cara4562

On 11/1/2020 at 11:19 AM, Brian said:

Now for Part 2...

• First, plug in new Western Digital External into a USB Port directly on your Mac. It should appear on the desktop, though it may not. Here is an example of what you should see:
  
  
   
• Next, Open Disk Utilities. Head to  Applications Menu >> Utilities >> Disk Utilities.

 

• This is where your Disk Utilities might look slightly different. Anyway, here is mine:
  
  

At this point, you are going to have to work with me. Post a Screenshot in this thread of what your Disk Utility Window looks like and we will continue.

Sorry I'm just getting to this, but I think this is what you need!

On 10/26/2020 at 1:54 PM, Brian said:

The reason that I was asking is for the type of ports that it has, specifically the Thunderbolt port. For the best transfer speeds when it comes to your Mac, it is better to use the Thunderbolt ports. Because your Mac is from 2013, and will more than likely be replaced within the next few years (start saving...trust me on this,) it doesn't make sense for you to buy a Thunderbolt 2 Hard Drive. The reason is that TB2 HDs are really hard to find, as Thunderbolt 3 has taken over and the physical port is different.

For my recommendation, I actually like Western Digital's External Hard Drives, though not just any external hard drive from them. Believe it or not, a "Gaming Hard Drive" is what you will buy. Even though it will work with a Game System like a Xbox or PlayStation, the hard drive doesn't care. All we need to do is delete the current partition, create a Mac one and Format the Drive. It will then become a "Macintosh Hard Drive." Plus, since it's a gaming hard drive, that is meant for wear-and-tear, it's built better than a $79 Special from Best Buy, or whatever Box Store is close to you.

This model is a bit more expensive, but it more than likely contains a WD Caviar Black HD, which run at 7200 RPM and are extremely reliable, and it's 8TB so you can use it on your new Mac when you buy it in a few years. That makes it more of an investment. As with camera sensors increasing MegaPixels, the more you have, the bigger the Raw files. My D850 creates 100MB Raw files and you'd be surprised on how quickly those files eat up space. I'd buy this one, in fact...it's on my Amazon Wish List for Christmas.

WD_Black 8TB D10 Game Drive, Portable External Hard Drive Compatible with Playstation, Xbox, PC, & Mac - WDBA3P0080HBK-NESN

Since the HD is 7200 RPM, that requires it's own power source, which is provided. This makes your HD more stable in my humble opinion. Also, 7200 RPM does make a difference; there is a noticeable performance boost when using a 7200 RPM HD as compared to a 5400RPM drive. I like the fact that it also has active cooling; heat is the enemy of electronics.

So if you do get that EHD, let me know and we can go over how to make it a Mac drive. It takes like 5 minutes to accomplish.

BTW: They do have a 5TB model for around $126-ish if you don't want to spend close to $200 for a EHD.

I just got my external!  Is there a post on how to make it a Mac drive on here?  Thank you!!

You definitely should!!  Beer sent : )  I will be back when the external arrives!  Thank you!!!

22 hours ago, Brian said:

The reason that I was asking is for the type of ports that it has, specifically the Thunderbolt port. For the best transfer speeds when it comes to your Mac, it is better to use the Thunderbolt ports. Because your Mac is from 2013, and will more than likely be replaced within the next few years (start saving...trust me on this,) it doesn't make sense for you to buy a Thunderbolt 2 Hard Drive. The reason is that TB2 HDs are really hard to find, as Thunderbolt 3 has taken over and the physical port is different.

For my recommendation, I actually like Western Digital's External Hard Drives, though not just any external hard drive from them. Believe it or not, a "Gaming Hard Drive" is what you will buy. Even though it will work with a Game System like a Xbox or PlayStation, the hard drive doesn't care. All we need to do is delete the current partition, create a Mac one and Format the Drive. It will then become a "Macintosh Hard Drive." Plus, since it's a gaming hard drive, that is meant for wear-and-tear, it's built better than a $79 Special from Best Buy, or whatever Box Store is close to you.

This model is a bit more expensive, but it more than likely contains a WD Caviar Black HD, which run at 7200 RPM and are extremely reliable, and it's 8TB so you can use it on your new Mac when you buy it in a few years. That makes it more of an investment. As with camera sensors increasing MegaPixels, the more you have, the bigger the Raw files. My D850 creates 100MB Raw files and you'd be surprised on how quickly those files eat up space. I'd buy this one, in fact...it's on my Amazon Wish List for Christmas.

WD_Black 8TB D10 Game Drive, Portable External Hard Drive Compatible with Playstation, Xbox, PC, & Mac - WDBA3P0080HBK-NESN

Since the HD is 7200 RPM, that requires it's own power source, which is provided. This makes your HD more stable in my humble opinion. Also, 7200 RPM does make a difference; there is a noticeable performance boost when using a 7200 RPM HD as compared to a 5400RPM drive. I like the fact that it also has active cooling; heat is the enemy of electronics.

So if you do get that EHD, let me know and we can go over how to make it a Mac drive. It takes like 5 minutes to accomplish.

BTW: They do have a 5TB model for around $126-ish if you don't want to spend close to $200 for a EHD.

Thank you so much!!  I'm going to place an order - any chance you have an affiliate link I could use?  I'd love to support where I can.  I appreciate it and will check back after it comes in!

It is old!  Late 2013 27inch imac:  3.2 GHz Intel Core i5, 4 GB 1600 MHz DDR3, NVIDIA GeForce GT 755M 1 GB.  I have no idea what you need I just copied from the about my mac lol.  Thank you!!

I'm sure this has been asked 100s of time, but I'm not finding any recent recs in the search.  What external harddrive do you recommend?  I have a Mac, and my storage is almost full!  I need to get old files off.

Hi!  I tried searching, but couldn't find what I was looking for.  I am looking to add an ssd card to my mac.  Is Crucial still recommended?  If so, what other items do you recommend to successfully add the memory?  Thanks!