Review: LaCie Porsche 250GB External HDD
In the 21st century, not having a backup of your valuable data is almost like placing your computer in the middle of the highway and waiting for it to be destroyed. Thats why I purchased a LaCie Porsche 250GB external hard-drive to use as a back-up drive. Because I value my data.
Design
I had the option to buy a Maxtor 300GB drive $30 cheaper than the LaCie, but chose the LaCie over it for one main reason. It’s style.
The Porsche series cannot be beaten with it’s stylish aluminum inclosure, matching almost any Macintosh setup. It’s nice and clean looking, and there’s an option to stack up to four drives on top of each other if you want to create a huge storage stack.
LaCie has included a glowing status light on the front of the drive to indicate what the drive is doing. When it’s a solid orange, you know the drive is idle, and not currently being accessed.
Speed
I suggest you opt for the FireWire version over the cheaper USB 2.0 model. The speed difference is tremendous. After completing a few benchmarks in store while testing the drive out, and the FireWire model was continuously 3 times faster than the USB one.
Here’s a quick speed test, the applications Mail, Safari, iTunes, Handbrake, and SuperDuper when open at time of test.
Transferring 60MB File To LaCie: 3.3 Seconds
Transferring 60MB File From LaCie: 3.6 Seconds
Heat
One thing the LaCie Porsche drive lacks is a cooling fan. Usually it’s not a good thought when you mix a hardware object which will be connected to a machine all day long, with no fan - but the Porsche drives (lack of) heat when moving files will leave you with a cool head when you knock off at night - knowing your data is safe.
I was able to transfer over 100GB of files straight to the drive without it heating up too much, sure, it was warm to the touch, but nothing excessively due to the tasks I was running. 15 minutes later the drive was cool and quiet once again.
If you’re buying a drive without a cooling fan, make sure the capacity of the drive is not too high. If you need over 500GB of storage space - skip the Porsche drive as it’s far to much of a risk to take for the price you pay should anything go wrong. For the small form factor, and the great price, the LaCie Porsche performs well without the need for a fan.
Noise
Due to it’s lack of a cooling fan, I expected the drive to be relitavely noisy even when not being accessed, but to my surprise, after a few days of moving files back and forth and having the drive sitting idle for hours on end, I’m very happy with the (lack of) noise the drive makes.
I recommend you go into System Preferences, Energy Saver, and check “Sleep Hard Drives When Possible”. It’s virtually silent when idle - and whisper quiet when in use.
Overall, a great purchase to keep your data safe. If you haven’t already got an external hard-drive, the LaCie Porsche is the way to go.
#1
Jeremy → jeremyfriedland.com
We used to carry the LaCie Porche hard drive (a 160GB version) at my job but a bunch were DOA so we switched to the Western Digital My Book. I have the 320 GB My Book Premium and its a really good drive, though i still like the style of the LaCie better.
#2
Previous OwnerNever by any LaCie drives. I and many other owners of the Porsche line of drives have had bad experiences.
If you want to actually use the drive for any important or backup data, DO NOT USE THIS DRIVE.
Just google it. You will find MANY cases in which this drive has failed and LaCie ignores its customers.
THE MOST RELIABLE HARD DRIVE is the G-Drive. It may be slightly more expensive but you get FireWire800 [not a puny 400] as well as the choice for a redundant RAID config.
#3
wphj → www.wphj.wordpress.com
I have a FireLite SmartDisk drive. I’m very happy with it. It’s really portable, and fast too.
#4
Glenn Wolsey → www.glennwolsey.com
I heard about all the complaints about the drive before I bought it, but a few close friends recommended it as their experience with LaCie had been smooth.
I hope (and believe) I will have a good experience with the drive.
#5
Nathan Makan → www.nathanmakan.com
Now I want you to go and purchase SuperDuper! It’s probably my favourite piece of shareware ever :)
#6
Indraneel → indraneel.thepurohits.net
If I were to get a MacBook, should I get a large external drive, or a large internal one? Also, should I only store files (such as my iTunes library) on the external, or is this taboo?
#7
Ryan Townsend → appleication.com
I would advise you to check what brand of drive is used Glenn. My experience with LaCie drives in the past shows they use Maxtor (this one might be different) which are bound to fail.
I always say WD for reliability and speed, Samsung for silence (in terms of HDDs, not specifically external).
I have 1 WD as my OS drive, and 3 Samsungs as others, 2 being in a RAID 1, and they are virtually silent - I can happily sleep while they are reading and writing away.
#8
Andre → winnopeg.com
I was going to get one of these a while back, but after I saw the reviews on Apple.com, I opted for something else. The reviews listed at the time all said the thing was crap and it failed after a year of use.
