USB powered 3.0 5400rpm external speed VS SATA2 3.5in Desktop internal 5400rpm speed

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duomaxwell007

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I definitely need help figuring this out and I know you are just the guys to do it. According to teh stats on this hard drive

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00B99JU4S/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

it transfers at 6GB/s

According to the stats on this one

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00ZTRXFBA/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1


it transfers at 120MB/s

Now to me that means if the internal take 30 secs to load something that same data on that internal would take 25 minutes. Which is noticeable if not horribly slow. Yet ppl tell me that en external usb powered drive transfers just as fast if not faster than an internal. SO I do some research and according to it. SATA moves at 6gb/s whereas USB 3.0 is CAPABLE of 5GB/s its hard dive max out LONG before reaching that number, usually around 120MB/s

So the only way a USB drive would be just as fast if not faster than an internal STA drive is if SATA internal drives have that same limit in which SATA is CAPABLE of 6GB/s but the drive itself maxes out LONG before hitting that speed. But so far Ive read nothing to indicate that.
 
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madmatt30
I was talking about compared to PC.
Xbox one is a different case because its internal hard drive is both slow in the first place & only running on a sata 2 interface.
The same is absolutely true of the ps4 so on the case of using portable external drives with the consoles they're going to be as fast if not faster than the internal drives.

I wasn't aware that ps4 still doesn't have external drive support for games!!!!
That's a terrible misconception by Sony when the consoles been out over 3 years, I'd filled my Xbox one 1tb internal within a month of owning it due to joining ea access

If you'd mentioned console in the title or first post regarding using a portable external my first response would have been completely different.

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madmatt30

madmatt30

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No drive transfers at 6gb/s mate.
That's just the theoretical max for sata 3.

A 5400rpm drive connected to sata 3 will push between 120-160mbs.
Via USB 3 generally 90-140mbs at best.

Ignore the theoretical speeds those are generally what you'll see real world usage.

 
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duomaxwell007

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So basically SATA 1 (not 3) is only slightly faster than usb 3.0 so while there will be a difference its so negligible that you wont notice it unless youre timing them side by side with a stopwatch right?

 
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madmatt30

madmatt30

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Pretty much , sata 1 is slower, sata 2 is on a par with usb3 generally when it comes to absolute transfer speeds.
Sata 3 will be much much faster generally even though the specs are similar.

The sata interface is built solely around heavy sustainable data transfer & has a very direct connection to the motherboard , the USB interface is/does not.

USB speeds will also depend on cable length/quality , USB 3 controller /chipset on the motherboard , USB3 controller/chipset on the external drive controller itself.
These factors slow the theoretical maximums of USB.

Also an unfair comparison on the drives physically aswell , generally a 3.5inch drive is faster than a 2.5inch because the platter is larger & a single rpm covers more data area.

I would not use a 2.5 inch portable usb3 drive for game installs, I would consider a mains powered full size USB3 drive.

For data backup , media you won't see a difference.
 
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duomaxwell007

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Well the choice copmes down to using what I already had laying around the house in hopes that this day would come (usb 3.0 external) or spending an extra 150 to get an internal if USB support never happened. That being said is the difference so big that spending 150 is better investment than spending 0?

 
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duomaxwell007

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Someone else said that same thing. So now Ill ask you the question he never answered. Which is.. why? Is the difference THAT huge/noticeable? I mean because I know lots of people used usb powered externals for game installs on Xbox One for ages now and I see no posts on the internet with people complaining about how bad/slow etc etc it is. So it my not be the BEST option but it must work "good enough" as no one is complaining. Im not a min/max kind guy as such I dont care about shooting for 1st place when 2nd or 3rd differences are so minuscule that although they ARE inferior I would need a microscope to see/notice it.

 
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madmatt30

madmatt30

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I use a bus powered portable drive on my Xbox one & you're absolutely right in that context.

Games actually install & load faster from the USB drive on the xbox one than they do from the internal.

Mafia 3 & GTA v on xbone its actually recommended to install to an external drive.

The difference here is that the internal prefitted in the Xbox one is also a 5400rpm 2.5 inch drive running on a Sata 2 interface & it is always running the xbox operating system & background tasks.
Games on a portable USB 3 drive are isolated from these overheads & so you get slightly faster loading etc.

On a PC you will always get better performance comparatively on a sata 2 or 3 interface than you will from USB 3 , its just the way it is.

If you have the drive already then try it ,the majority of games will run fine, open world games that heavily spool data may not keep up.

Just don't buy a USB drive with the sole intention of using it to install games because an internal drive is a better choice.
 
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duomaxwell007

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Oh well yeah Id choose an internal over and external on a PC anyway. So that would even be a question if I were using it for that purpose Id just upgrade the drive thats in my PC. I was asking about it for console gaming use. More importantly PS finally announced USB external game install support and "upgrading the internal" on the PS4 isnt an option because the current 2.5in internal drive that a PS4 can support is 9mm meaning 2tb is my only option (without spending 40 on a 3rd party peripheral then another 120 on an internal desktop drive) because any 2.5in external drive bigger than that is 15mm and my current 2tb is down to 400gb and since most games have a 50gb install 400gb isnt gonna last me until PS5 comes out with how often I buy games. Thus I would think the usb powered external 4tb I have laying around would be a better option that buying a 3rd party peripheral and an internal desktop or buying a non USB powered external drive for my PS4. right?
 
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madmatt30

madmatt30

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I was talking about compared to PC.
Xbox one is a different case because its internal hard drive is both slow in the first place & only running on a sata 2 interface.
The same is absolutely true of the ps4 so on the case of using portable external drives with the consoles they're going to be as fast if not faster than the internal drives.

I wasn't aware that ps4 still doesn't have external drive support for games!!!!
That's a terrible misconception by Sony when the consoles been out over 3 years, I'd filled my Xbox one 1tb internal within a month of owning it due to joining ea access

If you'd mentioned console in the title or first post regarding using a portable external my first response would have been completely different.

 
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