External storage option for new iMac user?

[kkop123]

Hello,

I recently purchased a new iMac 27" and went with the 256 GB SSD internal storage based on some research I did. My question is, what is my best option for an external drive for additional storage? I would like to use it for backup and for normal storage of less frequently used files.

I'm not a tech expert by any means so I'm looking for an easy option that won't cost and arm and a leg.

Thanks in advance for any thelp.

 

[v.i.p.e.r]

USB 3.0 with UASP support and a hdd/ssd which you prefer ... Thats it

 

[twilexia]

If storage matters more to you than speed, get this - many users on this forum love it, and I think it's the best single-drive backup storage option (4TB)
Seagate Backup Plus Fast http://www.amazon.com/Seagate-Portable-External-Storage-STDA4000100/dp/B00HXAV0X6

The reason why it's fast is because they combine two 2TB HDD's in a RAID 0 configuration (which means you can effectively think of this as 1 drive), which halves the load on each drive and doubling the transfer rate. The risk is that if one drive fails, the entire unit is donezo. Assuming a 2.5% failure rate on one Seagate, you're looking at about a 4.938% total failure rate for the two drives.

If you want fast transfer rates, go for the Samsung T1 SSD, imo the best single-device USB-powered SSD on the market right now.

 

[kkop123]

Thanks for the replies. If I don't care are portability, would I be better off going with a Samsung internal SSD with an enclosure?

 

[twilexia]

Thanks for the replies. If I don't care are portability, would I be better off going with a Samsung internal SSD with an enclosure?

Yep - if you're going that route, a Samsung Evo inside of a USB enclosure like this one http://www.amazon.com/Optimized-Ina...e=UTF8&qid=1449525532&sr=8-2&keywords=inateck is going to give you the same speeds as the Samsung SSD T1.

I also hold the opinion that an SSD should be placed in a thunderbolt enclosure to reap the full benefits of the SSD's latency/IOPS, but I don't see many tests online discussing this. However if all you are doing is backing up then the SSD->SATA enclosure->USB will work great for that purpose.

 

[Weaselboy]

Yep - if you're going that route, a Samsung Evo inside of a USB enclosure like this one http://www.amazon.com/Optimized-Ina...e=UTF8&qid=1449525532&sr=8-2&keywords=inateck is going to give you the same speeds as the Samsung SSD T1.

I also hold the opinion that an SSD should be placed in a thunderbolt enclosure to reap the full benefits of the SSD's latency/IOPS, but I don't see many tests online discussing this. However if all you are doing is backing up then the SSD->SATA enclosure->USB will work great for that purpose.

I have that same USB enclosure with an external SSD for backups and it works great. Good recommendation.

Unless you are doing some very very heavy duty work there is not much to be gained from using TB for an external SSD, particularly for just backups like you mentioned. Here is a good TB/USB comparison.

 

[Seed101]

Any recommendations for an external drive to work from?
Not just back-up.
After Effects/Photoshop/Final Cut x

 

[Weaselboy]

Any recommendations for an external drive to work from?
Not just back-up.
After Effects/Photoshop/Final Cut x

You want an SSD? I would just get that USB3 enclosure twilexia recommended then pop in a Samsung EVO 850 or Crucial MX200 in the size you want and go to it. IMO those two are about the best bang for the buck right now.

 

[Seed101]

You want an SSD? I would just get that USB3 enclosure twilexia recommended then pop in a Samsung EVO 850 or Crucial MX200 in the size you want and go to it. IMO those two are about the best bang for the buck right now.

Thanks, yes-SSD...I'll check those both out, similarly priced...and go with the enclosure mentioned.

 

[twilexia]

I have that same USB enclosure with an external SSD for backups and it works great. Good recommendation.

Unless you are doing some very very heavy duty work there is not much to be gained from using TB for an external SSD, particularly for just backups like you mentioned. Here is a good TB/USB comparison.

Appreciate you linking the test but I don't see anything in the article about IOPS/latency. When I edit a 15-minute 1080p video on Premiere Pro from the following drives, I run into issues.

June 2012 rMBPro SSD (300-350 MB/s read/write speeds): 1 dropped frame per 20 seconds during Premiere Pro playback; essentially smooth throughout, no random stops.
Samsung Evo 850 SSD + USB Enclosure (400 MB/s read/write speeds): 50-100 dropped frames per 20 seconds during Premiere pro playback, frequent stops, basically unusable.

