Storage options? Internal HDD vs USB HDD

[RS2]

Hi everyone.

Was looking to back up a bunch of my games and I was wondering which option was best?

Here's how I'm weighing in so far:

Internal:
- faster read/write speeds
- no need to split files for large games, everything plays off of internal
- cleaner, no extra cables, all internal
- expensive 2.5" and hard to find a drive that fits without modification
- limited to 1TB in size, PS3 won't recognize drives larger than 1TB

External
- slower read/write speeds
- large games are unable to run off of the external HDD, and although they can be backed up on the external HDD, they are non-bootable until they are copied back onto the internal HDD
- a few cables required (USB cable + power supply to the HDD) + the actual external USB HDD
- a LOT cheaper, many options available in terms of HDD sizes/USB enclosures
- unlimited in size (can easily get a 2TB USB drive if you wanted to go to such an extreme)

Can anyone confirm that I'm understanding correctly? Did I make any mistakes or errors?

Can anyone who actually uses an external HDD comment on how bad the inconveniences are? Smaller games that do run off of external HDD, do they stutter or lag?

Thanks in advance!

[jahmyrr]

Seems you have it perfect. Internal is def better compatible with more games.

really its just a matter of using a 2tb drive and being able to easily transport that drive. Say you want to bring your games to a friends house without bringing your entire PS3 (assuming he has a backup loader option on his PS3 as well of course).

I use an external drive for most of my backups. Thats mainly because I had a 1TB external around and didnt have a larger internal handy.

However, its no problem to just use both. Internal for the larger games and External for the smaller ones. Backup managers like Gaia read from both at the same time and throw up all games from both drives in the same game list.

So its really just a matter of preference and if you own several of the games that can not be backed up to external.

[michaelstone]

its actually limited to 750gb too...thats the biggest drive thats 9.5mm...tbs are 12mm wont fit...or maybe its 9 and 12.5 i cant remember but either way they wont fit...also you have to take in to account that you lose more of that 750gb to ps3 os or whatever than you would normally...my 120gb only actually only has 90 something gbs....

[RS2]

Thanks for the responses guys.

Yeah, using a combination of both sounds like a great idea actually, use the external for the smaller games and use an internal (when I can find one cheap that is )for the larger games.

I'm finding that copying the large files OFF the external to the internal takes a few minutes though.. which although isn't terribly bad, still is inconvenient enough that it gets pretty annoying.

[michaelstone]

Thanks for the responses guys.

Yeah, using a combination of both sounds like a great idea actually, use the external for the smaller games and use an internal (when I can find one cheap that is )for the larger games.

I'm finding that copying the large files OFF the external to the internal takes a few minutes though.. which although isn't terribly bad, still is inconvenient enough that it gets pretty annoying.

personally i keep everything on the external except games that have to be on internal...between them and mandatory game installs the internal space goes quick...and when ftp'in i dont see much of a difference in speed...im gonna get a 750gb internal though anyways, just been wondering how much space im actually gonna get after ps3 formats...

[jahmyrr]

its actually limited to 750gb too...thats the biggest drive thats 9.5mm...tbs are 12mm wont fit...or maybe its 9 and 12.5 i cant remember but either way they wont fit...also you have to take in to account that you lose more of that 750gb to ps3 os or whatever than you would normally...my 120gb only actually only has 90 something gbs....

good point to keep in mind. completely forgot about this. you cant just buy any internal laptop drive. As stated, all the 1TB drives currently available (that ive seen) are 12.5 thick and wont fit your PS3. So dont run out and buy a 1TB drive just yet

[RS2]

Actually, I have a friend who ended up picking up a laptop HD and although it's slightly larger than the factory default, he managed to fit in there snugly. The trick was to just not use the small HDD metal tray/caddy thing, and it was a nice fit.

So just FYI for those who are a bit adventurous.

[michaelstone]

Actually, I have a friend who ended up picking up a laptop HD and although it's slightly larger than the factory default, he managed to fit in there snugly. The trick was to just not use the small HDD metal tray/caddy thing, and it was a nice fit.

So just FYI for those who are a bit adventurous.

it was a 12.5 mm?

[RS2]

I can't confirm the exact sizing, but most likely, yes. It's slightly thicker than the default Sony HDD included with consoles, so I'm assuming the OEM one is 9.x and this one would be the 12.x mm

Again, it fit just fine, with no resistance. Just don't use the tray it comes with.

[Daioz]

I'm amazed you guys find it hard to fit standard sized 2.5" HDDs into a standard size 2.5" HDD slot.
I bought one almost randomly (I googled 'does XY work in ps3' and bought it after seeing a few yes'" and ofcourse it fits, the one from my laptop fits, all of them should fit.
If it doesn't, you didn't buy a 2.5" sized one, its that simple. Theres pretty much no downsides to internal.
Just be sure to buy an external 2.5" case for the ps3 hdd you are taking out (cheap as hell), for the price of a cheap 500-1000GB hdd you get not only a lot of space for your hundreds of dollars of pirated games, but a small (well, depending on the original size of your ps3 hdd, mine was a 120gb) external that works perfectly to copy from your PC to your PS3 (copying is always faster than FTP).