I ended up getting a no-name 250GB external (USB) for $100CDN instead (it hasn’t failed yet) so whatever.
#9
Dustin → web.mac.com/dustin.cook
Continuously, not continuassly.
#10
SamNice review, although the comments make me a little wary of getting a LaCie drive, the Porsche design is definitely sweet. Just out of curiousity, is there any reason why it’s not possible to stack more than 4 drives?
#11
Codie Westphall → 8flow.com
hey thats very nice one there, i just recently purchased a seagate 300gig drive and its a little (well big actually) chunky i guess, but it makes absolutly no noise except the ocation tick tick when i wake it up wich is bloody fantastic but im regretting going for 300 now and wish i bought a 500 gig, does anyone feel the same way?
#12
Robert → thatwhat.com
seen bad things happen with LaCie drives. Had a Samsung crap out, and now rely on OWC hardware for all serious storage. (knock on wood) everything is good now.
Good luck though with the LaCie, i’m sure you’ll have better luck.
#13
Rennervater → renner.wordpress.com
I love the design! As Borat would say : Very nice, I like :)
#14
craigethso you bought the $30 more expensive but less capacity lacie… what??
is there a reason why you didnt buy the maxtor. its cheaper and you get more space…
#15
Glenn Wolsey → www.glennwolsey.com
Quoting the post: “but chose the LaCie over it for one main reason. It’s style.”
Yes, I agree, crazy. However have a thing with everything looking great and matching.
#16
Jeremy → jeremyfriedland.com
@Indraneel
if you are getting a macbook remember that you can replace that hard drive very easily, so you can always upgrade.
I would recomend getting the hard drive with the highest RPMs and not capicity.
And then, if you find you need more space down the road, you can always just get a new larger and faster hard drive for cheaper then what apple has them for.
#17
daveQuestion about theses external hd’s. If for example saved music, pictures and other basic file types to it on an Apple, would i then be able to use those file on a PC based system? Thanks
#18
Leo F → meiobit.com
I will just wait for Leopard to come out, so that I know exactly what HDs will work with Time Machine. For Now I have a second internal HD on my PC, as well as Foldershare running across my network, with my PC backing up to Amazon S3 :-)
#19
EmJHere’s my question about this particular drive — yes, the steady orange light means things are good; however, what is happening when, as soon as you turn the unit on, it flashes orange continuously? In this state, the computer will not recognize and, as a result, it’s useless.
#20
Keith DanceyTalking of not having a cooling fan: “If you need over 500GB of storage space - skip the Porsche drive as it’s far to much of a risk to take for the price you pay should anything go wrong” but the 500GB LaCie Firewire Porsche has a fan. They specify something called a “smart fan”. And as far as know, this design does not come in capacities exceeding 500 GB.
Cheers,
keith
#21
Adam Welch → adamwelch.net
I just purchased a porsche 500GB USB drive. I have been using the Lacie d2 drives to archive all my photography for the past four years, and I have been very happy with them. When I went to the store this time, they didn’t have the d2 design, only the porsche, so I went for it. I was very dissapointed to see the plastic cover to the porsche. Furthermore, it seems to remain warm all the time, much warmer than the d2s sitting next to it. I am concerned that the porsche drive is signifigantly less reliable than the d2’s. Do you think I should return the 500GB USB porsche (120$)in exchange for a 320GB d2 (180$)? Reliability is my main concern.
#22
Glenn Wolsey → www.glennwolsey.com
The D2 is far more reliable from reports - though I don’t have any personal experience with it. I can tell you that I’ve had my Porsche sitting on top of the Mac Pro (turned on) for over two weeks, it is a little hot but performance is far from flakey. I’d recommend keeping the drive.
#23
Adam Welch → adamwelch.net
Thanks Glenn. Your site is amazing, and very inspiring. You’ve got a bright future.
#24
Remi → na
Hi…Can see here a lot of you have expressed consern about the drives inside the lacie porche hd-case? :P Well…i bought a 500gb Lacie Porche (yes..the USB 2.0 ver -.-)
I can now tell you that the drive inside my case is a “Samsung Spinpoint HD501LJ T166 w. 16M cache”… And i’ve never once in my life had any problems with the samsungs…. the maxtor-drives are a whole other story though :P The 500GB we get in europe are all good.. What case the drive is inside should be pretty irrelevant(as long as the temp is kept low) :P
#25
Glenn Wolsey : Blog Archive : Leopard Migration: How It Went Down → www.glennwolsey.com/2007/10/29/leopard-migration-how-it-went-down
[...] inserting the Leopard DVD I backed up my boot drive to an external LaCie Porsche drive. I made sure my entire home folder was stored safely on the drive just in-case the install [...]