Of course perhaps my Premiere settings aren't optimized, but with these kinds of results I concluded that transfer speeds don't necessarily provide the complete picture for media editing.

 

[HDFan]

With video editing you will need a fast disk. Personally I would not want the Seagate RAID 0 disks. Seagate's annual failure rates as documented by Backblaze range from 2.5% to an astounding 31.68% annually, depending on the drive. If one of these drives failed you are hosed as you've lost everything. Normally for video editing a RAID device (usually RAID 5) is recommended, but you may not need that much space. You could do a Mobius 5 bay for $239 with 5 Toshiba DT01ACA200 2 TB's for an additional $350. This would give you 8 TB of usable space to use as you wish along with protection when a drive fails. Toshiba has a much lower failure rate than Seagate. It is USB3 which at 625 MB/s (theoretical) is sufficient to drive the Oyen which is 375 MB/s theoretical. It's not lighting, but that saves you bucks.

There are a number of RAID devices out there but they tend to be much more expensive. An empty Drobo enclosure runs as much as the 10 TB Mobius. A 6 bay Promise will give you 632 MB/s for even more money.

So if video is your main concern it depends upon what kind of editing you are doing. What is the resolution of the native material, what codec, how many layers, how many effects, etc. The Drobo would at 253.2 MB/s would not be a good solution for 1080p50 or higher 10 or 12 bit bit RGB 4:4:4. 4K video as delivered by the iPhone6 will really tax your drives.

An SSD if it has enough space would solve the problem of having to get a RAID system in order to get enough speed. But don't forget when calculating space the auxiliary files such as the render files.

 

[hfg]

I have that same USB enclosure with an external SSD for backups and it works great. Good recommendation.

Unless you are doing some very very heavy duty work there is not much to be gained from using TB for an external SSD, particularly for just backups like you mentioned. Here is a good TB/USB comparison.

I am just curious here ... why there has been no mention of the TRIM issue with SSDs in USB 3.0 enclosures here, where it was always in the discussions in previous related threads. Has something transpired recently to allow TRIM instructions over USB (where Thunderbolt had no TRIM issue)?

 

[Jan.K]

I am just curious here ... why there has been no mention of the TRIM issue with SSDs in USB 3.0 enclosures here, where it was always in the discussions in previous related threads. Has something transpired recently to allow TRIM instructions over USB (where Thunderbolt had no TRIM issue)?

Currently lowlevel functions like TRIM or SMART are not supported over USB. I would never use a SSD without TRIM, which makes a thunderbolt enclosure necessary.

 

[Weaselboy]

I am just curious here ... why there has been no mention of the TRIM issue with SSDs in USB 3.0 enclosures here, where it was always in the discussions in previous related threads. Has something transpired recently to allow TRIM instructions over USB (where Thunderbolt had no TRIM issue)?

Nope... still no TRIM over USB, but unless you are are doing sustained heavy write activity to a SSD it is not really much of an issue.

 

[hfg]

Nope... still no TRIM over USB, but unless you are are doing sustained heavy write activity to a SSD it is not really much of an issue.

Yeah, I suspect if the SSD is truly used as a "backup" type storage drive, that the data will be pretty much static with lots of "idle" time for the internal garbage-collection routines to do their thing. Thus a USB enclosure would be adequate for this application.

 

[LifeIsLikeABoxOfRocks]

Hello,

I recently purchased a new iMac 27" and went with the 256 GB SSD internal storage based on some research I did. My question is, what is my best option for an external drive for additional storage? I would like to use it for backup and for normal storage of less frequently used files.

I'm not a tech expert by any means so I'm looking for an easy option that won't cost and arm and a leg.

Thanks in advance for any thelp.

I've been a happy Drobo user for years. I just got another one on Black Friday for $199. from B&H.

 

[unixphone]

I just put two 512 usb stick...

 

[Clix Pix]

Samsung also makes the excellent and tiny T1 SSD external drive which comes in various sizes, the largest being 1 TB. This works really well for someone who needs portability (rMBP user here). The drive is very fast and does what I need, which is to store extra stuff that I don't need on the machine's actual 512 GB SSD drive and yet makes it available very quickly when needed, both at home and on the road.

Since you're using an iMac, though, you might prefer a desktop-based storage device; for that I use Seagate's Backup Plus, which needs to be plugged into a power source as well as the USB 3 port for use. I have a fairly new 4 TB one which I got in order to immediately back up the contents of several machines (two are about to be going to new homes) as well as to provide ongoing backup.