Thanks for the detailed info, Leland! The extra cost of the bundled software doesn't seem to be worth the extra cost to me either. :)
I didn't realize the UBS3 units are out, that would explain the price cut on the USB2 units. My newly-upgraded i7 desktop system has USB3 ports onboard which is a plus, but my and my wife's notebooks do not. The USB3 units are almost 2x the price of the discounted USB2 units, so I am thinking I'll stay with USB2. Lou -----Original Message----- From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Leland Jackson Subject: Re: What is difference between Western Digital Elements and My Book Essential I purchased the WD 2T "element" for my wife about 6 months ago, so she can backup and have room for all her multimedia stuff. I deleted all partitions, (eg all the software, etc), that came standard on the Element and created an ext4 partition with ext4 file system on it. Now I'm confident I will not have to deal with a corrupt file system every time the electricity blinks. LOL If I remember correctly, the Essential comes with a virtual CD that is handled in a special ROM chip installed in the Essential. This would allow you to put a small OS, Like Knoppix, for example, on the virtual CD, and be able to boot that OS, if the BIOS of the computer supported it. The drawback with the virtual CD of the Essential is it cannot be deleted; although, it can be disabled by flashing the rom chip with a rom version that can be found on the WD website. You can read the reviews on the two drives below of more information. I didn't need a virtual CD or per-install backup and other software/file systems, included the added cost for something I didn't need, so I went with the Element. Be aware that USB 3 is available, if you want to pay a little more for the USB drive. USB 3 works best on motherboards that support it. Otherwise, you will need the USB 3 card that fits into an IDE x4 slot to get a good boost, but not as good as with a motherboard specially wired for it. USB 3 is backwards compatible with USB 2. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136471&cm_re=WD_ele ment-_-22-136-471-_-Product http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136397&cm_re=WD_Ess ential-_-22-136-397-_-Product Regards, LelandJ __________ Information from ESET NOD32 Antivirus, version of virus signature database 5664 (20101201) __________ The message was checked by ESET NOD32 Antivirus. http://www.eset.com _______________________________________________ Post Messages to: [email protected] Subscription Maintenance: http://leafe.com/mailman/listinfo/profox OT-free version of this list: http://leafe.com/mailman/listinfo/profoxtech Searchable Archive: http://leafe.com/archives/search/profox This message: http://leafe.com/archives/byMID/profox/054001cb917c$e4cdb5d0$ae6921...@com ** All postings, unless explicitly stated otherwise, are the opinions of the author, and do not constitute legal or medical advice. This statement is added to the messages for those lawyers who are too stupid to see the obvious.