#26
PeterHello, I just purchased the 500G porsche to use as an external hard drive for time machine. I’m very disappointed in that the drive never shuts down or sleeps. Regardless of whether the iMac is on, sleeping or off, the LaCie just keeps on turning. never cooling down, i imagine the life of the drive will be shortened. I’m currently wiping out all the backup info on the drive and will be returning it for one which powers down when not needed.
#27
BillThe monitor on my old (2000) OS9 iMac is starting to go, so I started looking for a large-capacity external hard drive so I could continually back up my work off-system in case the monitor died permanently. I settled on the LaCie Porsche because it’s the only drive I could find within my price range that supports OS9. When I first plugged it in, it froze the computer. Traced that to an extension conflict (File Exchange). Now the computer works with the Porsche on and plugged in, and the System Profiler recognizes the drive, but it doesn’t show up on my desktop, meaning it’s useless. Any suggestions?
#28
AngelaMy first Time Machine backup on my 500GB LaCie drive took several days (to copy only 70GB), so it got disturbingly hot. I also wish I’d bought the firewire version instead of the USB-only one… I was fooled by the numbers. But other than that, it seems to work so far.
I also just bought a 120GB LaCie mobile hard drive (USB and firewire, because I already made the mistake of getting a so-called USB-powered drive which turned out to require two USB ports immediately next to each other) and I have the same problem as Bill when I connect it by USB (whether or not I also have the extra USB power cable plugged in) on my PowerBook with OS X Leopard, But it mounts when I connect it by firewire. It’s going to be a pain copying stuff from my old portable firewire drive to this one with only one firewire port, I guess I’ll be using the other LaCie as intermediary.
#29
Aleda → car-mod-products.mylssaford.cn/car-motor-porsche.html
Nice!
#30
BobI just bought a d2 quadra 500G LaCie drive to back up my MacBook Pro running Leopard. I connected via Firewire and ran Time Machine and I am shocked to see that it has taken 9 hours to back up about 19GB. I have 92G on the hard drive so I am looking at 2-3 days to back this thing up. What could be causing this?
#31
Roland Giles → www.luropa.de
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Reno-activists Info Page
http://www.naturalknobs.com/
#32
Apple nutHitachi HDT725032VLAT80
I am a solid mac junky (since the 80s). Lacie was their partner in external drives for years. I have an older Porsche 160gb and it has stood through the ages and is EXCELLENT. I have dropped it so many times….yes…nothing has ever hurt it. I carry it in my school bag as backup for my laptop.
Last week I bought a second Lacie Porsche that was on sale (discontinued 320gb 7200rpm model). It is exactly the same shell with the exact same power supply. This drive made NOISE (My first one is 100% silent when writing). The 320GB new one is only quiet when doing absolutely nothing. When you write to the drive there is a constant chucking (metal on metal thumping) noise.
We read many posts that they said that it was an issue with the power supply, so we called LaCie (phone number on website) We were on hold an average of 30 minutes before talking to anyone EVERY time we called (called 4-5 times in the end). They promised to send one within 2 days. It has been two weeks now!!!!! Nothing has arrived. After calling and being on hold for more than 40 minutes (7 customers before us on hold), they said that they didn’t have supplies in stock and it would be weeks. POOR SERVICE! What the HECK! this supply has never change for any of the drives–not a special part!
Lacie said they would replace the drive if it had trouble after getting the new powersupply….should be trust them? NO…we read hundred of posts from others that Lacie will not replace the drive unless it fails–not for being unreliable or noisy.
Then I used my brain…duh…I swapped out the cord with the one on our older drive (EXACT SAME CORD). The noise persisted! The cord was not the problem. It is clearly the hard drive or box.
I investigated the HD. I had read before purchasing this drive that Lacie was using a Seagate barracuda 320gb drive in this model (a drive with a 5 year warrantee and why I purchased this particular Lacie and not the 500 GB). This was not what I got! Inside the Lacie Porsche 320GB is a Hitachi HDT725032VLAT80. I looked up reviews on this drive and they are bad. Noisy and failure are constant issues–problems starting from day one and failing in a year or less.
FINAL WORD: If your drive is no 100% silent when writing to the disk RETURN IT IMMEDIATELY and get another. There are only a few drive manufacturers and all the manufacturers make bum models–so brand name is not as important as the drive model.
Look up the model of the drive in your Lacie (on a mac you can read it information in disk utility). Then newegg.com is a great place to read about each drive, so you can see if the drive enclosed is a good one. In my 160GB Lacie the drive was made by lacie (drive is the LaCie Group SA)