Usable with USB 2 and USB 3 without reformat? Could I, for example, write contents onto the drive using USB 3.0 and give it to someone with a USB 2.0 and would he be able to read/write then could we pass it back and forth using such procedures?
121412
you certainly can use both USB 3.0 and USB 2.0; the only difference is transfer speed.
1573103
Yes, it is backward-compatible with USB 2.0 and works on USB 3.0 ports. Your read and write speeds will be lower on a USB 2.0 port, but this will work fine with either USB version.
514987
You should be able to use it on both Windows and Mac to read and write. You just have to reformat the drive for FAT32 rather than NTFS. I did this with my WD my passport ultra, works fine unless Toshiba has documentation that states you cannot format FAT32, but I doubt it.
390777
In order: 1) No. To put it simply, format=erase. You'll have to move the files to something else, then move them back after formatting. 2) Not necessarily (see 3) 3) 3.5" drives require more power than USB can supply, so you must use an external power supply for these drives. MOST 2.5" drives will be adequately powered by USB, though some have reported that large, fast (ie: 250GB, 7200 RPM) 2.5" HDDs are occasionally underpowered over USB. This can also depend on the mfr of the external interface. Rule of thumb is that 3.5" will always require an external power supply, 2.5" usually will not.
2184714
I did not format the drive as it was from an older computer and I needed the files from it. If it was a new drive you may need to format it. Most new ones are formatted to use with a Windows computer. I have a Mac and they pretty much will read anything. If it was a new drive I would format it just to make sure it worked with my computer, Mac or PC.
594130
I bought one and I use it. Windows 7 Backup doesn't work with it, so I use a 3rd party backup. It has a USB 3 interface, but I have only USB 2. The disk works fine.
1573101
Yes. I have used the flash drive on both USB 2.0 and USB 3.0 ports and it works well on both. Obviously much faster on a USB 3.0 port.
1524565
Generally, you can only use a 2 TB or smaller USB drive that hasn't been reformatted. Here are the limits as I know them: 1) Only FAT (File Allocation Table), FAT32, and an old version of NTFS are supported. 2) Intel GUID Partition Table (GPT) and Linux ext3 formats are not supported. So it must be a WinXP-or-below PC-formatted drive, not Mac or Linux, and not a modern NTFS, which uses dynamic or GPT partitioning. 3) Because GPT volumes are not supported, 2TB is the max volume/partition size. 4) Maximum file sizes are as follows: FAT: 2 GB. FAT32: 4 GB. WinXP NTFS: Volume Size. So, you will have trouble storing some HD movie or TV shows if you are using a FAT-formatted volume. To create the old-style NTFS format, you will need a Win XP or 2000 computer. 5) You are limited to using the first 8 volumes/partitions on the drive. 6) The drive cannot be encrypted. 7) If the drive is powered off the USB port on the router, then it cannot draw more than 500mA.
278644
I'm a bit surprised at all the "yes" answers for USB 3. I have seen many reports that non-memory devices--like mice and keyboards--have compatibility problems with USB 3. Conventional wisdom @ the tech sites recommends using USB 2 ports for these kinds of devices.My data could be old, and the USB 3 drivers may have improved. If possible, I would reserve my 3.0 ports for devices that require the high speed bandwidth.
1677385
Seems to be limited to USB2.0. Also as someone already noticed it doesn't seem to support large external drives. I wasn't able to get either of my 3TB drives to work. All usb thumbdrives worked though.
212814
I only have usb 2.0 on the computer I upgraded and it worked fine. most (maybe all) devices that work with usb 3.0 will also work with 2.0.
1082856
I will test it tonight and see. Last time I checked though it performed at good speeds. But I am only using a 4700rpm drive so I may be maxing out the read/write on it anyways. But from my experience it performs a lot better then 2.0. Also another note is that if you plug this into a 3.0 port you don't need to use the extra USB cable for power. The 3.0 port can put out enough juice to power the whole thing. I didn't know this before I bought and honestly wasn't a big deal, but helpful to know now.
1653136
Hi, Just bought the drive to read old disks. Opened it out "mint condition, in box, sealed" plugged it into my USB 3.0 hub on my Windows 8.1 Machine. Plugged in a barely used zip cartridge from 10 years ago. Bam there it was.Plug and Play no problem. 15 year old "new device" with USB 1.0 port, works flawlessly on Windows 8.1 Pro via USB 3.0 Hub. I've had more issues with some USB 3.0 hard drives than this.Actually really surprised.
1243982
I myself used it to salvage, format both a 300GB and a 250GB WD disk drives without any problems.Also used it to migrate Windows 7 Pro from a 120GB SSD to a 512GB SSD. Worked without a hitch.Reformatted the 120GB SSD in it afterwards, and now use it as an external disk drive in the unit.Device was tried on both esata and usb3 worked fine on both interfaces.
1577305
I installed the drive for a friend. Most PCs with an accompanying drive which won't write to a particular disc are suffering from some type of file corruption. In the past, when installing a drive to replace an original drive, I've always synced the installation with a reformat to assure proper operation. Unless you're one who maintains a corrupt free operating system (I haven't met many), it's a good rule to follow.
936428
Yes as long as they were independently formatted and were previously accessible. I've done this. I had 4 usb enclosures. I pulled out the HDDs and placed them all into this enclosure, and it works on USB.
1573880
No. Simply plug in the drive and start copying files. It may be necessary to reformat the drive depending on your preferred file system (I reformat to "HFS+" for my Mac), but you absolutely do not to install software to use this. I believe both Judith and Vitalino are speaking of device drivers (on a Windows system), rather than the software included with the drive.