320GB drive upgrade for MacBook, Pro
updated 03:00 pm EST, Tue January 29, 2008
320GB drive upgrade
MCE Technologies has announced the 320GB MobileStor Performance hard drive, an upgrade solution for all MacBook Pro and MacBook systems. Utilizing a 320GB 2.5" internal SATA hard drive upgrade includes an external, portable enclosure which has both FireWire and USB 2.0 interfaces for use with the original 2.5" SATA hard drive, facilitating data transfer. Also bundled are the SuperDuper! cloning/backup software, all tools required for installation, and an illustrated installation manual. The drive features a rotational speed of 5400RPM, a maximum sustained data transfer rate of over 75MB/sec and burst transfer rates of 150MB/sec.
Other features include Native Command Queing (NCQ), which MCE says automatically reorders commands in the most efficient way based on the location of data on its platters in order to retrieve that data with the least latency. S.M.A.R.T. status monitoring is also supported and can warn of possible or impending disk failure. The drive's S.M.A.R.T. status can be verified using Apple’s Disk Utility or System Profiler program.
The 320GB MobileStor Performance hard drive upgrade solution is priced at $350 and is available immediately.
Goodnews
01/29, 04:26pm reply
if you have a macbook. I doubt we'll see a fast ATA drive of such size for a while now.
With an extra 250GB form MCE's optibay, I think I'll stop investing in internal space on my powerbook, and save the cash for a MacPro.
Obviously, whether you need more elbow room on a MBP is up to you, but I'll say now that it's VERY refreshing, even with an old G4 chip. Their [MCE] solutions are VERY useful.
danviento
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Dec 2005
Great!
01/29, 06:13pm reply
Now we just need a pro laptop that makes it simple to swap out a HD.
testudo
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Aug 2001
How hard is it?
01/30, 12:27am reply
Has anyone attempted this or simila hard drive swaps on a MBP? How hard is it?
Guest
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Nov 1999
Re: how hard
01/30, 09:59am reply
I've not tried it, for s******* up the warranty on my $2500 laptop isn't worth it, but it's not incredibly hard, just way harder then it should be. You can find directions on-line from various places (I would guess other world computing would have some nice ones).
testudo
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Aug 2001
instructions
01/30, 03:44pm reply
Good guides for replacing parts: http://www.ifixit.com/Guide/Mac/
bitblt
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Sep 2007