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Lacie FW HD d2 or p3 Porsche?

papersushi

papersushi

macrumors regular
Original poster
Nov 14, 2003
150
7
I am thinking about getting a Lacie external Firewire HD, 160GB. Currently they offer either d2 or p3 Porsche. From the datasheet, I don't see any technical difference in the terms of speed, seek time, buffer size. Can someone tell what's the difference between these two if any and why should I get one over the other? Thank you very very much!
 
djkny said:
d2 = solid aluminum.
d3 = cheap plastic.

You decide.
Click to expand...

I think actually d2 is white plastic and p3 is aluminum(at least looks like on picture). Anyone actually has these two drives?
 
I've had the Lacie 160GB d2 (firewire 400) for about 9 months or so. It has been a reliable workhorse since I bought it, working flawlessly with true plug and play. You just plug it in and there it is on your desktop, nothing to install.

It has a very solid feel to it, very well made. The case is 100% metal and built like a tank. I'd stand on it on a dare. I can't comment on the d3 since I've never used one. But if I lost my d2, I'd buy another one without question.

The Apple Store (online) is a good place to get one. I've shopped around and never found a price much lower than that. Free shipping too.
 
papersushi said:
I think actually d2 is white plastic and p3 is aluminum(at least looks like on picture). Anyone actually has these two drives?
Click to expand...

The d2 is actually made out of aluminum despite what the pictures look like. As for the difference in the two???? Doesn't really look like much other than the design. The tech specs look to be the same. The F.A. Porsche one is lighter in weight though. 900g vs. 1500g. Thats the only differences I found. I think the F.A. Porsche one looks better IMO, esp if you are using it with a G5 or PB. If its made out of plastic as mentioned above though, maybe not. I'm tempted by the mobile one, it looks pretty cool. Good luck.

Anyone happen to know if someone makes external HD's with an 8MB buffer thats not like 500GB?
 
Does anyone use F.A. Porsche 160GB one? Just to clarify is it made of plastic or not? Anyway, need to get a FW HD to replace my 20GB iPod, have been using iPod as external HD much more than a music player. LOL
 
TRUST me. The porsche is PLASTIC. LaCie will tell you directly themselves.

They'll also tell you that the d2's are more of the prosumer line that most video editors use and what not. The Porsche's they released last November look "kewl" and have the "Porsche cache" but really cares? It's PLASTIC == less durable, then, cheaper materials, not as reliable. You remember they were released then recalled last fall.
 
There's no real option between the two - go with the d2. As said by others, it's a tank. And if you need a better HD later, it's a great case - just swap out the one in there with a newer/faster/bigger capacity one.

And it looks really nice with my G5. :)
 
d2 LaCie is solid choice!

jsw said:
There's no real option between the two -
go with the d2. )
Click to expand...
The DIFFERENCE is in the quality of the ENCLOSURE or CASE, not in the drive inside.
Anyone who has handled both drives would choose the d2.
t6552lla_125.jpg

No ifs, ands, or buts. d2

There are also compaints about the fan in the porsche as being too loud.
You do not want a porsche, unless it's the car.

ZipZoomFly.com NO Tax + FREE 2nd Day Shipping in US
Buy a LaCie d2 at Apple
Shop around, first.
 
Just to be clear - by "no option" (poor wording), I meant that there was only one real choice - the d2.
 
djkny said:
TRUST me. The porsche is PLASTIC. LaCie will tell you directly themselves.

They'll also tell you that the d2's are more of the prosumer line that most video editors use and what not. The Porsche's they released last November look "kewl" and have the "Porsche cache" but really cares? It's PLASTIC == less durable, then, cheaper materials, not as reliable. You remember they were released then recalled last fall.
Click to expand...

Um, I have the LaCie Porche 250GB drive, and I'm pretty sure the enclosure is not "cheap plastic". It certainly feels like aluminum. I can't vouch for what's underneath in terms of construction materials, though, as I haven't seen one open. I CAN tell you that it's a great HDD. I have two of the 250GB drives, for storing MiniDV footage. They work perfectly, true plug-and-play with my G5, and are not noisy at all. I haven't used the D2 so I can't compare performance, but I am completely satisfied with the Porche. And I couldn't beat the $280 price either!
 
hi guys, thank you for all the help and advice. Porsche's design is sure appealing. But since I only have one firewire 400 port on my PB 12'' alum, which is needed for DV camera, iSight. I decided to go with the d2 triple interface which has FW 400/800/USB 2.0 Waiting for it now!

So someone mentioned that you can actually swapt the internal HD in d2? Any standard HD will do?

Thanks!
 
papersushi said:
hi guys, thank you for all the help and advice. Porsche's design is sure appealing. But since I only have one firewire 400 port on my PB 12'' alum, which is needed for DV camera, iSight. I decided to go with the d2 triple interface which has FW 400/800/USB 2.0 Waiting for it now!

So someone mentioned that you can actually swapt the internal HD in d2? Any standard HD will do?

Thanks!
Click to expand...

Any HD should do as long as it's roughly analogou to what's in there. And the d2 I have (FW 400) has two FW ports - so it effectively uses zero ports on my Mac (plug it in, plug something else into it).
 
jsw said:
Any HD should do as long as it's roughly analogou to what's in there. And the d2 I have (FW 400) has two FW ports - so it effectively uses zero ports on my Mac (plug it in, plug something else into it).
Click to expand...

The triple interface d2 supports FW800, on the back it only has 1 FW400 port use 6 pins and ther two FW ports for 9 pins for FW800. I guess have to connect it to my 12'' PB alum.'s USB 2.0 then use PB onboard FW400 to connect to the DV. Or just get a Firewire HUB, but don't want to spend that extra money plus doesn't look good when you have too much stuff hooked to the PB.
 
As I just posted on another thread, I just bought this d2. Yes, it's a 250, but notice the 8mb cache, which a lot of other LaCies seem to lack for some reason. And as others have said, this thing is built like a tank -- it's very solid feeling. I too would stand on it, it's that buff. And the combination of FW800, Firewire and USB 2.0 is unbeatable!

And btw you can do much better than Apple's stores, pricewise. I found this particular store on pricegrabber.com but there are plenty of other retail search engines out there.
 
NOOOO!!! MY D2 GOT MESSED UP AND I HAD TO ERASE AND REFORMAT IT!!! fortunatly most of my data was backed up, but still i am very angry. :mad: i've never had a problem with it before though.
 
window said:
you did what?
Click to expand...
code?

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