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Which ex HDD for 2017 27" iMac with SSD?

T

Tjmckay4

macrumors regular
Original poster
Apr 24, 2014
104
24
Perth, West Aus
I'm going to get a 27" iMac, base or mid, with 512gb internal SSD.

I'm trying to decide which external HDD to get to store my photos/videos and other stuff, that I don't access very much, which will be permanently connected to the iMac. A 3tb drive will be fine for the storage plus to back up the internal SSD. I've decided to go for a desktop hard drive over a portable one as I've heard anything over 2tb in a portable isn't recommended.

I already have 2 2tb desktop drives that I've had for a while (3/4 years) that I use for backup. One is a WD (virtually silent) and a Seagate (a bit noisy). Here are the options I'm thinking about:
  • WD my book 3tb (old version) - A$159
  • WD elements 4tb - A$199
  • Bare drive and enclosure
Thoughts?
 
Last edited:
Tjmckay4 said:
I'm going to get a 27" iMac, base or mid, with 512gb internal SSD.

I'm trying to decide which external HDD to get to store my photos/videos and other stuff, that I don't access very much, which will be permanently connected to the iMac. A 3tb drive will be fine for the storage plus to back up the internal SSD. I've decided to go for a desktop hard drive over a portable one as I've heard anything over 2tb in a portable isn't recommended.

I already have 2 2tb desktop drives that I've had for a while (3/4 years) that I use for backup. One is a WD (virtually silent) and a Seagate (a bit noisy). Here are the options I'm thinking about:
  • WD my book 3tb (old version) - A$159
  • WD elements 3tb - A$199
  • Bare drive and enclosure
Thoughts?
Click to expand...

Must be a currency exchange issue... I picked up a 4TB WD Elements that I have connected to my iMac for Time Machine backups for $105US... as far as the drive, it's USB3, so it's fast enough, quiet and runs cool... I have always found the WD Elements line to be good quality and reliable.
 
I wouldn't buy WD or Seagate.

I'd go with Toshiba or HGST.

Even if I had to buy a bare drive and and enclosure to house it.
 
dwfaust said:
Must be a currency exchange issue... I picked up a 4TB WD Elements that I have connected to my iMac for Time Machine backups for $105US... as far as the drive, it's USB3, so it's fast enough, quiet and runs cool... I have always found the WD Elements line to be good quality and reliable.
Click to expand...

Whoops... It's a 4tb WD elements, not a 3tb version. Just changed.

Are the actual hard drives in the elements and my book the same? Just different features ie. backup, etc?
 
Tjmckay4 said:
I've decided to go for a desktop hard drive over a portable one as I've heard anything over 2tb in a portable isn't recommended.
Click to expand...

I have a 4tb portable that works flawlessly for a couple years now. In fact the 8tb desktop version I bought is such a nightmare I'm returning it and considering just getting another 4tb portable and dealing with 2 drives instead of 1.

Assuming new and buying from a store, the cost of the drive+enclosure is probably the same if not more than just buying a seagate or WD external drive. For example an 8tb external desktop drive can be had for under $200, but looking on Newegg, an 8tb internal ranges from $200-$350 plus the $20 enclosure.

Brand-wise, just don't buy knockoff Chinese junk. I had an old WD fail but had multiple WD that worked fine. I've had plenty of seagate that worked fine, and 1 that I've returned for about 10 different reasons. Aside from those 2 bad drives, I've not had any performance issues with any of them and they have all at one point been used as a Plex server and connected 24/7 for months or years at a time.

Edit: my 4tb portable that I love, and my 8tb desktop that is being returned, are both Seagate.
 
Tjmckay4 said:
Whoops... It's a 4tb WD elements, not a 3tb version. Just changed.

Are the actual hard drives in the elements and my book the same? Just different features ie. backup, etc?
Click to expand...

The WD MyBook has hardware encryption and automatic backup software, while the Elements do not. The hardware encryption may be important, but IMO, the backup software is not.
 
Regarding the NAS yes and no (depending your needs, the model and drives)

NAS will be for storage, but it can max out your Giga port at 125MB /Sec

All depends on need, budget and how do you see your need grow over the next year.
 
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