Second HardDrive for 2010 MBP

QuadLeo · 02-01-2012 11:42AM #1

As the title suggests, I want to put a second hard drive into my MBP, replacing the optical drive. I'm going to use this.

However I then want to mount the optical drive (superdrive) in an external USB enclosure so I can still burn a cd if required. I can't find an enclosure that is compatible with superdrives from mid 2010 MBPs. Something like this. But it says this isn't compatible with mid 2010 models.

I've tried Google and the usual Mac support sites with no luck. Does anyone know firstly why it isn't compatible and secondly is there another enclosure out there that will work?

MiniNukinfuts · 02-01-2012 02:42PM

I did this just last week, I bought this enclosure It works well, and it looks great.

QuadLeo · 02-01-2012 03:45PM

Cheers for the reply. Is your laptop a macbook pro mid 2010 model? I see no reason why it wouldn't work with a superdrive from a mid 2010 model but I've read on a few places that a lot of enclosures don't work with them.

MiniNukinfuts · 02-01-2012 05:58PM

nope, mine is the early 2011 MBP but the design and size of the superdrive hasn't changed so the enclosure I linked should fit. I'm 99% sure about that.

QuadLeo · 02-01-2012 08:49PM

Sweet, I'll give it a shot so. Thanks

MiniNukinfuts · 02-01-2012 11:04PM

Cool, have you have already bought the 2nd HDD caddy?

QuadLeo · 03-01-2012 12:30PM

Not yet. I was looking at this one

It's out of stock at the moment though. Where did you pick it up?

MiniNukinfuts · 03-01-2012 01:04PM

I went with this. That was for my 2011 one. The same seller has one that would fit your MBP here.

He has it cheaper that the site you linked above. It came from china, it only took about 10 days to get to me and the quality is very good. I highly recommend it.

QuadLeo · 03-01-2012 03:23PM

Cheers. It looks ideal. Never ordered from ebay but the seller seems legit. Thanks for that. I'll let you know how I get on.

MiniNukinfuts · 03-01-2012 03:56PM

Ebay is very reliable, it's all about the right seller. The guy i linked you is brilliant.

QuadLeo · 17-01-2012 01:03PM

The parts arrived. Bit of a delicate job but I'm up and running now. Noticing performance improvements already.

MiniNukinfuts · 17-01-2012 01:41PM

Glad to hear that. In the time you were gone, my enclosure decided to break, the circuit board on it was broken. I got a refund for it, which one did you buy?

What do you think of the caddy quality? I thought it was brilliant.

QuadLeo · 17-01-2012 02:53PM

That's a pain in the ass. I got this one. It's working fine but it burns disks a lot slower compared to an internal drive but it does the job. And the internal SATA to USB circuit does look a little delicate. I rarely use it to be honest. I think the caddy is really good quality. Especially considering the cost. €33 all in, incl delivery for both items. Now to deal with the huge time machine backups after I moved my home folder to the new internal drive.

MiniNukinfuts · 17-01-2012 04:07PM

The reason why it's slow at burning is because it's not running at full power, since it's powered from the usb it draws less power. I bought a liteon external drive for €10 off a friend the other day, so i'm just leaving my superdrive alone for the time being.

Time machine is one of the handiest tools i've ever used for reinstalling, i love the way it copies over user profiles and all the settings stay the same. It only took me less than an hour to install my ssd, 2nd hdd + caddy and install the OS

Second HardDrive for 2010 MBP

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