriate, but I wonder if anyone has a suggestion for a say 300GHz or larger portable hard drive which plugs in to a USB socket on a computer so does not require a separate power supply.
I've been using a Passport drive by Western Digital for some time but I'm concerned that it really is not up to the rigours of living in a camera rucksack. I carry my laptop with me as well, but on long trips prefer to also back up my files to a separate drive. I've looked at the drives that also have screens for editing, but don't know how rugged they are. Any ideas, chaps? (and ladies of course..!!)

George
 
George said:
I realise this is technically a computer related question, and Mods please move if appropriate, but I wonder if anyone has a suggestion for a say 300GHz or larger portable hard drive which plugs in to a USB socket on a computer so does not require a separate power supply.
I've been using a Passport drive by Western Digital for some time but I'm concerned that it really is not up to the rigours of living in a camera rucksack. I carry my laptop with me as well, but on long trips prefer to also back up my files to a separate drive. I've looked at the drives that also have screens for editing, but don't know how rugged they are. Any ideas, chaps? (and ladies of course..!!)

George
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I think you mean 300GB, not Ghz (Ghz is a measure of speed, not size). Most hard drives have moving parts, so are susceptible to shock damage. However there are a range of solid state drives now available which are basically very large, very fast, memory cards. As they have no moving part at all, thay should stand up to almost anything. Might be worth looking at them. I warn you, they are still expensive though. :)
 
Yup, if you really want solid then the solid state drives are the way to go. However, mechanical hard drives are pretty solid when turned off and something like a Lacie ruggedised one should be fine.

Just remember, hard drives have 2 states: Failed and about to fail. I never trust my data to only one...
 
Just bought a Western digital 500gb portable hard drive, and got myself a nice little padded case, i'm confident this will do the job, unless of course your really going to throw your camera bag about, in which case you have quite a bit more to worry about than a small hard drive :)
 
grumpybadger said:
Just remember, hard drives have 2 states: Failed and about to fail. I never trust my data to only one...
Click to expand...

LOL - hadn't heard that one before :)

Along the same lines as the similar statement...

"There are two types of users: Users that have lost data and users that are going to loose data."

But I prefer yours :clap:
 
I have a Maxtor 500GB you are welcome to see in the flesh if you want.
 
Alasdair, I was having a senior moment on the GHz/GB thingy, I apologise!!
Thanks for the suggestions, perhaps the cheapest is to get 2 portable drives so I've got 3 back ups!!

Have you tried the devices that have the screens and a storage device built in?
George
 
admirable said:
I have a Maxtor 500GB you are welcome to see in the flesh if you want.
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Thanks, Jim, I think it's probably like the Western Digital I already have, I wondered if there was anything else I'd missed. Think I'll probably go down the dual backup system. We're off to the Galapagos soon, and in the past on the longer trips I've taken my lappy, but I may look at the options with screens.

George
 
I use some quite old Hyperdrives when I travel longhaul without a laptop. I take 2 and back up each card to both drives. When I come home, one drive is in my camera bag and one is in my trouser pocket as a precaution.

Bought the empty units and added hard drives when they arrived in the UK.

Looks like now, with the "OTG" cable, you can backup onto a Hyperdrive and then mirror it to a standard external hard drive.

My Hyperdrives came with neoprene slip cases to add a little extra protection.

Paul
 
I've had a WD Passport for two years now and still performs flawlessly after:

Being dropped in a puddle and left to dry for a few days on top of the radiator
Being dropped then kicked across the car park at work
Having the base glued back on (using clear silicone sealant) after the car park episode

Do I worry?? Not in the slightest as all my data is regulary backed up to another HDD and then burnt off to DVD at regular intervals

Carl
 
How much space do you seriously think you'll need on 1 trip? Could you get a normal USB drive with 64GB (or more than 1), and then download it to a "proper" hard drive when you return?

Failing that - get some memory cards and a USB reader?

Obviously if you are going to be away from home (or another base station) for a while then this won't work, but if you are only doing a couple of days at a time, or you don't shoot many pics on a single day then this may be worth looking at.
 
as mentioned above when the drive is off it should be less susceptable to damage. my standard seagate 320gb drive lives in my work bag and has been fine for the last 12-18 months?

maxtor? maybe with a bargepole.. (IN MY OPINION of course :p )
 
OutLore said:
How much space do you seriously think you'll need on 1 trip? Could you get a normal USB drive with 64GB (or more than 1), and then download it to a "proper" hard drive when you return?

Failing that - get some memory cards and a USB reader?

Obviously if you are going to be away from home (or another base station) for a while then this won't work, but if you are only doing a couple of days at a time, or you don't shoot many pics on a single day then this may be worth looking at.
Click to expand...

Thanks, I think I'll probably get a JoBo 200GB one which, although not necessarily shockproof, will allow me to download enough and I'll just be pretty careful with it. Expect to shoot, on this trip, about 60-100 GB, as we're away for over 2 weeks and will have a 1Ds3 and hopefully a 7D so file sizes are large.
Thanks for the comments, everyone!!

George
 
neil_g said:
as mentioned above when the drive is off it should be less susceptable to damage. my standard seagate 320gb drive lives in my work bag and has been fine for the last 12-18 months?

maxtor? maybe with a bargepole.. (IN MY OPINION of course :p )
Click to expand...

one and the same company..........
 
kendo said:
I use a 250Gb Freecom Toughdrive but I know they are available in 320Gb and 500Gb versions. Not had any problems with mine.

http://www.play.com/Search.aspx?sea...ring=freecom+toughdrive&page=search&pa=search
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Ken, that also looks interesting, might get one for travel when I have a laptop with me, but the idea for this trip in particular is not to have to carry one about.
I've just ordered a JoBo 200GB one from B+H< can't find any 200's over here, and probably just as cheap anyway!!

Thanks again, George
 
George said:
Thanks, I think I'll probably get a JoBo 200GB one which, although not necessarily shockproof, will allow me to download enough and I'll just be pretty careful with it. Expect to shoot, on this trip, about 60-100 GB, as we're away for over 2 weeks and will have a 1Ds3 and hopefully a 7D so file sizes are large.
Thanks for the comments, everyone!!

George
Click to expand...

Will you need to carry the device with you all the time, or could you keep it in a hotel and upload each night etc? Would increase the reliability.

I have 2 of the WD drives, one of which is carried with me in a laptop bag every day and it's been fine - that's not to say that it always will be though :bonk:
 
I also bought a Lacie Rugged drive just before a 5 week trip to NZ. I took both very portable laptop and the drive to back it up. Although I didn't try and 'mistreat' it, everything has worked flawlessly considering it was in my backpacking rucksack or in my suitcase through the flights. As I knew I would use it with the laptop, I didn't go for a screen version.

Good luck with the trip
 
George said:
Well, thanks for the input, I've decided to get one of these
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/569992-REG/Jobo_GXU200US_Giga_One_Ultra_Stand.html

I will be carrying it with me for a lot of the time, but on this trip I'll leave it on the boat during the day as I'll have a load of CF's a well

So hope it's up to the job.

Will report in due course!!

George
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WOW>>>DO NOT BUY ONE OF THESE IF YOU HAVE A MAC!! It won't work although it should be ok with Windows. In theory, it's good, but the support of JoBo in Germany is shocking. They wash their hands of Mac, they say their literature is wrong...it says it works on Macs....but they won't take any responsibility. So there, be warned!!
I may try and sell it to a Windows punter, but I'll have a play first and see what it will do. I have a feeling they're just a c**p outfit. Hope others have better experience!!
George
 
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