Drive size and speed determines the need for external power. Generally speaking, I believe 2.5" drives over 5400rpm/60GB draw enough wattage to outstrip the FireWire 400 spec.
There are other ways of powering the drive, too, like drawing power from neighboring USB or PS/2 ports. Tim On 1/13/05 20:27, Stan Halpin wrote: > My Mac G4 powerbook has the older Firewire. I can power my external > drives from the Firewire alone, though at home I use the external power > adapters for the drives in order to keep down the load on, and heat > production from, the Powerbook's power supply. My Powerbook at work > similarly can power the external CD drive via the firewire connection. > > Stan > > > On Jan 13, 2005, at 4:44 PM, Ryan Lee wrote: > >> I must have done my research wrong. I read somewhere Firewire 400 (4 >> pins) >> doesn't carry power like USB, while Firewire 800 (6 pins) could. I've >> been >> playing around with it a bit- unfortunately with the Firewire >> connection, >> it's not powered, and with the USB1.0 to USB 2.0 connection, it needs a >> Power supply to 'kick start' the harddrive, but functions if I unplug >> the >> supply after it's started. Bizarre. >> >> I always use a/c to run my notebook too, only thing is it's a bit >> annoying >> to plug in the external drive to a power supply too. Wires wires.. >> >> Cheers, >> Ryan >> >> >> >> ----- Original Message ----- >> From: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >> To: <[email protected]> >> Sent: Wednesday, January 12, 2005 7:29 PM >> Subject: Re: Enablement! Sorta.. >> >>> That's nothing to do with it being Firewire 400 - you can >>> get Firewire with or without the power supply connections, >>> independent of transfer speed. >>> >>> It's possibly to buy an external powered adapter (complete >>> with it's own wallwart transformer) that injects power into >>> a Firewire connection. >>> >>> http://fwdepot.com/thestore/product_info.php?products_id=372 >>> >>> Of course this means you have to have mains power available, >>> which isn't always the case with a notebook computer. >>> >>> I really ought to get one of these; I've got a firewire reader >>> for CF cards, and I can't use it on my notebook for exactly >>> that reason (which is how I know about the external adapter). >>> >>> I almost always need AC power to run my notebook; it lasts >>> for less than two hours on a fully-charged battery (that's >>> the way it is designed; it's built for speed, not duration). >>> >>> >> >> > > >
