What size enclosure do I use?

[Pete66]

I have a WD sata drive that I want to put in an external USB enclosure. Physically, the drive is 4 inches wide. I know about 3.5 inch and 5.25 inch enclosures, but what do I use for this. It's a WD5000AAVS, spec here: http://www.wdc.com/en/library/sata/2879-701229.pdf

 

[Pete66]

I've gone back and looked more carefully at the spec sheet, which says:
"Form factor 3.5-inch"

It's the platter size, not the case size. :-$

 

[r_manic]

Hey pete66, welcome!

Consumer hard disks nowadays usually come in two forms: the 2.5" and 3.5" form factors. The 2.5s are usually for laptops, while the larger 3.5" you'll most likely find on desktops.

The WD hard disk you linked to is a 3.5" hard disk. Hard disk enclosures are always advertised "for 2.5" hard disks" or something similar. So, look for an enclosure that can support a 3.5" hard disk.