Tessa23 Loc: Concord, NH

Hogs, I have a WD My Passport Ultra 2T drive, that I purchased several years ago, has all of my photos and music on it. I do use it for Lightroom. It is quite sensitive to movement and tends to become disconnected from my MacBook Pro if the cord moves or if I need to reposition anything around it. I am also running out of room, I need more than 2T. I am thinking of replacing it with a SSD. Are there any recommendations? I have searched UHH for SDD Drives and most of the discussions are from 2015. I am thinking things might have changed since then. I am open to all ideas and recommendations on what and where to buy. Please let me know if you need more info. Thank you!

bikinkawboy Loc: north central Missouri

My son is a computer programmer. He recently fixed me up with a solid state hard drive. He said they break down less often than conventional drives, but when they do go it’s usually DOA without any prior funny sounds or other warnings. I guess you can say they are better than conventional drives until they aren’t.

Jbat Loc: Charleston, SC

I have a Sandisk 1TB SSD which is very small and very fast. I have been using it to back up my MacBook Pro computer for a few months and really like it. They make larger sizes so if you are interested just check where they sell them which is anywhere from B&H to Amazon.

JimH123 Loc: Morgan Hill, CA

Normally, for external storage, a hard drive is sufficient. An SSD costs more than a hard drive and is normally used where high speed is important. And a hard drive is used for data that doesn't need super fast access times and transfer speeds.

I am guessing that you connect the WD My Passport Ultra 2T drive to your MacBook Pro with an adapter cable that converts it to a Thunderbolt Port (type C USB). Here is an example of a 4 TB drive that would plug into your Thunderbolt Port:

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1433058-REG/wd_wdbftm0040bbl_wesn_4tb_my_passport_ultra.html/qa

I suspect that to use it with a MacBook Pro, it would probably need to be reformatted.

As for copying the contents of your 2TB drive to a new 4TB drive, MacBook Pro's have multiple Thunderbolt Ports and you can plug both drives in at the same time and copy one to the other.

It is also possible to buy a box that holds 2 (or more) SATA hard drives. Search for "Hard Drive Enclosures" on Amazon. I use one that holds 5 hard drives and plugs into my computer with a type C USB connector. If you use two hard drives, there is software that can back up the contents of one onto the other automatically for you.

My computer sits on the floor beside my desk, and the hard drive enclosure sits behind the computer out of sight.

JimH123 Loc: Morgan Hill, CA

I have had one of these SSD failures. Working one day. And the next day, totally dead. Glad I had an image backup of the SSD and could replace it without a problem.

Indi Loc: L. I., NY, Palm Beach Cty when it's cold.

Did you try replacing the cable?

JimH123 Loc: Morgan Hill, CA

No, used that cable with the replacement.

Also, I have a drive duplicator that I plugged it into, and it was dead there too.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

If 1TB is too small, then a much larger SSD will be pricey. Could it be that the disconnect you are experiencing is because of the cable and not the drive? You can get a very large HDD for a reasonable price. Whatever you get, make sure you have at least two copies of all your files.

markngolf Loc: Bridgewater, NJ

I use a Samsung SSD EVO 870 4TB for images. It is an internal drive, but can connect via USB with a sata/usb cable. Available on Amazon and Samsung as well as other online retailers.
https://www.amazon.com/SAMSUNG-Inch-Internal-MZ-77E4T0B-AM/dp/B08QBL36GF?th=1
Mark

photoman43

If you are having issues with sensitivity to movement, the likely culprit is the cable used to attach the drive to your computer. Try a replacement cable. It could also be the port on the drive and/or the computer. I have had this problem more than once and now always have a backup cable with me and make sure that I minimize and possible movement when using the external drive.

Tessa23 Loc: Concord, NH

Yes I have replaced the cable and still the same issue.

gwilliams6

As a longtime pro, I use SSD drives from Sandisk to supplement my other storage drives from WD and Seagate.

These Sandisk SSD have been bullet-proof for years without a single failure. Every WD drive I have owned has failed long before its time, wont buy another WD anything.

These Sandisk SSDs come in all sizes and speeds. The higher speed ones and larger capacity ones cost more.

Look for them on sale, they go on sale several times each year. IMHO worth it, both when traveling and when at home. Lugged around the world with me, they have been knocked around, gotten wet, and more and still work flawlessly. And never had to replace their connecting cables, super tough and reliable.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08RX4QKXS/ref=twister_B0BCFFR6TD?_encoding=UTF8&th=1

Cheers and best to you.

hj Loc: Florida

Have two just like that and love them.

(Download)

burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC

OWC (Other World Computing) is a good source. I also use Samsung T7 2TB drives and conventional portable 4TB G-Drives.

If you can replace the cable on your existing drive, do so ASAP, to avoid data loss. Also, back up that drive to another external drive.

Ideally, use your MacBook Pro internal drive for software and work space. Store files on one external backed up by another external. Buy drives in pairs so you always have a backup.

My wife learned this the hard way a while back. She lost an entire 500 GB drive to a lightning strike that also killed her Power Mac G5 and a printer.

Mr. SONY Loc: LI, NY

For backup's an SSD isn't required.
Multiple drives are best because you have extra drives in case one or more go bad or accidental loss of data.
I use WD black series drives.
I have 4 of them all with the same data for redundancy.
https://www.westerndigital.com/products/portable-drives/wd-black-p10-game-drive-usb-3-2-hdd#WDBA3A0050BBK-WESN
5tb with reasonable speed.
As fast as my 2tb ssd drives? No, but there is safety in numbers.
Any drive can and sometimes do go bad.
Speed is unimportant for backups.