Hi,
I am buying an external hard drive and I heard that there are problem with portable hard drives not getting enough power from the USB port. And I am not sure if my computer will supply enough computer when I checked in the device manager in Windows it said my USB port supplies 500MA and I am not sure if it's enough to supply it without out having to buy a dock just to get 2 usb ports.
Thanks
Dell Dimension E520
USB power is never a sure thing. If you have a device that demands more than 1/2 the possible 500 mA then you should never chance it.
Bob
If I use a 2 USB connector will that be risking it?
When it comes to USB power, the moment you go over 1/2 the available power I must write no.
PCs have multiple usb root hubs. there are usually two or more ports per hub and each port must share the usb power output of that hub. the hubs are shown in device manager under "Universal Serial Bus controllers."
you need to locate two ports which are on different controllers so each port will be delivering full power. plug in any usb device (a flash drive is ideal) and double click each "USB Root Hub" and check the "Power" tab until you find the usb device. then plug the device into other ports until it shows up under a different hub.
but if you're worried, a powered usb hub will definitely give you enough juice.
Will any USB powered usb hub?
Except the issue of tapping USB power for hard disks is one where it work 99% of the time for 99% of the people. You seemed like you wanted it to be 100% assured. For that you can't be so sure until you get the wall adapter for power for this drive.
just like a western digital passport will work. these drives use low power hard drives (like those in notebooks/laptops) and get their power solely from the usb cable. there is no ac adapter.
older drives needed 2 ports. newer drives only need 1 port but the hub for that port should not be shared by another device with a high power draw (like a scanner, another portable hard drive, usb sound device, or a usb powered coffee warmer).
for most folks with newer pcs the "go" and "passport" are plug-and-play.
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