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Thread ID: 73967	2006-11-07 06:06:00	About Hard Drives	The Boss (11407)	Press F1

Post ID	Timestamp	Content	User
497160	2006-11-07 06:06:00	Evening everyone, I would like to know if there are any important things to consider when purchasing a hard drive in (size), say 160 Gb and above? Okay my computer is roughly 3 - 4 years old, and wonder if I need to upgrade to another motherboard if I need to purchase a hard drive of the above size. With Thanks, The Boss	The Boss (11407)
497161	2006-11-07 06:17:00	Can you please post your entire system specs? If your system is 3-4yrs old then the interface will be worth considering, can we assume you know the difference between IDE and SATA? A system of that age probably doesn't have support for SATA (the newer tech) but buying a SATA drive would probably be the best option. You can overcome this problem in 2 ways, either by replacing the motherboard or buying a PCI SATA add in card. You'd be unlikely to find any motherboards that support SATA for a system that old meaning you'd at the least need to replace the CPU and Motherboard and possibly the memory. Unless you've got a bit of money to burn this isn't the cheapest option. The easier and cheaper option is to install a PCI SATA card, these normally aren't too expensive $60+ and can easily be transfered to a new PC if you upgrade. The other option is an IDE hard drive which are slightly more expensive, but in theory it should work fine in your existing PC. Thats assuming your not using all your IDE channels. Motherboard manufacturers are slowly phasing out support for IDE which would mean if you upgrade in the future you may not be able to use the hard drive in a new PC.	Pete O'Neil (6584)
497162	2006-11-07 06:23:00	Just get a Seagate - IDE. SATA doesn't make a huge difference and the price difference isn't much either.	pctek (84)
497163	2006-11-07 07:30:00	Can you please post your entire system specs? If your system is 3-4yrs old then the interface will be worth considering, can we assume you know the difference between IDE and SATA? A system of that age probably doesn't have support for SATA (the newer tech) but buying a SATA drive would probably be the best option. You can overcome this problem in 2 ways, either by replacing the motherboard or buying a PCI SATA add in card. You'd be unlikely to find any motherboards that support SATA for a system that old meaning you'd at the least need to replace the CPU and Motherboard and possibly the memory. Unless you've got a bit of money to burn this isn't the cheapest option. The easier and cheaper option is to install a PCI SATA card, these normally aren't too expensive $60+ and can easily be transfered to a new PC if you upgrade. The other option is an IDE hard drive which are slightly more expensive, but in theory it should work fine in your existing PC. Thats assuming your not using all your IDE channels. Motherboard manufacturers are slowly phasing out support for IDE which would mean if you upgrade in the future you may not be able to use the hard drive in a new PC. Hi there Peter, Ok, heres my Specs: P4 SOCKET 478 2.4Ghz 512 MB RAM 1X 80GB HDD 1X40GB HDD 8X DVD RW 52X CD RW WINDOWS 2000.....hope that helps Motherboard: GA-8SG800 Oh yeah, I know the difference between IDE and SATA. My motherboard does not support SATA, and I am using two hard drives at the moment. Ok, I didn't know you could get a PCI SATA add on card. Thanks. Hmm... I'll cross my fingers that I can still use the larger hard drive in the next 5 years time!! Thanks	The Boss (11407)
497164	2006-11-07 07:32:00	Just get a Seagate - IDE. SATA doesn't make a huge difference and the price difference isn't much either. Hi PCTEK, Choice, I can still use IDE. By the way, I have used Seagate for years, and have given me no problems whatsoever, so will continue to keep purchasing them. Thanks	The Boss (11407)
497165	2006-11-07 07:57:00	Yeah the seagate range is good. I even have a 15 year old seagate still working :D (not that its much use being 200mb) pconlineshop.co.nz	trinsic (6945)
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